The Magnetic Memory Method Podcast

Amazing Language Learner Olly Richards Pulls Back The Curtain On Exactly How He Learned 8 Languages In Record Time – With More Than A Full-Time Job Crowding His To Do List … Tune In To Learn How You Can Do It Too! In this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, Olly makes a second appearance on the show to follow up on the episode called Olly Richards Talks About Language Tech And Real Communication. But before you listen to this episode, make sure to join us on Olly's free training series, "3 Proven Secrets To Becoming Conversational In Spanish". This call is pre-recorded, so you can register anytime. I'm on the call as both moderator and student advocate, so you won't want to miss a moment of this call. We go deep into what it takes to learn a language and you'll take away a lot of actionable tips. After registering for the call, come back and listen to each and every word of this special podcast and you'll learn: * How to find words and phrases that you ACTUALLY want to speak when learning a language. * The power of setting a "crazy goal" for motivating yourself to take action and make targeted strides, even if the language you've chosen is difficult. * How to elevate your thinking about the art of language learning so you get maximum results in minimum time. * The best ways to "wrangle" your speaking partners and tutors into shape so they help you study what you need to study instead of wasting time on willy-nilly activities that won't get you anywhere. * The essential questions you should prepare yourself to answer when studying your dream language. * How to develop a list of topics that you're likely to talk about so that you're not chained to the next page of your textbook. * The new – and BETTER – way to think about rote learning for getting traction when learning a language. * Why memorizing is just one part of language learning and how to identify and isolate the other parts to boost your success. * The one thing that keeps Olly up at night when learning a language. Solve this one worry for yourself and you will never run out of steam. * The scheduling secret Olly uses to "oblige" himself to attend lessons. You can uses this approach too – even if you've got a zillion things to do. Heck, the dude even shipped himself to Thailand when he wanted to learn to speak Thai. * The absolute best time of day to study your target language so that you always feel like you've made progress and build your sense of accomplishment. * How to avoid letting the great get in the way of the good so that you can start from a place where speaking practice is always good not matter how unprepared you might be. Use this approach and you can literally get prepared on the fly. * The ultimate motivation secret for getting yourself through multiple lessons and find language teachers you will genuinely love learning from. * The untapped power of hypothetical questions and role play in your language learning practice that you're not using – but should be! * Olly's take on using mnemonics for individual words and when you should be focusing on them instead of entire phrases. In fact, you should be encountering them inside entire stories. Here's an example from Olly from his Spanish Short Story collection: * Textbook tactics for shopping and getting the most out of every resource you buy. * How to avoid tourist-speak so that you aren't limited to ordering food and asking directions to the hospital for your cat (yes, you will be led into these dead ends if you don't take Olly's advice). * Exactly how to deal with introversion so that no matter how shy you might be, you can eliminate random social unknowns and learn in a safe and practical environment. * … and much, much more. This is the kind of episode you're going to want to save and keep returning to again and again. And if you interested in memorizing the key points, How To Memorize A Textbook will help you master this simple skill and put you in a position to memorize vocabulary and phrases at a higher level thanks to your practice of the art of memory. Further Resources Olly's I Will Teach You A Language Podcast Olly's Language Learning Foundations Course (highly recommended) Olly's Amazon Author Page Spanish Short Stories For Beginners Volume One Spanish Short Stories For Beginners Volume Two Italian Short Stories For Beginners German Short Stories For Beginners Russian Short Stories For Beginners Photo Essay The picture above is from the May 2015 Polyglot Gathering in Berlin. From left to right you see myself, Olly, Richard Simcott, Kris Broholm, Brian Kwon and Jan van der Aa. From the same event, Benny Lewis, myself and Olly. Somehow they manage to just look crazy. I took first prize for psychotic. Mark Channon discusses memory techniques and the good habits needed to make massive strides with them at Magnetic Memory Live in London 2015. Olly's Memory Palace based on his apartment in Cairo. Top notch work and it was very cool that I could see the place with my own eyes more than a year after he sent me this drawing. The list of words in Egyptian Arabic Olly used the Memory Palace to memorize. In Egypt, Olly introduced me to the Nile in style. A sushi bar. My last day in Cairo, we played with hiragana and katakana and Olly drew a diagram of exactly how languages get learned at the highest possible level. I won't mentioned the memory-unfriendly Guinness we were swilling – because we truly weren't. Quick Summary Of Things Olly Taught Me At the 2015 Polyglot Gathering in Berlin, Olly noticed the benefits, but more importantly, the deficits of my flirting around with multiple languages. Talking about this issues, we were talking along a street in Prenzlauerberg when he gave me the excellent idea of directing the Magnetic Memory Method back at just one language. But this time, instead of starting from scratch with a new language, he suggested I focus on using mnemonics to dramatically improve my relatively advanced German skills. And so that's exactly what I did. Here's how: First, I immediately hopped on italki and found a German speaking partner. I've had a few since then, and each has been a blessing. Olly's guidelines for getting the most out of a speaking partner are golden, and he talks about them in detail in the episode of the podcast you can download at the top of this page. To maximize the value of the sessions, I always ask my speaking partners to use a Google spreadsheet for each lesson. This lets me isolate the new vocabulary, arrange it and even drop in a scan of the Memory Palaces I use to rapidly learn and memorize the sound and meaning of each word I'm encountering, often for the first time. Then, I write sentences around the words after pulling them from my memory – away from the source of the spreadsheet. Only later, do I check them against the record and troubleshoot when necessary. A second trick I learned from Olly is to record all my sessions. That way I can go back and hear exactly how the speaker pronounced the words. I can also hear my own pronunciations. This process is super-painful, but it helps immensely. Third, I follow Olly's advice to forbid (as much as possible) the speaking partner from using any English. This practice can be frustrating, but stick to it and you'll be amazed by how quickly you outpace yourself. Caution, however. This is advice Olly gives for when you're at an intermediate level with a language. At the beginning stages, it can be very useful to have your instructor explain certain features of a language to you in your mother tongue. Just don't let that be an excuse for not diving in to the language. You also shouldn't get in the habit of using it as a crutch. Learn how to say, "I don't understand" and "please say that in other words" a.s.a.p. Fourth, I begin each new speaking session with a review of everything I memorized from the last one. But I don't cheat. The original spreadsheet is on another tab and I honestly work from memory. This allows me to benefit from any mistakes I make. And again, this is recorded so that I'll be reviewing the process again later. You might be thinking that hearing mistakes made grounded on false moves with the Memory Palaces would just lead to confusion, but it's quite the opposite. The entire process only gets stronger. Finally, here's a fun – but rigorous – technique I added on my own: As part of my reading practice, I choose three new words from each page. Never more and only less when I don't find a max of three new words on a page. Then I memorize them using the room I'm in as the Memory Palace and follow up by writing sentences around them. A book with an average of 300 pages read over the period of 6 – 8 weeks = 900 new words inside of two months. With an 80% retention rate, the results are impressive. The only problem I've found in the past is that I wind up learning a ton of words that no one uses. However, that's an interesting problem to have, fun for my philological yearnings and thanks to the practice I've found an interesting solution that puts a bit more bang behind this unusual outcome: I read books written only in first person and in one of the Berliner dialects. This choice increases the chances that I'll learn words that people use around me and teaches me a lot more about one of my favorite cities in the world and the people who call it home. Thanks again to Olly for the solid lessons and for being on the show – see you soon! The post Olly Richards On Crazy Language Learning Goals And Mastering Motivation appeared first on Magnetic Memory Method - How to Memorize With A Memory Palace.

It's a curious thing that human beings, and most other animal species, are driven to regular periods of inactivity and unconsciousness. What could be less evolutionarily beneficial than a stretch of eight hours during which you can't hunt, defend yourself, or reproduce? Not to mention working on your memory improvement. All jokes aside, the fact that we are driven to sleep is an indication that sleep has an important purpose in our biology. And yet, the precise mechanisms of sleep remain largely mysterious. The exact reasons why we require sleep, and what happens during sleep, are areas of current research. One thing is for certain: lack of sleep leads to an array of social, financial, and health-related costs. Indeed, the fatality rate of sleepiness-related car crashes is similar to that of driving under the influence (Goel et al 2009). What's more is that prolonged sleep deprivation leads to death for many studied species (and presumably humans) (Cirelli et al. 2008). Despite these realities, a full 20% of adults are not getting enough sleep (Goel et al 2009). It's a common practice in our culture to praise those who can work the most and sleep the least. However, research indicates that this attitude is misguided. Lack of sleep has important negative implications for cognition. Sleep deprivation puts pressure on your entire cognitive apparatus, and has the potential to affect your memory. After this article, you may be convinced that a nap is in order. What Exactly Is Sleep? Over 85 years, an average person will sleep 250,000 hours, which is equal to 10,000 full days (Scullin et al 2015). But what is sleep, really? It is commonly believed that sleep is a continuous period of a complete loss of awareness. But in actuality, sleeping is not one continuous state and a sleeping person does not lose total awareness. Instead, they alternate between reduced awareness of the external world and a complete loss of consciousness (Gudberg et al 2015). From here, sleep is typically classified into two categories. The first is non-rapid-eye-movement (NREM) sleep and the second is rapid-eye-movement (REM) sleep (Bryant et al 2004). NREM sleep happens during the early moments of falling asleep. As the name suggests, there is little to no eye movement during NREM sleep. Dreams are rare during this stage, your body is not paralyzed as in REM sleep, and mental activity is still "thought-like" (Bryant et al 2004). This is the stage during which some people will sleep-walk. The role of NREM sleep is to conserve energy, cool the body and brain, and promote immune function. Following NREM sleep, a person will fall into REM sleep, where rapid eye movements can be observed. This is where the majority and the most vivid dreams occur. Your body is paralyzed, which is an adaptation to prevent you from acting out your dreams. You will periodically wake up – which some researchers feel serves as a way to survey the environment (Bryant et al 2004). These mini-awakenings are typically not remembered. The Devastating Consequences Of Sleep Deprivation On Memory Revealed As you sleep, you will cycle between NREM and REM sleep four to five times during the night. By understanding our sleep patterns, it becomes evident that there is much more that happens during sleep than simply being unconscious. The broad overview given here just scratches the surface of the complex world of sleep. For all of its complexity, sleep serves essential functions. For example, a sleep-deprived person suffers from many ailments, including: A weakened immune system (Bryant et al 2004). Reduced wakefulness – microsleeps during wakeful hours after sleep deprivation (Cirelli et al. 2008). Compromised cognition. The compromised cognition experienced during sleep is all too familiar for many of us. We all know that after a poor night's sleep, we are groggy and we tend to think more slowly. When it comes to memory, the essential role that sleep plays is more pervasive than most realize. Sleep Plays a Key Role When it Comes to Your Memory There are three basic memory stages. The first is called acquisition or encoding. This is the process of collecting the information or processes that you'd like to memorize. An example could be re-reading the dates and prominent figures in a history book. This is called "declarative" memory, and is the memory of facts and information. Another example of memory is procedural memory. This is memory of how to do something. This could be anything from learning how to ride a bike or learning how to play the piano. The second step is consolidation, where the information you've absorbed become stable in your mind. It is at this stage that memories are formed in your mind. Finally, you must be able to recall memories for them to be useful. Thus, the final stage in memory is remembering something during your waking hours. Numerous studies have indicated the importance of sleep for the second stage, memory consolidation. A good night's sleep can help you recall facts and information, as well as solidify skills that you're trying to learn. Under the current scientific understanding, sleep is absolutely essential to memory. We require sleep to file information collected during our waking moments, in our minds. In doing so, we are able to recall newly acquired information (Ellenbogen et al. 2006). For example, learning the guitar requires that you memorize hand movements as well as notes. This is called procedural memory. Long term sleep has been specifically found to help with procedural memory formation (Diekelmann and Born, 2010). Sleep Shifts Info Around In Your Brain Sleep also serves to reorganize new memories. During sleep, the brain will access new information and make links with previously absorbed information. This helps segment and associate relevant parts of a complex memory to previous memories. While solidifying new information in your mind, this aids in the creativity process. This is because the brain will sometimes associate new information with old information in unexpected ways, thereby leading to novel insights (Diekelmann and Born, 2010). Scientists also believe that we "replay" our previously learned information and skills during our sleep. Experiments have been conducted on animals and humans after they have been trained on a particular task. During sleep, the same parts of the brain that were active during the training exercises, were active while sleeping as well. This is because the brain will repeat the actions during your sleep (Diekelmann 2014). Sleep is essential to memory. One study not only found poor memory recall in sleep deprived individuals, but also found that they recalled false memories. That's right, you are more likely to remember untrue information following sleep deprivation (Diekelmann 2008). In other studies, those that slept, recalled more and performed better on cognitive tests than those who stayed up. Looks like those all-nighters weren't the best idea after all. How to Use Sleep For Memory Enhancement Getting a good eight hour sleep has been shown to benefit memory (Diekelmann and Born, 2010). But what about sleep that occurs outside of your regular nightly routine, such as power naps? Good news nappers! Research has also pointed to memory improvement even for shorter naps. In a study of 29 undergraduate students, one hour naps were found to benefit factual recall. However, the memory of procedures, that is, memory of how to perform actions, was not improved. The study concluded that more complete periods of rest were necessary for the proper learning of memory (Tucker et al 2006). Even more stunning is that even very short naps seem to have a positive effect on memory of facts and information. A study compared different nap durations, as well as staying awake. They found that even a micro-nap of six minutes enhanced memory recall. The study concluded that although longer naps improved recall more than very short naps, very short naps still have significant benefits (Lahl et al 2008). Ultimately, it seems that if you're looking to improve your memory of facts and information, naps are in fact helpful. However, if you are trying to learn the keyboard, a longer sleep time is what you really need. In terms of the optimal or minimum amount of sleep that you'd need, that is still unclear. More research is needed. However, if for whatever reason you can't afford a full-night's rest, a nap might help to keep you going. How to Get a Good's Night Sleep Now that we know the importance of sleep, you may be wondering how you can get the absolute best sleep possible. After all, most of us do not have the benefit of being able to sleep and take naps whenever we'd like. That's why it's important to learn how to get the highest quality sleep during the time you have available. Here are some tips to improve your sleep and help you get to sleep faster: Only use your bed for sleeping and sex. Try to avoid using electronics, watching TV or eating in bed. This might associate these activities with being in a bed and prevent you from being able to fall asleep. Avoid long naps during the day. Although I've mentioned that naps can enhance memory, it's important to restrict napping because they can also prevent sleep. Take no more than a 25 minute nap during the day, or avoid them altogether. Remove all lights and sounds from your bedroom. Buy light-blocking curtains if necessary. Use a regular alarm clock instead of your cell phone. Do not drink or consume caffeine for at least six hours before bed. Be careful, coffee isn't the only substance that contains caffeine. Tea, soda, and even chocolate contain caffeine that you should avoid before trying to fall asleep. Memory enhancement is a tricky business and there are a myriad of ways you can do it. Whether it be food, meditation, or drugs, everyone has a preferred method. Regardless, everyone needs to sleep. Since sleep plays such a key role in memory retention and recall, you might as well make the best of it. Make sleep a priority in your daily life. Contrary to popular belief, sleep isn't for the weak. Sleep is for those with great memory improvement goals. Further Resources Memory Strategies For Your Nightlife And Why I Don't Do Lucid Dreaming 11 Unexpected Answers To Your Questions About Mnemonics Bryant, Penelope A., John Trinder, and Nigel Curtis. "Sick and Tired: Does Sleep Have a Vital Role in the Immune System?" Nat Rev Immunol Nature Reviews Immunology (2004): 457-67. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. Cirelli, Chiara, and Giulio Tononi. "Is Sleep Essential?" PLoS Biology PLoS Biol (2008). Web. 18 Jan. 2016. Diekelmann, Susanne. "Sleep for Cognitive Enhancement." Frontiers in Systems Neuroscience 8 (2014): 46. PMC. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. Diekelmann, Susanne et al. "Sleep Loss Produces False Memories." Ed. Jan Lauwereyns. PLoS ONE 3.10 (2008): e3512. PMC. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. Ellenbogen, Jeffrey M, Jessica D Payne, and Robert Stickgold. "The Role of Sleep in Declarative Memory Consolidation: Passive, Permissive, Active or None?" Current Opinion in Neurobiology (2006): 716-22. Web. 19 Jan. 2016. Goel, Namni et al. "Neurocognitive Consequences of Sleep Deprivation." Seminars in neurology 29.4 (2009): 320–339. PMC. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. Gudberg, Christel, and Heidi Johansen-Berg. "Sleep and Motor Learning: Implications for Physical Rehabilitation After Stroke." Frontiers in Neurology 6 (2015): 241. PMC. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. Lahl, Olaf, Christiane Wispel, Bernadette Willigens, and Reinhard Pietrowsky. "An Ultra Short Episode of Sleep Is Sufficient to Promote Declarative Memory Performance." Journal of Sleep Research J Sleep Res (2008): 3-10. Web. 19 Jan. 2016. Scullin, Michael K., and Donald L. Bliwise. "Sleep, Cognition, and Normal Aging: Integrating a Half-Century of Multidisciplinary Research." Perspectives on psychological science : a journal of the Association for Psychological Science 10.1 (2015): 97–137. PMC. Web. 18 Jan. 2016. Nature Reviews Neuroscience 11, 114-126 (February 2010) Tucker, M., Y. Hirota, E. Wamsley, H. Lau, A. Chaklader, and W. Fishbein. "A Daytime Nap Containing Solely Non-REM Sleep Enhances Declarative but Not Procedural Memory." Neurobiology of Learning and Memory (2006): 241-47. Web. 19 Jan. 2016. The post How Sleep Affects Memory Improvement appeared first on Magnetic Memory Method - How to Memorize With A Memory Palace.

Supplements, both legal and illegal, have been used for centuries to enhance cognitive performance. For example, Sigmund Freud used cocaine to prevent fatigue. In fact, he is reputed to have written some of his most popular psychoanalytic works while under the influence. Entrepreneur and author Tim Ferriss is also known for his experiments into so-called "smart drugs". Today, caffeine is a popular choice, used as a cognitive stimulant and is often consumed in very high doses. The widely consumed regular size Starbucks coffee contains five times the amount of caffeine of a normal coffee (Mehlman 2004). Yet another common cognitive enhancer is nicotine, most commonly ingested through inhalation. It's been found that nicotine has the ability to improve cognition in areas such as attention, memory and motor skills (Heishman et al 2010). The reality is that most of us are not open to experimenting with unhealthy or illegal drugs to enhance our cognition. But with the aging population and increase in age-related memory deterioration, many are turning to out-of-the-box solutions (Mehlman 2004). Discovering a quick-fix pill that protects and even enhances memory would be both beneficial and exciting. This lusty market for an easy memory solution has been quickly filled with many drugs claiming to have amazing brain-boosting potential. Known as Nootropic supplements, these cognition-enhancing drugs make bold claims about their ability to increase their user's memory. In comes science to cut through the marketing hype and give us real answers about whether these pills really work. Before we continue, here's an important disclaimer: By offering this information in written form and by including videos of various people explaining or supporting the uses of supplements for memory, I in no way intend to validate, support or recommend the use of memory supplements. Please see your doctor before taking any substance and always, always use mnemonics. That said, if you're ready to experience the Matrix of memory supplements, take the red pill and let's get started. Huperzine A As people start to live longer, the potential for memory loss grows higher. In fact, 11% of people over the age of 65 live with Alzheimer's. As current treatments have limited effectiveness and come with severe side-effects, scientists are scrambling to find better treatments (Guoyan 2013). In their quest, a supplement called Huperzine A has been tested for potential benefits. Huperzine A is a dietary supplement. This supplement is made from an extract of a plant called "toothed firmoss", also known as Huperzia serrata. Toothed firmoss is native to India and Southeast Asia. In traditional eastern medical practices, it has been used to treat bruises, muscle strains, colds and to improve blood circulation. As with most cognition-enhancing supplements, firm conclusions about whether Huperzine A can enhance memory cannot be made. There are not many studies completed on the supplement, and those that have been conducted only included a small sample size (Yang et al. 2013). Nonetheless, the findings thus far seem promising. A recent 2013 research paper reviewed all available evidence on the efficacy of Huperzine A to improve or correct memory deterioration. The paper found that Huperzine A demonstrated positive effects on memory recall for those with memory issues. In some studies, Huperzine A even out-performed traditional treatments for Alzheimer's (Yang et al. 2013). But what are the effects for younger people without formal memory impairment? A study looked at treating self-reported memory problems in otherwise healthy adolescent students. . In total, 68 students were given either a placebo or Huperzine A. After four weeks, the student who took Huperzine A showed signs of significant memory improvement, with no side effects reported (Sun et al 1999). As data on Huperzine A is still too scant, you won't find a doctor commonly prescribing this drug just yet. What's more, the evidence is pointing primarily to Huperzine A's usefulness for short-term memory improvements (Yang et al. 2013). But don't go running to the drugstore to pick up these supplements quite yet. As with any drug, it's best to consult with your pharmacist or doctor before taking the supplement. Although Huperzine A appears to be well-tolerated in short durations, side-effects such as nauseous, epilepsy and slow heart rate have been reported. Currently, no studies have been conducted on the long-term side effects of Huperzine A. Acetyl-L-carnitine Acetyl-L-carnitine (ALC) is a hormone that is naturally produced in the body. Unlike many supplements and compounds, it is able to cross the brain-blood and directly affect the brain. It's function in the body includes improving neuron cell health and preventing excessive brain cell death. For this reason, scientists have considered its potential for improving cognition and memory. However, marketers have skipped a step and have gone directly to selling the supplement as a cognitive enhancer. But does the evidence support the marketing? Not so much. A major review of the use of ALC on improving cognition in Alzheimer's patients was performed by Cochrane Journal in 2003. It reviewed all of the studies which had investigated the effects of ALC on declining memory. The results were sobering. Many measures of cognition were tested and the review only found a slight improvement on a single measure of cognition. This measure was not directly related to memory. What's more, the review cautioned that even this small positive effect may be due to chance (Hudson, Sheila and Naji 2003). This review casts serious doubt on ALC's ability to improve memory, despite marketing claims. Since 2003, more studies have explored the effects of ALC on memory and cognition improvement. For example, a 2011 study analyzed ALC's effects on those with severe hepatic encephalopathy, a disease that impacts brain function. For those assessed, the study did show some improvements in cognition including memory (Malaguarnera 2011). However, this evidence is preliminary and did not directly mirror the effect of ALC on memory. Overall, the evidence for ALC is weak. More information is needed before the cognitive benefits claimed by ALC manufacturers can actually be proven. Phosphatidylserine Phosphatidylserine (PS) is a naturally-occurring compound that is consumed as part of a normal diet. It can be purchased as an over-the-counter supplement in many grocery stores and pharmacies. PS is a supplement with a long history. Initially, there was great interest and many scientific studies were conducted on PS derived from cow brains. After fears of mad cow disease became more prevalent, this supplement fell out of favor (Zchut et al. 2013). https://youtu.be/ZcPFpx-WrPQ In the mid-1990s, soybean-derived PS became available. This safer alternative once again garnered attention from the scientific community (Zchut et al. 2013). So far, findings from both the cow-derived and soybean-derived PS have shown promise for improving memory. For example, in a study of over 388 cognitively-impaired older adults, PS was effective in improving word-list recall. What's more is that positive effects have been observed for normally-aging adults. In a study of 149 normally aging adults, PS was compared against a placebo in a variety of memory tests. This study found that the PS-taking adults were better able to coordinate face recognition tests as compared to the placebo group. However, their results were comparable to the placebo-taking participants for various memory recall tests (Villardita et al 1987). Despite the appearance of a few well-designed studies demonstrating positive results, the overall picture seems less exciting. A review produced in 2003 found that the effects of PS on memory were inconsistent and modest, at best (McDaniel, Maier and Einstein 2003). In the same review however, scientists did underline that the results were positive enough to warrant further research. As a result, since 2003 more studies have been conducted. Most recently, a study published in 2014 investigated the efficacy of a omega 3/PS combo supplement on memory enhancement. They recruited 122 healthy seniors who voiced complaints about their memory (but not memory deterioration, such as dementia). After 15 weeks on the drug, the study found a significant improvement in the memory of its members. This memory improvement was identified by participants and was measured objectively through a memory test (Vakhapova 2014). A definite bonus for PS is that it seems to be a safe supplement. In the same 2003 review cited earlier, no adverse effects were reported (McDaniel, Maier and Einstein 2003). As always however, it's best to consult with a pharmacist or physician, especially if you consume other medications or substances. Bacopa Bacopa is also known as Brahmi and is a natural herb in India. It is a small plant with oblong leaves and light purple flowers. It has a long history of use in Indian medicine. Traditionally, it has been used in the treatment of disorders including anxiety, intellect and poor memory. Bacopa is currently marketed in Western countries as a memory enhancing supplement. Until recently, the only published studies on the effects of Bacopa had been tested on animals. Since the early 2000s, more studies on humans have been conducted. One of the earlier human studies included 84 volunteers, who took either a placebo or Bacopa. These volunteers were healthy and between the ages of 40 to 65 (Roodenrys et al. 2002). The participants were given three months worth of Bacopa supplements (or placebo, depending on their group). They were tested on multiple occasions during these months for various tests of memory (Roodenrys et al. 2002). It was found that Bacopa-taking volunteers did not show any improvement over their placebo-taking partners on most memory tests. However, those who took Bacopa did experience a significant improvement in their ability to retain new information (Roodenrys et al. 2002). This study has been followed up by more research exhibiting positive results. For instance, a study conducted in 2008 compared the effects of Bacopa versus a placebo over 90 days. Included were 62 healthy volunteers between the ages of 18 to 60. When compared to the placebo group, takers of the Bacopa supplement saw significant improvements in their working memory performance. Much like PS, the drug was also well tolerated without many real side effects (Stough et al. 2008) With positive evidence mounting, a systematic review of Bacopa studies was published in 2012. The review pursued all randomized controlled trials on the cognitive effects of Bacopa. This meant that they only included trials with a placebo, which neither the researchers nor the patient knew about (Pase et al 2012). The results showed that Bacopa was beneficial for improving cognitive function related to attention, and especially, speed of attention. The paper suggests that Bacopa can reduce the time needed to complete a task by around 18 ms (Pase et al 2012). The researchers were hesitant to say that the evidence strongly favored Bacopa for memory improvement. Although individually, studies do show improvements in different aspects of memory, the overall significance of those effects were unclear. However, since Bacopa seems to lack any severe side-effects, it might be worth a try – with your doctor's approval of course. Vinpocetine Ever see a periwinkle flower? It's that cute flower with that dazzling blue hue. You might be surprised to hear it's also the plant from which another commonly marketed brain-booster is derived. Vinpocetine was developed in Hungary, and is currently used in mainstream medicine. However, it's use in medicine is not directly related to memory. Instead, it has been scientifically proven to increase blood flow to the brain (McDaniel, Maier and Einstein 2003). But can it increase the memory juice flowing through your mind? What seems to be certain is that the improved blood flow to the brain does have positive effects on overall cognition. For example, in a study conducted on dementia patients, 87% of vinpocetine patients improved – as compared to only 11% of placebo patients (Manconi et al. 1987) However, experiments on the effects of vinpocetine directly on memory are lacking. In one of the only studies looking at the effects vinpocetine on Alzheimer's, no benefit was observed (Thal et al. 1989). Therefore, the jury is still out inasmuch as the benefits of vinpocetine are concerned. However, vinpocetine seems to have minimal risks associated with it as well. In Conclusion As you can see, definitive research into the link between supplements and memory enhancements is still in its infancy. Despite bold claims made by these supplement marketers, this article demonstrates that overall evidence is far from complete and decisive. The number one thing that people can do to enhance and protect memory is to follow a healthy diet and exercise regularly. However, for those looking for an edge, above and beyond diet and exercise, some of these supplements may be worth considering. As amply repeated in this article, it is very important to seek medical guidance when trying new supplements. Although most of these supplements have not shown severe side-effects, they may react with other medications. What's more, none of these supplements have been studied for their long term effects. For all we know, these may actually lead to memory degradation with years of use. Any use of these supplements should be restricted to no more than three months at a time. At the very least, these supplements offer a fruitful field of research. There is at least enough evidence to show that these brain-boosting supplements deserve more research. It's up to you to decide if you'd like to take part in the experiment. Further Resources Chan A, Remington R, Kotyla E, Lepore A, Zemianek J, Shea T "A vitamin/nutriceutical Formulation Improves Memory and Cognitive Performance in Community-Dwelling Adults without Dementia." The journal of nutrition, health & aging 14.3 (2010): 224-30. Web. 4 Jan. 2016 Hudson, Sheila A, and Naji Tabet. "Acetyl-l-carnitine for Dementia." Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews Reviews (2003). Web. 4 Jan. 2016. Heishman, Stephen J., Bethea A. Kleykamp, and Edward G. Singleton. "Meta-Analysis of the Acute Effects of Nicotine and Smoking on Human Performance." Psychopharmacology 210.4 (2010): 453–469. PMC. Web. 1 Jan. 2016. J.K. Blusztajn, U.I. Richardson, M. Liscovitch, C. Mauron, R.J. Wurtman. "Phospholipids in cellular survival and growth" I. Hanin, G.B. Ansel (Eds.), Lecithin: technological, biological, and therapeutic aspects, Plenum Press, New York (1987), p. 85 Web. 4 Jan. 2016. Mcdaniel, Mark A., Steven F. Maier, and Gilles O. Einstein. ""Brain-specific" Nutrients: A Memory Cure?" Nutrition (2003): 957-75. Web. 5 Jan. 2016. Malaguarnera, Michele, Marco Vacante, Massimo Motta, Maria Giordano, Giulia Malaguarnera, Rita Bella, Giuseppe Nunnari, Liborio Rampello, and Giovanni Pennisi. "Acetyl-L-carnitine Improves Cognitive Functions in Severe Hepatic Encephalopathy: A Randomized and Controlled Clinical Trial." Metabolic Brain Disease Metab Brain Dis (2011): 281-89. Web. 4 Jan. 2016 Mehlman, Maxwell J. "Cognition-Enhancing Drugs." The Milbank Quarterly 82.3 (2004): 483–506. PMC. Web. 1 Jan. 2016. Pase MP, Kean J, Sarris J, Neale C, Scholey AB, Stough C. The cognitive-enhancing effects of Bacopa monnieri: a systematic review of randomized, controlled human clinical trials. Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 2012; 18(7): 647-652. [PubMed] Sun Qing-Qi, Xu Si-Sun, Pan Jian-Liang, Guo He-Ming, Cao Wang-Qi. "Huperzine-A capsules enhance memory and learning performance in 34 pairs of matched adolescent students" Acta. Pharmocol. Sun. (1999) 601-603. Web. 4 Jan. 2016. Vakhapova V, Cohen T, Richter Y, Herzog Y, Kam Y, Korczyn A, D, Phosphatidylserine Containing Omega-3 Fatty Acids May Improve Memory Abilities in Nondemented Elderly Individuals with Memory Complaints: Results from an Open-Label Extension Study. Dement Geriatr Cogn Disord 2014;38:39-45 Villardita C, Grioli S, Salmeri J, Nicoletti F, Pennisi G "Multi-centre clinical trial of brain phosphatidylserine in elderly patients with intellectual deterioration" Clin Trials J, 24 (1987), p. 84. Web. 4 Jan. 2016 Yang, Guoyan, Yuyi Wang, Jinzhou Tian, and Jian-Ping Liu. "Huperzine A for Alzheimer's Disease: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Clinical Trials." PLoS ONE (2013). PLOS ONE. Web. 4 Jan. 2016. Zchut, Sigalit, Yael Richter, and Yael Herzog. "The Effect of Soybean-derived Phosphatidylserine on Cognitive Performance in Elderly with Subjective Memory Complaints: A Pilot Study." CIA Clinical Interventions in Aging (2013): 557. Web. 5 Jan. 2016. The post Can You Supercharge Your Memory With These Popular Supplements? appeared first on Magnetic Memory Method - How to Memorize With A Memory Palace.

Auguste Deter was only in her late 40s when she started showing signs of dementia. Her husband Karl, cared for her for some time. Eventually, he could not cope with her hallucinations and forgetfulness that often kept him up all night. When Auguste was 51, Karl placed his wife into a psychiatric institute. There, she spent the rest of her short life, eventually dying at the age of 55. Auguste is now acknowledged to be one of the most well known patients in medical history (Muller et al. 2012). The doctor who examined her, Dr. Aloysius Alzheimer, named the disease for which she is acknowledged as the first identified patient. At that time, he called it "presenile dementia," but later his colleague Emil Kraepelin gave the condition the name by which we know it now. It's been over 100 years since Alzheimer's disease was first described, and yet, no cure has, as of yet, been found. However, with an increasingly aging population, it has become more pressing than ever to find effective treatments (Giacobini and Becker, 2007). In the absence of a definitive cure, this post and podcast will provide important information about Alzheimer's. The disease can be all-consuming for those afflicted, as well as their caregivers. Understanding how it works and how to care for that person may help to relieve stress for those trying to cope. Who Does Alzheimer's Affect? Alzheimer's is a disease of old age, and generally, affects those over the age of 65. However, a rare variation of the disease, early-onset Alzheimer's, will affect those as young as 35. The prevalence is higher in females than males, although females do tend to live longer, which may explain this trend (Keene, Montine and Kuller 2015). It's important to realize that although Alzheimer's affects older adults, it is not part of normal aging. Right now, the overall prevalence of Alzheimer's is between five to seven percent throughout the population (Keene, Montine and Kuller 2015). As we age, the likelihood that we will be affected by Alzheimer's nearly doubles every decade. That is, by the ages of 95-99, your chances of having developed Alzheimer's increases by 50%. What Causes Alzheimer's? The cause of Alzheimer's is, as of yet, not completely understood (Ginter et al. 2015). We do know that genetics plays a role in early-onset Alzheimer's. This form of the disease is rare, and affects people under the age of 65. What genetics fails to fully explain is the prevalence of Alzheimer's in aging adults (Keene, Montine and Kuller 2015). The links between risk factors and Alzheimer's have not fully been proven. However, in studies the following has show to possibly increase our risk of Alzheimer's: Hypertension (high blood pressure) during midlife Having Type 2 diabetes Obesity Living an inactive lifestyle Having had a brain trauma Having had exposure to secondhand smoke If you have a family history of dementia and Alzheimer's, the chances of developing it yourself is much higher. People with a first-degree relative (parents or siblings) who developed dementia after 65, but before 85, have a higher risk factor. In fact, they are 10 to 30 times more likely to develop dementia themselves (Keene, Montine and Kuller 2015). Alzheimer's and Memory Alzheimer's is the most common cause of dementia, which is a degeneration of cognitive function. One of the earliest and most distinctive aspects of Alzheimer's is its affect on memory. The first warning signs a doctor and other caregivers will look for is memory impairment (Wolk and Dickerson 2015). The patient will typically go through selective losses in short-term memory. For example, a person suffering from the early stages of Alzheimer's may find themselves getting lost on familiar paths. They may forget recent events and repeatedly ask for the same information. It's important to keep in mind that normal aging does accompany some memory deterioration. However, unlike normal aging, the cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer's comes in the way of normal daily activities. The table below compares normal memory loss associated with aging to memory loss associated with Alzheimer's (Leifer 2006). Family members may notice these types of memory declines and others, such as repeatedly asking for the same piece of information. As the disease progresses, memory becomes severely affected. Memories of the person's life are impacted. A patient will forget important life events, occurring at a particular time and place early on in their disease (Wolk and Dickerson 2015). Moreover, factual memory, such as the words used for objects and concepts, deteriorates as time goes on. A doctor may test memory by asking patients to learn and recall a series of words or objects. Recall is asked for both immediately and at a delay of five to ten minutes. They may also ask them about important historical events or artifacts in popular culture (Wolk and Dickerson 2015). The brain of a normally aging person will compensate for the memory loss due to normal aging. The cognitive decline of a normally aging brain will not be severe enough to affect their ability to complete everyday tasks. Nor will the cognitive decline affect a person's ability to live independently (Wolk and Dickerson 2015). However, a brain with Alzheimer's will decline quickly. This can vary, but the average survival rate after diagnosis is between eight and ten years. Some survive for as long as 20 years after the diagnosis (Wolk and Dickerson 2015). What Alzheimer's Looks Like As Alzheimer's progresses, the afflicted person will become more and more disoriented. Alzheimer's patients will increasingly be unable to: Speak or write coherently. They will have trouble finding the right words for the right situation. Understand what is said or written. Recognize familiar places. Plan how to take multi-step actions. Carry out multi-step actions, such as cooking. Concentrate. Make logical choices or decisions. For example, dressing in a outfit with oddly matched colors and patterns. As the disease progresses into later stages, the person will start to exhibit more personality and emotional changes. These can be particularly stressful. They may include: Increased hostility or increased passivity. Hallucinations or delusions. Disorientation. Incontinence. These changes might be due to chemical imbalances in the brain. They may also be due to the individual's increasing fear and confusion because they do not understand their own surroundings. Eventually, an Alzheimer's patient will literally forget the more fundamental tasks, such as how to move. They will become immobilized and require assistance for bathing, eating and dressing. Treatment options There is no cure for Alzheimer's. Current drug treatments only slow the disease in the short-term, for no longer than a year. However, for patients with early stages of the disease, medications can improve their cognitive function. These benefits may need to be weighed against the medication's side-effects as the disease progresses. In addition to medication, there are behavioral treatments available. For example, speech therapy can be combined with medication to help patients with troubles in this domain. Caring for an Alzheimer's Patient Caring for people afflicted with Alzheimer's is a very cumbersome task, and difficulties range from financial to emotional stress. In a study carried out in the UK, nearly two-thirds of people caring for Alzheimer's patients were family members (Beinart et al. 2012). When dealing with Alzeheimer's, it's important to seek support from extended family members, friends and your community. Ask your doctor to refer you to a local chapter of the Alzheimer's Association. Many changes will need to occur in an afflicted person's home and life due Alzheimer's. They will likely be unable to drive, and will need monitoring and help with basic tasks. These include things such as cooking and taking medications (Alexander and Larson, 2015). Other tips for helping people with Alzheimer's include: Simplifying choices, such as wardrobe choices, to reduce their indecisiveness and confusion. Having familiar objects or photos may help with a patient's disorientation with time and space. Keep distractions and noise to a minimal so as not to agitate the patient. Speak clearly, with short and concise sentences to increases your chances of being understood. Encourage daily exercise, such as daily walk, to maintain physical health and tire the patient out. This will help prevent them from wandering and getting lost. Avoid major changes in their environment. Try to be patient when waiting for responses and actions to be performed. Employ safety measures in the home, such as locking medicine cabinets, removing electrical appliances from the bathroom, installing grab bars in the bathroom, and setting the water heater below 120ºF Install locks on the outside of the doors, so the patient cannot unlock and leave the house. To prevent the person from getting lost, employ the use of a "safe return program" provided by the Alzheimer's Association. They offer 24-hr assistance. Try to implement a daily routine, but remain flexible. In the mid-to-late stages of the disease, it may become impossible to care for the person at home. They may require skilled health care attention and placing the patient in a nursing home may be the best option. Most importantly, remember that as a caregiver, you require care as well. Using respite services, such as adult day care and hiring home aides when possible is a great way to recharge. Caring for a person with Alzheimer's is a marathon, not a sprint. You need to ensure that your mental and physical health is tended to. Emotionally and mentally, it's important to try to focus on the positive. Try to enjoy the remaining qualities and activities with your relative instead of only remembering what you've lost. Remind yourself that you are doing your best in moments when you feel overwhelming guilt or fatigue. Future Hope for Alzheimer's Disease Alzheimer's disease is a tragic sickness, and poses an enormous financial burden on society at large. Paying to care for patients with dementia and Alzheimer's is predicted to cost 1.2 trillion dollars by 2050. The good news is that there is increasing evidence that Alzheimer's may be more of a lifestyle disease than previously acknowledged. Except for rare cases of early-onset Alzheimer's, which have a strong genetic component, lifestyle may determine your likelihood of developing it. That is, maintaining a healthy diet and doing regular exercise can decrease your chances of developing Alzheimer's. Due to the strong link between blood-sugar levels, some scientists have even started calling Alzheimer's "Type 3 Diabetes" (De la Monte and Wands, 2008). Not everything in life is within our control. However, living a healthy and balanced life are ways to counteract the effects on cognitive function, especially as we age. For our purposes, the question is … Can Mnemonics And Memory Palaces Help? It's too soon to tell, but I highly recommend watching this TEDTalk with Kasper Bormans for an introduction to what might be possible: Further Resources and Reading Nelson Dellis spoke on the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast about his experiences with Alzheimer's and his efforts to combat the condition. Check out Extreme Memory Improvement to learn more. These memory tips from Dr. Gary Small may not be the ultimate prevention against Alzheimer's, but they are going to serve you well. Give it a listen. I recommend subscribing to Preserving Your Memory Magazine, put out by the Fisher Center For Alzheimer's Research. And for more information, follow-up on the following articles: Alexander, M., Larson, E. B., Patient information: Dementia (including Alzheimer disease) (Beyond the Basics) Up To Date (2015). Online. Beinart, N. Weinman, J., Wade, D., & Brady, R. "Caregiver Burden and Psychoeducational Interventions in Alzheimer's Disease: A Review." Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders EXTRA 2.1 (2012): 638–648. PMC. Web. 15 Jan. 2016. De la Monte, Suzanne M., and Jack R. Wands. "Alzheimer's Disease Is Type 3 Diabetes–Evidence Reviewed." Journal of diabetes science and technology (Online) 2.6 (2008): 1101–1113. Print. Keene, C. D., Montine, T. J., Kuller, L., H. "Epidemiology, pathology, and pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease" Up To Date (2015). Online. Müller, Ulrich, Pia Winter, and Manuel B Graeber. "A Presenilin 1 Mutation in the First Case of Alzheimer's Disease." The Lancet Neurology (2012): 129-30. The Lancet. The Lancet. Web. 13 Jan. 2016. Leifer, B. P. "Alzheimer's disease: Seeing the signs early." Journal of the American Academy of Nurse Practitioners(2009) 21: 588–595 Web. 13 Jan 2016 Ginter, E., V. Simko, D. Weinrebova, and Z. Ladecka. "Novel Potential for the Management of Alzheimer Disease." Bratislava Medical Journal BLL (2015): 580-81. Online. Giacobini, E and Becker, RE. One hundred years after the discovery of Alzheimer's disease. A turning point for therapy? J Alzheimers Dis (2015): 12, 37-52 Wolk, D. A., Dickerson, B. C. "Clinical features and diagnosis of Alzheimer disease" Up To Date (2015). Online. The post 3 Things To Remember About Alzheimer's And Memory appeared first on Magnetic Memory Method - How to Memorize With A Memory Palace.

How would you like permission to skip school for the rest of your life as a student? Or how about the ability to quit your job and do whatever you like for the rest of your career? Well … I'm not sure I can help you with that. But what I can do is give you some tips on how to live an interesting life. Here are six of them: 1. Be The Driver Of Your Education There are two main forms of education: * External Driven * Self Driven The first is the kind of education where you show up when you're told and sit where you're told. You even eat when you're told. Sounds kind of like prison, doesn't it? Prison? It Might Even Be Worse! Not only do you have all kinds of pressures on your time. You've got people telling you what to learn. Think about that: What. To. Learn. Oh no, no, no. No and a thousand times no. That's not the path to an interesting life. What you want instead is to … Be The Boss And Manager Of Your Own Intelligence Let me tell you a story: I dropped out of high school in Grade 12. There's a lot of detail surrounding this decision and some of it ain't pretty. But sticking to the facts (and just the facts), I thought school was such a drag that I decided to stay home and read Collier's Encyclopedia. Each morning I would leave home. But instead of getting the battered yellow school bus into town, I would hike up into the mountains. For months I experienced the Fall transform into Winter and then Spring from up above the highway where I would wait for my mom's car to pass by. It sounds like something out of Hitchcock's Psycho, I know, but as I was watching the highway waiting for mom to go to work, I was listening and learning. No, not listening to Heavy Metal. Not pop. Not even soft rock. Instead, I was listening to the CBC on my fat yellow Walkman. At that time, Peter Gzowski, a.k.a. Mr. Canada, was the host of Morningside. Over the course of the year, I got virtually a Ph.D. in Canadian culture, history, politics, literature and the arts. I also heard interviews with important people from around the world. True, a bear might have mauled me while I was up there, and I did have a few close encounters with moose and deer. But the danger was worth it. And after a few hours of Morningside, I would head down the mountain and make hot chocolate. With a steaming cup beside me on the coffee table, I would sit in the same rocking chair I was nursed in and read the Encyclopedia. It was like being nursed all over again, this time by the knowledge my parents had invested in when they ordered the Encylopedia one volume at a time. These days we have Wikipedia, but back then, if you wanted to know about the world, it cost a lot of money. I remember my mom talking about saving for the Encyclopedia year after year. She cut dozens of coupons from the newspaper so she could save more and complete the set. It took about three years and after that, she kept up with the yearly updates for at least another three. And this was all before I was old enough to read anything more complicated than Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. (Come to think of it, that story is rather complex …) It was a lot of fun reading through Collier's Encyclopedia. And educational. When I finally did return to complete high school, I knew so much about the world that … School Was EVEN MORE Boring! But that was fine. Because I knew about all kinds of books I wanted to read. So whenever I could, I would still skip school and take out a notebook I'd kept and look for all the books I'd learned about in Collier's. I would go to the Kamloops Public Library and check them out. While everyone else was spending weeks struggling through A Separate Peace by John Knowles, I was reading: * The Stranger by Albert Camus * 1984 and Animal Farm by George Orwell * Demian by Herman Hesse * The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka * Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevski … and much, much more. The point of all this is that I was practicing, without even realizing it, the art of self-driven education. Of course, I'm not suggesting that anyone quit school, skip school or do anything like that … But I am suggesting that you won't get nearly as intelligent as you deserve to be if you learn only what you're told. So What Can You Do? If you're told to read a Shakespeare play, read the play and follow it up by reading another. Or look up a book about Shakespeare and read a play by one of his contemporaries (I recommend the zany John Webster). If you find math difficult and boring, find a book on mathematics that has mostly words. See if you can tackle the idea of math from another angle. Khan Academy has math courses you can take as well, something I couldn't enjoy. But you can. And when you find an author or an online teacher you like, stick with them. You can learn a lot by seeing how people develop over time. You'll also learn a lot about successful people, which brings us to … 2. Reverse-Engineer People You Admire (Just So Long As They Aren't Creepy Weirdos Or Serial Killers) The world is filled with people who have either lived or are living exciting lives. That doesn't mean they led easy lives. There's no such thing and living without challenges would probably be even more tedious than high school. What you want to look for when studying the biographies of other lives are: * How they explained their desires, goals and wishes * What actions they took to do great things * How they coped with suffering * What they did to keep themselves expanding * How they dealt with their historical circumstances * Who they knew and what they did with their friendships and relationships There's so much more to pay attention to, but these are a good start. Why Do This? Because life starts to get serious when you act and think about who you are and what you want to do. And to truly develop a unique profile and create the space needed in your mind to become whoever it is you're going to become … You Need The Ability To Think And Feel The Ideals And Sorrows Of Others And Dream Up Your Preferred Version Of The World So You Can Make It Real When you study others, you'll experience a diversity of ideas that will train you to pay attention to what everyone around you is doing. It will also help you get past the negative habit so many have of rejecting differences. Remember, there are no differences as such. Everything is part of the world. And as long as that is true, everything in the world is part of you. And that means everything and everyone applies to you and your life. If you don't like reading or care to develop a re-reading strategy, you can also watch biographies. And for a super-interesting exercise, you can pick a single actor and watch as many films starring that person as possible in chronological order. You can choose actors who are good at portraying different characteristics and actors who just seem to be playing themselves over and over. Either way, you'll notice patterns of consistency and difference. And like a wine expert, you'll start experiencing all kinds of different shades of flavor you never noticed before. Next, move from hanging out with books and movies to … 3. Toss Social Inertia From Your Life Forever Whether you're an introvert or extrovert, it's easy to fall into the trap of seeing the same people all the time. That's no way to revolutionize your life and keep it revolutionizing. So as you're finding interesting biographies and adapting ideas to your life, HUNT for advanced people with whom you can share an environment. (But not in a creepy way …) Find the people who have the characteristics you want and enter their circles. Don't be creepy about it. Just identify someone and ask if you can have 20 minutes of their time to ask some questions. Then ask them who else you should talk to continue your education. Do this and you'll have an unending stream of new contacts and interesting people around you. As a result, you'll experience SO MUCH MORE in your life. And you'll always have interesting things to say to the new people you continue to meet. Plus, if you visit these people in their homes, you instantly have more Memory Palaces. You can also meet them in cafes or restaurants you've never visited to increase your awareness of your city and its offerings. All this will help you develop … 4. The Most Important Skills In The World Communication, for example. There's no point in being more interesting if you're no good at speaking. At some point, you've got to learn to control how words come out of your mouth. You get that practice by … (gasp!) speaking with people. You can also attend Toastmasters meetings, start a podcast, speak your mind on YouTube and develop yourself as a writer. To get good at writing, start with the high school newspaper, writing letters to the editor, regularly updating a blog or just by posting on Facebook to explore your ideas. By studying all those successful people and learning to communicate with them, you'll also be orienting on success. This will help ensure that your life isn't controlled by external circumstances. You won't fall prey to the strange idea that certain times are good and particular periods of history are bad. Here's the only thing about time you need to now: Times Change … Your job is to adjust. To be flexible. To be adaptive. To be agile, aware and if necessary, defensive. Above all, you want to develop awareness of everything around you that you possibly can. Because at the end of the day … The way you succeed has little to do with the ways of the world. It has to do with how you react to the way the world changes. And you always want to ask … What advantage can I take of the present state of change? It's a compelling question and the best way to prepare for the times when you'll need to ask it is to … 5. Live Like A Scientist Scientific living means being measurable. You can measure everything down to what you do to be productive and make good use of your timeTOR's Post, to measuring your testosterone levels. Measuring your activities will help you see where you're strong and where you need to improve. The best part is that, because you're studying so many other people, you'll see how you can do more of what works, and how you can do things differently. Track everything in a journal, diary, Google Spreadsheet, in Evernote or whatever you prefer. Use whatever tool makes it easy for you to see where you are, where you've been and where you're going. By doing this, you can develop processes and systems for your life. For example, I have systems that tick along no matter what happens on CNN: * Writing every day * Putting out a weekly podcast * Emailing Magnetic Memory Method members 1-2 hours a day * Theatre group once a week (when in season) * Other regular courses * Monday and Friday mornings at the gym And the best part of all this activity and tracking is that … It's Easy To See The Holes In The System For example, my activities are all fine and dandy, but looking them over, it's clear to me that I'm missing out on music. Now I know that I've got to schedule more time for my memorize Bach on bass habit. Popping Bach into my memory used to be a huge part of my week, and now it's faded almost to nil. The important point here is that you want to develop "sticktoitiveness." The ability to stick to it is pure gold. So many of us (including me) get so distracted by the next bright shiny object that we need systems to keep ourselves on track. Sticking with the program is important because without consistency, we never wind up doing anything long enough to see results. And at the end of the day … It's All About The Results That's why it's so important to stop and check in with yourself and your stats. And stop searching for the easy path. That's one of the quickest ways to fail. In reality, finishing a course you've started or completing a project from beginning to end IS the easiest way to get from point A-Z. Success happens when you bring precise implementation to the game. I'm talking about dedicated practice, which is as true to memory development as it is to any task. Stick with whatever you're doing. Experiment with it. Study every angle and explore every corner. Do that and you won't need memory techniques. The stones will be set and the things you've learned will be impossible to forget. Finally, there is one point that rules supreme: 6. Have Confidence In Yourself Not only do you need to have confidence in yourself. You need to have confidence in the things you're doing. This is why, for example, completing courses and finishing books you've started is so critical. We live in memory. We thrive or fail by what we've done in the past. The more good things we've done, the more positive experiences we have to build upon. That said, if you have weaknesses in your past, perhaps even terrible experiences … There Is No Reason To Let The Darkness Control Your Future If you just make the shifts needed to put yourself in alignment with others, your unique desires and the habits and patterns needed to achieve success, all the pieces will fall together. You'll see the patterns you noted in the lives of others emerge in your own life. You won't let yourself get bullied out of accomplishing your dreams. You'll be a transformer. An influencer. A true human being who cannot help but live an interesting life. Further Resources How To Improve Concentration And Memory Buddha-Style The post How To Live An Interesting Life appeared first on Magnetic Memory Method - How to Memorize With A Memory Palace.

If you're looking for how to improve concentration and memory, this may be the most important blog post you ever read. Why? Because there are few things more frustrating than not knowing how to improve concentration! Well, okay, there's also the frustration of forgetting important details. Especially when you're in the middle of something as important as recalling a person's name, an important fact, or even a hilarious joke. Or worse: When you've prepared the perfect anecdote, yet, you can't retrieve the single most important part from your memory. Here's where the real frustration sets in: You can remember the newspaper where you read the information. You can even remember the look of the page where the information was found, including images and other small details. And yet, in your mind's eye … That One Piece Of Information Is Painfully Out Of Reach! Don't worry. You're not losing your memory. Your inability to remember is likely related to the level of concentration you used at the time you read the passage. This is because concentration is key to memory recall. (In case you want to look it up on Wikipedia, concentration is also known by the slightly less sexy term, "attentional control.") And how to meditate for improving concentration and memory is exactly what you'll learn in this post. But first, a demonstration of just how easy it is to sit and meditate: And now, an important question: What Exactly Is Concentration? Good question, especially when it comes to memory. Why? Because concentration is necessary for creating complete memories. Lack of attention to detail leads to difficulty remembering crucial and important pieces of information. Although having excellent concentration may not necessarily lead to better memory, concentration is essential to well-formed and useful recall of information. But in a time with so much valuable information at our fingertips, there are more barriers for our concentration than ever. The notification-saturated world of the the internet constantly attacks our focus. This reality has led some teachers to worry that students are growing up with decreased attention spans. Thankfully, there is a powerful and scientifically proven method to improving concentration using meditation for concentration and memory. What's more, this method has been practiced for thousands of years. Best of all, it's a simple practice anyone can take up, at no cost, with no fancy equipment, and no extensive training. This 3,500 Year Old Technique Will Improve Your Concentration And Memory The mind is a powerful thing. Perhaps no other group of minds demonstrates this more strongly than experienced Buddhist monks. These monks dedicate their lives to following the Buddhist 8-fold path to enlightenment. The path involves doing good, serving others, and extensive meditation. Enlightenment is the ultimate state of mind. When enlightened, a meditator finally achieves a complete stillness of the mind and inner peace. A Short History Of The Research Into How To Improve Concentration And Memory Although meditation has existed for over 3,500 years, the scientific community has only been studying meditation for over 50 years (Thomas and Cohen, 2013). Every day people have studied meditation too and discovered a lot about how it helps memory: For both scientists and lay people, meditation has demonstrated impressive memory improvement and even helped stunning feats of long term retention and recall. In one mind-defying example, Buddhist monks have been recorded controlling their body temperatures through a meditative practice called "g-tummo". In controlled scientific tests, experienced monks were able to dry cold and moist sheets (Kozhevnikov et al. 2013). These sheets were placed around each monk's body, and were dried within an hour. This meditation process was made possible through body heat produced by the monks while in their meditative state of "g-tummo". Some witnesses of similar experiments report seeing steam emerge from the sheets while they dried (Kozhevnikov et al. 2013). Researchers also measured the monks' body temperatures, which rose by as much as 17 degrees Celcius. How Is This possible? No one quite understands the biological mechanisms behind meditation just yet. But study after study demonstrates that meditation has far-reaching benefits – including for concentration and memory. Indeed, meditation is perhaps the only mental exercise with so much evidence of its ability to improve cognition and focus. And you don't even have to be a monk to start using this tool to better your own mind, body, and soul. The Long way To Better Concentration As with everything, there's an easy way and a hard way. Science doesn't skip over the hard way and investigates everything (crazy right?). Looking for links between meditation and cognition, researchers from the University of California, Davis, recruited 60 people for a study. Half were assigned to a meditation retreat to practice mindfulness meditation for an average of five hours a day for three months. These participants were committed. Not only did they volunteer three months of their time t, but they also paid $5,300 to attend the retreat. The other 30 were used as a control group and placed on a waiting list. This was to rule out that the passage of time alone was not to blame for any differences between the groups. Both groups were asked to watch a series of lines flash on a screen. Participants were to click a mouse when they saw a line that was shorter than the others. This detail-oriented test forced participants to focus intently. Researchers found that those who meditated were significantly more likely to see increasingly small differences in the lines (Maclean et al. 2010). In other words, the meditation group were better able to focus in on small details through their improved concentration (Maclean et al. 2010). But not everyone has the time to undergo a three month meditation retreat. So, where's the shortcut for the majority of us who want the benefits without the commitment? Science has a solution. The Easy Way To Better Concentration As benefits to cognition had been observed for longer-term meditation, researchers were curious to see whether less effort could be effective (Zeidan et al. 2010). In a study conducted at the University of North Carolina, a group of 49 students volunteered for a meditation study. None of them had prior experience meditating. 24 participants were randomly assigned to meditation, while 25 were assigned to listening to an audiobook. Each group performed their activity for 20 minutes, four times a week, for one week under laboratory supervision. At the end of the one week experiment, the meditation group experienced significant improvements in concentration compared to their audiobook counterparts (Zeidan et al. 2010). Are There Any Limits To Meditation And Improvement To Concentration And Memory? It's important to note that this research has a few limitations. These results were seen in college students and may not extended to older adults. Also, there is no indication that this is as effective as longer-term and longer-duration mediation (Zeidan et al. 2010). However, it is encouraging that immediate benefits to practicing short-term meditation were observed. This means that you don't have to wait a few months before you can start benefiting from your practice. Within a week of consistent meditation, you can start to experience improved concentration. But Will It Really Improve Your Memory? If the meditation-to-concentration-to-memory link seems shaky to you, don't abandon meditation just yet. The link is more direct: meditation has also been shown to improve memory. A randomized controlled test studied the effects of meditation on the working memory capacity in adolescents. Around 200 teenagers were recruited and assigned to either a mindfulness meditation practice, yoga, or were waitlisted as a control group. The groups meditated or practiced yoga once a day for 15-30 minutes. These were accompanied by two formal teaching sessions twice a week. By the end of the study, teenagers participating in the meditation group had significantly better outcomes than their yoga counterparts. Particularly in terms of their working memory capacity (Quach et al 2015). But Meditation Doesn't Just Improve Memory For The Young! Another study looked at the effects of mindfulness training in adult-aged college students studying for their GRE tests. Sure enough, the meditating participants experienced less mind-wandering and increase working memory capacity. This result was achieved with only two weeks of meditating ten minutes per day (Mrazek et al 2013). By now, you must be getting excited about meditation's potential to super-charge your cognition. Calm your mind for now and read on about how to get started on your practice. How To Meditate For Better Concentration There are as many ways to meditate as there are Buddhist monks. By stripping away the religious practices, a secular, simple, and one-size-fits-all solution to meditation is available. To start meditating, just follow these steps: Find a quiet spot, empty of distractions. Set a timer for the amount of time you want to meditate. Start with five minutes and move up from there. Sit on a chair or on the floor, whichever is more comfortable. Close your eyes and focus on your breath; on where it feels the strongest. When thoughts enter your mind, don't reject them. Simply acknowledge them and gently return your attention to your breath. If meditating in silence is too difficult, you can try a large variety of guided meditations. These include phone apps, such as Headspace and Breathe. No research has been done showing any benefit to meditation less than four times a week. To get the most out of it, aim to meditate as consistently as you can, at least a few times per week. And if you'd like a more advanced approach to meditation (the one I use most often), check out The Five Fold Path To Memory Improvement. Enough Reflection, It's Time For Action Improving your concentration is a step towards improving your memory. Meditation is a powerful tool for improving concentration and bettering your cognition. The best part is that meditation can help you use a Memory Palace. Especially in an age of endless distractions and heightened stress, incorporating practices to re-focus your mind is important. For some, daily meditation might seem like an impractical use of time. However, think about the time you waste, lost in thought, unfocused, and scatter-brained. With that in mind, it's easy to understand how meditation yields impressive dividends for a relatively small investment in time. Results are not instantaneous, but you can be sure that they're scientifically backed. Carve out ten minutes today for your first meditation session. Your mind will thank you. Further Resources How To Improve Memory And Concentration By Reducing Stress. 3 Ridiculously Boring Ways To Add Focus And Excitement To Your Life. Kozhevnikov, Maria, James Elliott, Jennifer Shephard, and Klaus Gramann. "Neurocognitive and Somatic Components of Temperature Increases during G-Tummo Meditation: Legend and Reality." PLoS ONE (2013). Pubmed. Web. 28 Dec. 2015. . Maclean, K. A., E. Ferrer, S. R. Aichele, D. A. Bridwell, A. P. Zanesco, T. L. Jacobs, B. G. King, E. L. Rosenberg, B. K. Sahdra, P. R. Shaver, B. A. Wallace, G. R. Mangun, and C. D. Saron. "Intensive Meditation Training Improves Perceptual Discrimination and Sustained Attention." Psychological Science (2010): 829-39. Upaya. Web. 29 Dec. 2015. Mrazek, M. D., M. S. Franklin, D. T. Phillips, B. Baird, and J. W. Schooler. "Mindfulness Training Improves Working Memory Capacity and GRE Performance While Reducing Mind Wandering." Psychological Science (2013): 776-81. Sage Pub. Psychological Science. Web. 29 Dec. 2015. Quach, Dianna, Kristen E. Jastrowski Mano, and Kristi Alexander. "A Randomized Controlled Trial Examining the Effect Of Mindfulness Meditation on Working Memory Capacity In Adolescents." Journal of Adolescent Health. Science Direct. Elsevier. Web. 29 Dec. 2015. Thomas, John W., and Marc Cohen. "A Methodological Review of Meditation Research." Frontiers in Psychiatry Front. Psychiatry (2014). PMC. PMC. Web. 29 Dec. 2015. Zeidan, Fadel, Susan K. Johnson, Bruce J. Diamond, Zhanna David, and Paula Goolkasian. "Mindfulness Meditation Improves Cognition: Evidence of Brief Mental Training." Consciousness and Cognition (2010): 597-605. Print. The post How To Improve Concentration And Memory Buddha-Style appeared first on Magnetic Memory Method - How to Memorize With A Memory Palace.

I'll never forget the day I made the most important discovery of my life. A discovery that would also prove important for thousands of language learners and students of various topics around the world. Here's what happened: I was on my porch down in Zehlendorf. (It's really too bad about Zehlendorf …) I really miss that part of Berlin. I used to walk to the nearby lake and through a wooded area leading to the stores and the M48 bus I often took to Potsdamer Platz where I would watch movies for my work. Yes, watch movies. I was a Film Studies professor back then. Greatest job in the world – if you can get it. And If You Can Keep It! Anyhow, I was on the porch studying German and nearly tearing out my hair with frustration. No matter what I did, the German vocabulary wouldn't stick in my mind. Worse, the flashcard software I'd been using bored me to tears. I've never found anything more painful than banging foreign language vocabulary repetitively against my eyes in the vain hope that I would somehow magically remember the abstract and mysterious words. In all fairness, some people can tolerate rote learning. In fact, there's research suggesting that polyglots get great value from hard repetition. This happens primarily because they've trained themselves to be really good at it. But Let's Be Real Most people do not want to be polyglots. Most people would be happy just to get halfway decent in one language, not several. In fact, most people would be overjoyed just to get a couple of hundred words in their long term memory. And most people would be ecstatic if they could turn those words into basic conversational fluency. All you need is about 800-1200 for that, plus a touch of understanding the grammar. So there I was with a fat dictionary pumping words into the spaced-repetition software I loathed like the plague. I sure loved that dictionary, though. What a glorious thing, all thick and yellow. Heavy too, almost as heavy as a brick. But that didn't stop me from carrying it everywhere. And That's When It Hit Me! With a bit of summer wind on my face, I asked myself a fundamental question: Why on earth wasn't I using memory techniques to help me learn German? Seriously. They sometimes say that Ph.D. stands for "piled higher and deeper," but Mann O Mann (as the Germans say), was I ever mystified. You see, following a terrible and nearly suicidal depression that almost forced me out of grad school, I discovered memory techniques almost by accident. I was avoiding the looming field exams and dissertation defense by learning magic tricks. Of course, procrastinating on my studies only made my depression worse … But it's at least a good thing that I was doing something constructive. I thought of my magic practice as developing a kind of "emergency paycheck," because I was certain at that time I was going to wind up on the streets with nothing more to do than entertain people and pass around my hat. And I suppose that would have been fun for awhile. Studying card magic was certainly better than jumping off a bridge, which the mounting pressure and the teeth of my depression were forcing me to consider. Worse, if you've ever experienced the horrors of manic-depression in full swing, you know the impulses involved. They are sick and sweet and jump out at you from nowhere. It's terrible too because once the urges pounce, they can keep trouncing on you for days and days on end. The most sinister part of the situation was that I couldn't concentrate or read. It always felt like my eyes were slipping off the page. And when I could read for brief periods of time, I always wound up forgetting everything. And that made me frustrated and even angry. Magic was my only relief. And it was easy to study too because you can buy a lot of training in card and coin magic on DVD. I didn't have a whole lot of money at the time, but it sure was worth it. Especially when I came across the process that would save my life. I'm talking about the "Holy Grail" of all card tricks: The Memorized Deck. There's a ton of effects you can create with a memorized deck. The only difference is … They Aren't Effects! They're Based On Real Magic … … Or at least, the closest thing to real magic that exists. The ability to go through 52 cards, looking at each only once and being able to recall the entire order backward and forward … This ability is a complete miracle. So I bought a book on the topic and an audio program that included a section on card memorization. It would be years before I read the book, but my hungry ears gobbled up the audio like peasants on bread during a famine. And what I heard nearly made my brain explode. It's true. I understood the procedures immediately. It's shocking how simple it is, and yet … … I was skeptical. How on earth was I going to put these techniques into action when I could barely concentrate on a book? Not only that, but playing cards are essentially a kind of book, only they are made up of totally abstract and fragmented sentences and chapters. And the pages can be endlessly recombined. But even so, I gave the technique a try. What happened totally blew me away. Why? Because 15 minutes after learning the technique, I had memorized my first deck of shuffled cards. I couldn't believe it. In fact, to this day I'm still in awe. And the reason I work so hard to promote memory techniques to people around the world is precisely because that awe remains. And it grows and grows the more I hear from people who have read one of my books or taken one of my video courses. They All Have One Special Characteristic In Common … They, like me, learned the methods and took action. They experimented. They memorized vocabulary using the tools of the Magnetic Memory Method and they got results. And then they repeated what they learned and got even more results. And those results led to even higher payoffs because things just keep getting better and better the more you use mnemonics as part of your learning. Anyhow, as soon as I realized what I had done with the playing cards, I instantly saw how I could apply these techniques to learning and memorizing the 250+ books I needed to cover for my field exams. These are mean and nasty affairs where seven professors sit around a table and drill you with questions for nearly two hours. They're very protective of the university Ivory Tower, so they do everything they can to keep you out. The hostility makes the process of sitting for those exams frightening an stressful in every possible way. And frankly, most people never make it. I don't know what the figures are now, but back then, the graduation rate from Ph.D. programs in Canada was a mere 13%. In other words, out of every 100 people who enter grad school, 87 walk away without a degree. But I wasn't one of those who left the hallowed halls empty-handed. And it's all because I took action and used the memory techniques I'd learned on that magical day during the depths of my nearly suicidal depression. Of course, it's not as if my studies were suddenly free from challenges. Far From It The memory techniques boosted my confidence and this gave me increased clarity. But I still struggled to read with the amount of focus needed to even discover and isolate the information I wanted to memorize. So what I wound up doing was to read the books out loud. Unlike the memory audio program I had no problem following, the philosophy and history books I was reading had no audio editions. Worse, they were so dense and so obscure … It was often like pulling teeth just to get through them. But by reading out loud to maintain my concentration and then listening to my narrations, I could finally concentrate. And then I would write down the key points and facts from the books on index cards. Next, I would order the index cards in particular ways to aid the memorization of them into the Memory Palaces I'd created. Following that, I memorized the information on the cards. Kind of like memorizing a deck of playing cards, only in this case you're not entertaining audiences but rather earning a degree. But there was another level of difficulty. The memory techniques and especially the Memory Palaces I was using at the time were far from foolproof. And I Made A Lot Of Mistakes You see, the techniques I had learned were actually kind of pedestrian. They weren't made for higher levels of learning. And they certainly weren't designed for language study. So what I did was to develop completely new approaches to the memory techniques. I was still learning and memorizing information very well, but I knew I could do better. Above all, I knew that my Memory Palaces could be much more precise. So I found better ways to begin the journeys through them. I discovered principles that reduced the errors many people make with mnemonics and massively reduced the cognitive load extensive learning places on the mind. And the more I worked at it, the more streamlined the techniques became. Before I knew it, I had zoomed through most of the books and was ready to sit for my exams. I had also finally landed on a feasible dissertation topic. And even though I still felt physically terrible and the mental illness remains to this day … I Was Sitting On Top Of The World I marched into those exams brimming with confidence and aced them. In fact, when my final dissertation defense concluded and I was called "Dr. Metivier" for the very first time, the top examiner who had come up to Canada from the United States told me something I'll never forget. "Most people freeze up," he said. "Some of them even break into tears. But you … … the only person cooler than you is Miles Davis." I guess what he meant is that I was calm, collected and cool in the sense of being unshakable. And trust me, each and every one of the professors surrounding me at that table on the second floor of the Vanier building on the campus of York University in Toronto did all they could to shake me up. But none of them could, not even the one hellbent on failing me. Why? Because I knew my stuff and could remember it. All Of It And when they awarded my degree, they even added a special comment on the form that I had presented my knowledge with originality and audacity. I take that to mean that I did it all with nerves of steel, total confidence and the ability to create new knowledge, not just parrot what I'd memorized. And that's what the Magnetic Memory Method is all about: Creating knowledge while also being able to repeat information verbatim. Or in the case of memorizing vocabulary, being able to create unique and meaningful sentences. But don't get me wrong. In some cases, being a parrot isn't a bad thing. Not A Bad Thing At All But let's flash forward a couple of years. There I was on the porch. Stupidly I'd sat through six months of a German language course after landing a research and teaching grant at a university there. Looking back, I still can't believe it. But in all fairness, I had already used my memory to get my Ph.D. But researching and teaching didn't require them in quite the same way. I used mnemonics only to memorize the names of my students and the basic architecture of my lectures. But on that porch, I realized that I could have been using memory techniques all along to memorize German vocabulary. The only question now was … How? When I thought back to what I'd done during my graduate years, it all fell into place. You see, when organizing the knowledge I needed to know in order to memorize the works of philosophers and literary or film theorists great and small, I had created at least one Memory Palace for each, sometimes up to five. In many cases, the Memory Palaces weren't so much centered on the career of a philosopher, but on a single book. For example, for Aristotle I concentrated only on memorizing the major details of The Nicomachean Ethics. But as for the rest of his cannon, I'm a sitting duck in water. Michel Foucault, on the other hand, had five Memory Palaces, four for individual books he'd written and one for facts about his life and how it intersected with important moments in his Zeitgeist. Regardless of having one Memory Palace or five per philosopher, in each I got some kind of picture in my mind of what that person looks like. In the case of Aristotle, I had only paintings to work with. With Foucault, I could look at oodles of photographs. Then, using a well-formed Memory Palace that obeys the principles of what would eventually become the Magnetic Memory Method, I followed these philosophers along carefully constructed journeys. At one point, for example, Aristotle fistfights with the notorious serial killer John Wayne Gacy. Foucault, known for his sexual escapades, got into some situations rather X-rated to at present mention. I would eventually come to call these Magnetic little puppets of mine, "Bridging Figures." Why? Because by following them around in my imagination, they "bridged the gap" between Memory Palace stations and engaged in behaviors that quickly and efficiently reminded me of the key points I needed to know. After that, it was just a matter of rehearsing the show a few times and writing out what I'd learned in summary format to ease the information into long-term memory. As one commentator on a Magnetic Memory Method YouTube video puts it regarding my approach to memory techniques and mnemonics overall, it's all … Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy Lemon squeezy, indeed. Thinking about that practice and its tremendous power, I clearly saw that the same approach readily applied to German vocabulary. Abraham Lincoln helped me connect "ab" words in an "A" Memory Palace. To give another example, Einstein took over the show in an imaginary reconstruction of my brother's home. Even more interesting, real people proved useful too. For example, my ex-wife's good friend Vera war sehr verantwortlich when it came to stuffing "ver" words into a very special Memory Palace that happened to be her home in Brooklyn. I had only visited the place once, but due to the mind's uncanny ability to absorb the details of a building on autopilot, I used its rooms and hallways to great effect before moving to my old girlfriend Vicki's home and on and on and on. Nifty, Isn't It? You bet it is. And before I knew it, the fruitless hours spent on index cards and writing words out by hand became a thing if the past. I deleted every trace of the spaced-repetition software clogging my laptop and honored instead the unparalleled abilities of a well-trained memory. Thousands of books and over a dozen video courses and public appearances later, the ancient art of memory finally had an innovation for one of its toughest opponents: language learning. There had been other attempts. Harry Lorayne and Jerry Lucas devote three pages to memorizing vocabulary in The Memory Book. In Memo, Oddbjorn By talks about organizing a city into three parts to help organize gendered nouns, an idea he may have found in Host Von Romberch, who was a contemporary of the great mnemonist Matteo Ricci. But none of these approaches had the rigor needed to memorize vocabulary en masse. Harry Lorayne is no fan of Memory Palaces and mnemonists like Dave Farrow use them sparingly. Nothing Wrong With That But for so many people like myself, pegs and linking do little or nothing. Without a track upon which to lay the associative-imagery, the choo-choo train of the mind has to grasp after ghostly images popped willy-nilly into the void, connected only by abstract relationships between silly images. But a Bridging Figure moving along a Memory Palace journey matches two extremely concrete elements that are easy to follow. The Memory Palace serves as the rails, beautifully fixed in place. The Bridging Figure is the train conductor who stops at the stations and lets you decode the associative-imagery. It's simple, elegant and fun. So Much Fun Of course, it would be years later before I told anyone about this revelation. When I finally did release How to Learn and Memorize German Vocabulary following a mysterious and strange set of tumultuous adventures ranging from divorce to the biggest dental nightmare of my life, many people instantly got it. They went on to collectively memorize thousand of words and experience unheard of boosts in fluency. But others didn't get it. They cursed at my book and the books to come, calling the Magnetic Memory Method impractical, impossible and insane. Others called me a scammer and compared me to Kevin Trudeau, a memory trainer who had broken the law by making dietary claims. What his health niche crimes have to do with his memory training, I'll never know, but one thing will remain eternally clear: haters gonna hate. The critics and naysayers aside, I focused all of my attention on helping the dozens of people who emailed me their questions. I spent hours clarifying the technique on an individual basis. And to be perfectly honest, I loved each and every minute. But it soon became impractical to spend the better part of each day sharing clarifications to one person at a time. It's the Information era after all. So I started gathering email addresses and emailed the answers to every one interested enough to subscribe. Soon, ever more questions started rolling in. And new subscribers asked me how they could get their hands on all the emails they'd missed. More than a hundred requests later, I created the Magnetic Memory Method Newsletter. At the end of each month, I gathered the emails I was sending once a day into a Kindle book and put them up on Amazon. Although these never became Bestseller like my other books, they have become the stuff of legend. Not a day passes when someone doesn't ask to be subscribed to the MMM Newsletter or get the entire collection. I've put ten of them together so far, totaling over 1000 pages of the deepest investigations into the art of memory on the planet. Some people have called me the Simonides of the 21st century. Others think I'm the reincarnation of Giordano Bruno (probably because of my Heavy Metal/Stoner Rock look and sometimes stubborn and insistent ways). But to quote the late, great master of copywriting Gary Halbert: "Whatever." One day I will have to put together the mounds of other correspondence with readers that I've never published. I expect that this eventual set of documents will amount to 3000 or more pages of material, writing that some people will undoubtedly gobble up and put to immediate use in their personal memory practice. But for now, my focus is on the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast and creating second editions of the existing vocabulary books. After all, I now know so much about why people struggle with the MMM that it behooved me to incorporate it all into the first editions. And now I'm excited to release the second edition of How to Learn and Memorize German Vocabulary. This new and revised edition includes: * Illustrations of how to create a well-constructed Memory Palace so that you can see the principles right before your very eyes and model them. * Drawings of a few pieces of associative-imagery so that you really understand how you can instantly memorize the sound and meaning of a word in just a minute or two. * A lengthy list of suggested German words you will want to learn so that you aren't stumbling around blind wondering what you should memorize. * Notes on memorizing grammar principles and phrases so that you can speak sentences instead of just words. (Though the emphasis is on words because you can't form sentences without them.) * An expended discussion of Recall Rehearsal so that you know exactly how to get the words and phrases into long-term memory. * A mega-conclusion that covers every possible question you may have so that no stone is left unturned, and you know exactly what to do to memorize hundreds of vocabulary words a week. And make no mistake … This Stuff Works I heard a few months back from one person that he learned 1000 words in 6 weeks. Just imagine what having that ability could do for you. And even if you're not learning German, the principles apply to any language. So if this book is something for you, grab it. If you get it during this special promotion, I'd like to send you a special bonus. That's right. For people who get the book, either for Kindle or in print, I have a 45-minute exclusive video training I gave for Jonathan Levi's SuperLearner Masterclass. In this training, we go into detail about the misconceptions and problems people have with creating Memory Palaces. It's all in the book, of course. But sometimes having a "student advocate" ask me questions live can make all the difference in the world. Plus, Jonathan is a force unto himself when it comes to learning. At the present moment, this interview is available only in his SuperLearner Masterclass. It's an experience that costs several hundred dollars to access. And honestly, if you're willing to take action, 45 minutes listening to me talk in detail about the MMM is priceless. I'll send you a link where you can download this exclusive interview. It's just as simple as that. So here's what to do next: – Grab the book now. – Click forward on the email receipt you get from Amazon. – Enter my email address (anthony/at/magneticmemorymethod/dot/com). – Click send. Just make sure you do so before 11:59 p.m. on January 1st, 2016. Now you may be wondering what's coming up in 2016 for the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast. That's a great question and so I can only urge you to stick around and see just what this grizzly old Wizard of Memory has up his sleeve. 2016 is going to be a big place indeed and if you want to learn a language, never forget a name or recite poetry or speeches, or pass even the most complicated math exam, the Magnetic Memory Method is here to help. But Don't Delay Each and every day that you aren't using the natural abilities of your imagination to integrate with the art of memory, you're missing out on the massive power of flawless recall. You're surrendering to the demon of forgetfulness when you could be eliminating its terrorist attacks on your life once and for all. Grab your copy of How to Learn and Memorize German Vocabulary now and make 2016 the most amazing year of your life. Your friend in memory, Anthony Metivier Additional Resources The post The Story Of How To Learn And Memorize German Vocabulary appeared first on Magnetic Memory Method - How to Memorize With A Memory Palace.

If you're lucky enough, eating is something you do every day. If you're like most of us lucky ones, it might be something you do too often every day. But for something you do so often, are you getting the most out of your eating, for both your body and mind? Doctors, nutritionists, fitness instructors, and your mom are constantly preaching: "You are what you eat." "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." "Eat your fruits and veggies." Undoubtedly … … diet is consistently cited as one of the more important aspect to weight loss and overall good health. What you eat can make you healthy, happy, and well-functioning, or throw you into a death-spiral of obesity, disease, and disability. It should come as no surprise that diet also affects mental health. In fact, there is mounting evidence that specific types and classes of food can have beneficial – or detrimental – effects on memory. Recently, for example, coconut oil has come into question. The question is… Is it possible to change your diet to maintain, and even achieve new and better levels of memory and information retention? We are all salivating for a definitive answer, but for the most part, the jury is still out. Much of the research surrounding food and memory are in preliminary stages and tested on animal subjects. Not to dismiss the abilities of a lab rat, but making the connection between a rat and a human is dubious. However, we aren't entirely left in the dark. In fact, there is exciting new research pointing to real and impressive associations between food and memory. This post (don't forget to listen to the podcast version too) will dive into this salad bowl of findings and scoop out foods to help with memory conservation and retention. All you're left with is the easy – and delicious – part of figuring out how to incorporate these foods into your meals. So, let's dig in. The Ugly Nut That Should Get More Attention They look like brains, are hard to crack, and have a slight bitter flavor. Walnuts taste as unique as they look, and cracking them open has been a strength test for bodybuilders everywhere. Beyond their use as a party trick, these funny-looking nuts have some evidence pointing to their ability to improve memory. It's not due to their pretty appearance. Walnuts contain the highest source of antioxidants among their nut brothers and sisters (Vinson and Cai 134). Perhaps due to their impressive antioxidant profile, walnuts have garnered research specifically on their abilities to improve memory. A recently published, cross-sectional American study was conducted analyzing the association of walnuts to several forms of cognitive function (Arab and Ang 284). The study included participants from a variety of ethnicities, age groups, and genders. It surveyed over 20,000 people about their dietary habits and had them take various cognitive tests. These tests included reaction time, numerical processing, and recall. This is perhaps the largest walnut to cognitive function study ever done on the US population, and boasts impressive results. The study showed strong associations between higher walnut consumption and progressively better scores on each cognitive test, including the memory recall test (Arab and Ang 284). In other words, the more walnuts they ate per day, the better their memory became. These results applied to all of the age groups studied, ranging between the ages of 25-59. The study concludes with an (albeit serious and scientific) ode to walnuts. "These significant, positive associations between walnut consumption and cognitive functions among all adults [. . .] suggest that daily walnut intake may be a simple beneficial dietary behavior."(Arab and Ang 284) This study does not stand alone. Another study focusing on elderly subjects found positive effects of walnut consumption on memory recall (Valls-Pedret et al. 773). What all these studies are really trying to say is, "Walnuts. Get on that". Raw or roasted, add them to salads, to your oatmeal or even to the your green smoothies in the morning. If the statistics are correct, you should be getting smarter and remembering more details than ever. How Green Tea Can Super-Charge Your Memory Green tea is a favourite around the world. It's found in a variety of drinks outside of its standard tea form, including lattes, soft drinks, and even ice cream. Green tea has been in the limelight for a while for its purported ability to aid in treating nearly any ailment. Every other week there seem to be stories about green tea's heroism in fighting cancer and diabetes. Hype aside, can green tea help your memory and mind as well? In a study conducted on Japanese residents over age 60, higher green tea consumption was associated with lower incidence of dementia (Noguchi-Shinohara et al). Dementia is a common cognitive and memory decline associated with growing older. The study suggests that green tea consumption could be beneficial for reducing our risk of memory decline. But what about improving our memory here and now? A very interesting, albeit small, study on college students, sought an answer to this question (Schimdt et al 3888). The study examined the effects of green tea extracts on brain activity in the prefrontal cortex of the brain. 12 healthy volunteers were given green tea infused drinks and asked to perform a working memory task while in an MRI. During the task, the prefrontal cortex showed increased activity and the volunteers performance was heightened (Schimdt et al 3888). A larger study looked at the effects of tea consumption on the cognitive abilities of middle-aged adults in community living in Singapore. This study didn't test green tea exclusively, but it found protective and enhancing affects of green tea on cognition, including memory (Feng et al 438). The evidence suggests that drinking green tea daily will protect from future memory decline and may even provide a memory boost. The Small Berry That Packs A Punch You'll Remember Blueberries aren't just for toddlers and vanilla ice cream anymore. Blueberries are showing some promise in the protection of your memory. In a study of nine older adults with memory decline, consuming blueberry juice over 12 weeks resulted in improved memory function. Each day this group of five men and four women drank blueberry juice. After 12 weeks of drinking blueberry juice, these nine test subjects showed improvements in recall and general cognitive functioning (Krikorian et al 4000). Although small and preliminary, the research offers an interesting benefit to an already very health food. If you aren't already eating blueberries, these findings should be the kick you needed to start adding them to your smoothies. Nothing Fishy About This Brain Food If you've been on the internet at any point in the last ten years, you've probably heard about "Omega-3s". You may not know exactly what they do or what they are, but you know you need more of them. The purported benefits of Omega-3s is the reason fatty fish have been promoted as a necessary addition to your weekly meals. Fatty fish, such as salmon, contain some of the highest levels of Omega-3s. Similarly to green tea, Omega-3s have been touted as having a wide variety of health benefits. These include things like reducing pain associated with rheumatoid arthritis, ensuring the healthy development of babies, and aiding against dementia. Setting the former two claims aside, it does seem that Omega-3s, as consumed through fish, have a protective effect against memory deterioration. A large study followed 889 older adult men and women over nine years. It was hoping to understand whether differences in fatty fish intake impacted the prevalence of dementia by the ninth year (Schaefer et al 1545). Researchers found that subjects with the highest intake of Omega-3 fatty acids had a lower risk of developing dementia and Alzheimer's. Their subjects consumed a mean of three servings of fatty fish per week and the risk reduction was impressive. Subjects that consumed the most fish saw their risk of memory impairment decline by 47% (Schaefer et al 1545). Another study followed a group of 281 people aged 65 to investigate the correlation between fish intake and brain deterioration. This study found that higher levels of Omega-3 fatty acids in the blood, predicted reduced deterioration for its test subjects (Samieri et al 642). In another very large study of over 1,200 people, Omega-3 fatty acid, along with various other micronutrient levels, were analyzed. The results were compared to the prevalence of an important biomarker for dementia, a compound in the blood that predicts Alzheimer's. Sure enough, those with high levels of Omega-3 fatty acids had a lower amount of the threatening biomarker (Gu et al 1832). What's really interesting is that these results were not replicated through supplementation. In a huge study, supplementation Omega-3 fatty acids were given to 4,203 subjects to determine whether memory function improved. The study followed subjects for five years, during which they tested various cognitive functions, including memory. The results showed that supplementation did not have a significant effect on cognitive function (Chew et al 791). Moral of the story? There seems to be real memory benefits and protective effects to eating foods high in Omega-3 acids, such as in fish. Moreover, supplements have not proven effective. You're much better off saving your money for a nice salmon filet once a week. The Simple Diet That Brings It All Together It might get tiring eating walnuts, berries, green tea, and fish all the time. But you're in luck! As it turns out, there is an entire diet which has been shown to be protective against memory degeneration. The diet, called the MIND diet, reduces the risk of cognitive decline and memory by 35%. And that's just for people who followed the diet moderately well (Morris et al 1022). For those who stuck to the diet closely, the study measured an impressive reduction of 53%. This diet has not, as of yet, been shown to enhance memory for healthy adults. There are no super-memory foods in the MIND diet. Nonetheless, the MIND diet and study has shown impressive results in its potential to protect you from memory deterioration. The MIND diet is a combination of two very well-studied diets: Mediterranean and DASH. Unlike these two diet, it places a special emphasis on the consumption of berries, strawberries, and blueberries in particular (remember them?). The diet involves the following: At least three servings of whole grains a day A salad and one other vegetable a day A glass of wine a day A serving of nuts a day Beans every other day Poultry and berries at least twice a week Fish at least once a week The MIND diet also calls for limiting or eliminating unhealthy foods, especially butter, cheese, and fast or fried food. In a time when many countries are facing ageing populations and increasing rates of Alzheimer's, the MIND diet offers hope. As of yet, there is no effective cure for Alzheimer's. Every step to a more definitive prevention of Alzheimer's is a step in the right direction. Don't Be Tricked By Ginkgo Apart from being a lovely decorative tree across North America, Ginkgo Biloba is an ancient species of trees. In fact, they are known to be the oldest tree species in the world, remaining unchanged for over 200 million years. That's right, this tree has been around since the dinosaurs. Unlike the dinosaurs, they did not go extinct. Not just a pretty tree, Ginkgo Biloba has also been used in east asian culinary. For example, Ginkgo seeds are added to a traditional vegetarian dish called "Buddha's Delight". Otherwise, Ginkgo Biloba has earned a shining memory-boosting reputation in both alternative medicine circles and the mainstream population. According to the New York Times, it is widely marketed as a preventative treatment to Alzheimer's disease. What's more, it is America's best-selling herbal cognitive enhancement. But is there substance behind these claims? Unlike many food claims, definitive answers are possible because Ginkgo is one of the most commonly studied herbs in the world. Ginkgo has not shown evidence for preventing memory-loss diseases in later life, including dementia. In 2015, a study reviewing many previous studies available on Ginkgo showed no effect on memory loss prevention (Charemboon and Jaisin 508). But can it help enhance memory for healthy adults? Again, the evidence is lacking. A similarly large review conducted in 2012 found nothing to prove that Ginkgo Biloba enhances memory, despite the marketing (Laws et al.). All that glitters is not gold, especially when it comes to claims made by herbal supplement manufacturers. Save your money on Ginkgo supplements and move on to other, better evidenced memory-supporting foods. Start On Your Memory-Boosting Journey (Without Supplements) It's difficult to isolate specific components in foods that make them effective. It's been found that blueberries, walnuts, and green tea have amongst the highest levels of antioxidant among their respective food groups. Antioxidants are thought to protect against cell damage from free radicals, which occur naturally in the body due to normal metabolism. However, many studies analyzing the effects of antioxidant supplements have failed to show significant effects. It seems that you must take the food with the antioxidant. Although there may be a time and place for supplementation, uprooting food in their place is a poor strategy. In any case, the variety and availability of these delicious foods leaves no reason not to incorporate them into your diet. Memory-boosting foods and diets are surprisingly commonplace. Above and beyond improving memory, eating a healthy diet will leave you feeling energetic and, most importantly, disease-free. It's a fair statement to say that living a long and healthy life is a prerequisite to excellent memory. After all, you need to be living a long life to have something to remember. No research needed to back that up. Further Resources And Works Cited Dave Farrow Talks About Focus, Fatigue And Memory Expertise Stop Smoking And Boost Memory With These Step-By-Step Addiction Breakers How to Stop Information Pollution From Poisoning Your Memory Arab, L., and A. Ang. "A Cross Sectional Study of the Association between Walnut Consumption and Cognitive Function among Adult Us Populations Represented in NHANES." J Nutr Health Aging The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging (2014): 284-90. Pubmed. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. Chew, Emily Y., Traci E. Clemons, Elvira Agrón, Lenore J. Launer, Francine Grodstein, and Paul S. Bernstein. "Effect of Omega-3 Fatty Acids, Lutein/Zeaxanthin, or Other Nutrient Supplementation on Cognitive Function." JAMA (2015): 791. UpToDate. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. Feng, Lei, X. Gwee, E. -H. Kua, and T. -P. Ng. "Cognitive Function and Tea Consumption in Community Dwelling Older Chinese in Singapore." J Nutr Health Aging The Journal of Nutrition, Health & Aging (2010): 433-38. Pubmed. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. . Gu, Y., N. Schupf, S. A. Cosentino, J. A. Luchsinger, and N. Scarmeas. "Nutrient Intake and Plasma -amyloid." Neurology (2012): 1832-840. UpToDate. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. Krikorian, Robert, Marcelle D. Shidler, Tiffany A. Nash, Wilhelmina Kalt, Melinda R. Vinqvist-Tymchuk, Barbara Shukitt-Hale, and James A. Joseph. "Blueberry Supplementation Improves Memory in Older Adults †." J. Agric. Food Chem. Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry (2010): 3996-4000. Pubmed. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. . Laws, Keith R., Hilary Sweetnam, and Tejinder K. Kondel. "Is Ginkgo Biloba a Cognitive Enhancer in Healthy Individuals? A Meta-analysis." Human Psychopharmacology: Clinical and Experimental Hum. Psychopharmacol Clin Exp (2012): 527-33. Print. Morris, Martha Clare, Christy C. Tangney, Yamin Wang, Frank M. Sacks, Lisa L. Barnes, David A. Bennett, and Neelum T. Aggarwal. "MIND Diet Slows Cognitive Decline with Aging." Alzheimer's & Dementia (2015): 1015-022. Elsevier. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. Noguchi-Shinohara, Moeko, Sohshi Yuki, Chiaki Dohmoto, Yoshihisa Ikeda, Miharu Samuraki, Kazuo Iwasa, Masami Yokogawa, Kimiko Asai, Kiyonobu Komai, Hiroyuki Nakamura, and Masahito Yamada. "Consumption of Green Tea, but Not Black Tea or Coffee, Is Associated with Reduced Risk of Cognitive Decline." PLoS ONE (2014). NCBI. PLOS ONE. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. Samieri, Cécilia, Pauline Maillard, Fabrice Crivello, Evelyne Peuchant, Catherine Helmer, Michèle Allard, Jean-Francois Dartigues, Stephen Cunnane, Bernard Mazoyer, and Pascale Barberger-Gateau. "Plasma Long-chain Omega-3 Fatty Acids and Medial Temporal Lobe Atrophy: A Longitudinal MRI Study." Alzheimer's & Dementia (2012). UpToDate. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. Schaefer, Ernst J., Vanina Bongard, Alexa S. Beiser, Stefania Lamon-Fava, Sander J. Robins, Rhoda Au, Katherine L. Tucker, David J. Kyle, Peter W. F. Wilson, and Philip A. Wolf. "Plasma Phosphatidylcholine Docosahexaenoic Acid Content and Risk of Dementia and Alzheimer Disease." Arch Neurol Archives of Neurology (2006): 1545. UpToDate. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. Schmidt, André, Felix Hammann, Bettina Wölnerhanssen, Anne Christin Meyer-Gerspach, Jürgen Drewe, Christoph Beglinger, and Stefan Borgwardt. "Green Tea Extract Enhances Parieto-frontal Connectivity during Working Memory Processing." Psychopharmacology (2014): 3879-888. Pubmed. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. . Valls-Pedret, Cinta, Rosa Maria Lamuela-Ravent'os, Alexander Medina-Rem'on, Melibea Quintana, Dolores Corella, Xavier Pinto, Miguel Angel Martınez-Gonzalez, Ramon Estruch, and Emilio Ros. "Polyphenol-Rich Foods in the Mediterranean Diet Are Associated with Better Cognitive Function in Elderly Subjects at High Cardiovascular Risk." Journal of Alzheimer's Disease 29 (2012): 773-82. IOS Press. IOS Press. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. Vinson, Joe A., and Yuxing Cai. "Nuts, Especially Walnuts, Have Both Antioxidant Quantity and Efficacy and Exhibit Significant Potential Health Benefits." Food Funct. (2011): 134-40. Royal Society of Chemistry. Web. 22 Dec. 2015. Weinmann, Stefan, Stephanie Roll, Christoph Schwarzbach, Christoph Vauth, and Stefan N Willich. "Effects of Ginkgo Biloba in Dementia: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis." BMC Geriatr BMC Geriatrics (2015): 14. Print. The post Foods That Improve Memory You CAN Pig Out On appeared first on Magnetic Memory Method - How to Memorize With A Memory Palace.

In this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, Guinness World Record Holder Dave Farrow talks about developing focus, overcoming study fatigue and how advanced memory abilities can make you an expert in anything. In this episode, you'll learn: * Why the Ancient Greeks are not the only source of powerful memory techniques. * An amazing focus method for people with A.D.D. that'll also work for anyone! * How to beat any world memory record and maintain the information over long periods of time. * The important of accuracy in memory and how to develop it fast. * How Dave memorized 59 decks of cards, totally 3068 cards. * The important difference between a memory championship and memory competition. * The nearly magical power of pegs as a powerful alternative to using a Memory Palace. * The secrets of bring longevity to memory without having to cram or spend tons of time reviewing. * A stunning and colorful alternative to the Major Method, especially for people with dementia using an arrangement like this (you can create your own version): 1 = red 2 = orange 3 = yellow 4 = green 5 = blue 6 = purple 7 = brown 8 = silver 9 = gold 0 = black * Exactly how to memorize the Major Method (sometimes called the Major System) using "mnemonics for mnemonics." * How to use memory techniques to "fill in the gaps" of anything you missed from a lecture. * How to deal with being accused of cheating when you use memory techniques to ace every test. * How to rebalance your brain after intense periods of learning so that you can maximize every minute you invest in your studies. * How to study with zero fatigue, no matter what field you're in (medical, legal, etc.) * The relationship between the focus created by athleticism and what you need to maximize your scholastic studies. * Why having a short attention span has little to do with the Internet Age and everything to do with our primal ancestors. * The best places to study so that you have the space and the freedom of mind to get the most out of your memory. * How to combine focus bursts and mnemonics to blaze through learning a language – even supposedly difficult languages like Chinese. * Why you need to avoid memory techniques taught by people unqualified to explain them. * How to find out your primary way of making imaginative connections so that mnemonics work for you at the highest possible level. * The power of irony, oddity and personification as alternatives to action and imagery in your approach to memorizing information. * How Dave used memory techniques to become expert in everything needed to build the animatronic FarrowBOT with fully articulated hands. It truly is the robot that memory built. * The secret keys to developing motivation and passion so that you can make maximum gains with your memory over the long haul. * … and much, much more! Photos From Dave Farrow's 2015 Canadian Memory Seminar And Tournament The 2015 Seminar and Memory Tournament took place on October 17th in Toronto, Canada at the Ontario Science Center. Please feel free to read the full Tournament Rules. You can also grab the World Memory Tournament Manual Dave put together with Chester Santos for more information about being a memory competitor or putting together your own competition. At the competition, anyone can take turns being either a competitor or a judge. It's amazing how quickly complete beginners pick up the mnemonics and get stunning results just minutes after receiving instructions in how to memorize vocabulary, numbers and playing cards. Even the most skeptical utterly surprised themselves! As you can see, I was having the time of my life overseeing some of the matches. It was actually a challenging experience because judges have to make some tough close calls. If one competitor makes a mistake, the other competitor can claim the point and then go on to rack up even more until they've exhausted the amount of vocabulary, numbers or playing cards they were able to memorize. These competitors are memorizing lists of vocabulary that they are seeing for the first time. A camera captures everything and detailed records of the results are recorded by the judge. At the end, everyone walks away as a winner just for taking up the challenge of exercising their imagination and memory abilities and it is a thrill to get a photo with the "Farrow" of Memory himself, Dave Farrow. Further Resources And Information Mentioned During The Interview Dave's TEDTalk On Why Forgetting May Save Humanity: Excellent article about a Dave Farrow event by Tatiana Sanchez Dave Farrow article on Wikipedia Pushbutton Memory Canada's Best Memory Eric Dinnerstein's World Memory Statistics Make A Wish Foundation Ben Pridmore PAO notes on the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast Harry Loryane The post Dave Farrow Talks About Focus, Fatigue And Memory Expertise appeared first on Magnetic Memory Method - How to Memorize With A Memory Palace.

Let me ask you something: If you had the cure for cancer, to what lengths would you go to get it into the hands of the people? I'm guessing you would not rest until you could see the world freed from the disease in all its manifestations. Matteo Ricci did not have the cure for cancer, but as we learn in The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci by Jonathan D. Spence he did have the next best thing: A simple recipe for eliminating forgetfulness. Not only that, but Ricci's recipe helps with memorizing entire books and large volumes of vocabulary. Most impressively, Ricci developed a means for memorizing how to write in Chinese. Yes, you really can memorize how to understand and sound those crazy characters, and even memorize the stroke order. The Freakish Willpower Of A Memory Wizard As an Italian Jesuit priest and missionary, Ricci's memory techniques were so powerful that some of the people in China who heard him recite their books forward and backward thought he was a wizard. In some cases, people saw him as a religious threat because Ricci also believed he had the ultimate salve for the human condition: Christianity. Indeed, as Jonathan D. Spence suggests in The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci, "by impressing the Chinese with his memory skills, Ricci hoped to interest them in his culture; through interesting them in his culture he hoped to draw them to an interest in God." Talk About Ambition! Although Ricci's proselytization had only middling results in China, he was a friend of memory techniques, and we can learn a lot from him about how to use mnemonics at a much higher level. He wrote about his approach to memory and quoted the scholars from whom he learned the Memory Palace technique in a book called Xiguo Jifa. It took me forever and a day to find a copy of it, but finally I did and made sure to pack it up and take it with me during a recent move: Speaking of books, Ricci was said to have the ability to memorize them cover to cover – and recite them forward and backwards. But is this a useful skill? You be the judge. But memorizing entire books aside, as with all interesting lives, Ricci's was filled with drama. Along with his many thrills, chills and spills, this "wizard" of the dark mnemonic arts we can learn … The Many Dangers Of Using Memory Techniques The first danger with using memory techniques is that as your memory grows stronger, so do your powers. You may even find that special new powers grow, abilities that you did not anticipate. And, as all fans of Spider-Man know … With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility This is certainly true, but those of us living today can probably ignore the idea that using mnemonics fuses your brain with the cosmos. But it was a common concern in the sixteenth century, the flames of which Giordano Bruno had no problem fanning. But for Ricci's contemporaries, the threat was real. Being accused of magical powers regularly led to imprisonment, disfiguring torture and public execution. Often all three. We can also probably dismiss the idea that rosemary helps with memory improvement, something promised by Ophelia in Shakespeare's Hamlet: "There's rosemary, that's for remembrance, pray you, love, remember." Other than that, the rest is golden. Drawing on Spence's book about Ricci, we can now turn to … Matteo Ricci's 5 Memory Palace Tips For Total Memory Mastery 1. Cultivate eloquence by using familiar buildings. Ricci grew up during a time when fortresses were taking on more prestige than cathedrals in European cities. This historical circumstance meant that Ricci could use the best of both worlds. And you can too by visiting the most modern architecture where you live and the oldest remaining buildings. You can transform these buildings into well-formed Memory Palaces simply by following a few simple principles. This free Memory Improvement Kit teaches you each of these, so grab it now. The great thing about many civic buildings is that they're well-planned. You can also usually find a floor plan on one of the walls. If not, a guard or other official will probably know where it is and let you take a photograph for later reference. Get Freakishly Insane Results With This DIY Memory Palace Strategy Or, for very good practice, you can sketch out a floor plan of the building yourself. This activity translates your immediate impressions through your muscles and other representation systems directly into your memory, and if you can start memorizing information before you leave the site, all the better. For more ideas about the kinds of buildings that make great Memory Palaces, check out the How To Find Memory Palaces episode of the Magnetic Memory Method podcast. The most important point Ricci draws out is that familiarity breeds eloquence when it comes to creating top-notch Memory Palaces. As he noted in his letters, even the biggest and most chaotic cities he visited during his travels became small and manageable in his mind through familiarity. For us, this means spending more time visiting the homes of our friends and maximizing the value of all the Real Estate surrounding us. Even the most sprawling metropolis can provide you a tightly organized system of Memory Palaces if you take it just one corner cafe at a time. This "Best Friend" Secret May Be The Best Way To Get Ahead With Memory Techniques Ever 2. You Don't Have To Use Memory Palaces On Your Own Memory improvement takes places in your mind and your mind alone … Or does it? Not for Ricci. As Spence unearths, Ricci and his friend Lelio Passionei created Memory Palace systems together while studying in Rome. Twenty years later, Ricci still reflected on these Memory Palaces. No doubt they were even more memorable to him than others because he did not create them alone. If you're creating Memory Palaces all alone, you could be limiting your success. Check out this post on how to play memory games using your childhood with a friend to maximize the potential of your memory and the Memory Palaces you want to use. 3. Flexibility is king All memory techniques involve encoding information, storing it, consolidating it and then decoding it when you want access to it later. But many people think that using a Memory Palace and visual memory techniques requires creating perfect images. They sweat and labor and fight with their minds to come up with 100% accuracy. The Best Way To Prevent Failure Is To StabPerfection In The Heart And Leave It For Dead Not only is 100% accuracy not necessary. It also rarely works. There is rarely a one-to-one correspondence between what you want to memorize and the images you use to memorize that info. What you need instead of verisimilitude is flexibility and trust. Don't let yourself get caught up in the rabbit hole of perfectionism. Ricci, as Spence tells us in The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci, often made adjustments, getting things just right enough to trigger the right memories at the right time. It's almost like getting a car engine running just well enough to get it on the road until it can either repair itself or coast based on that initial momentum. When it comes to mnemonics, that's usually all you need. Do The Right Work Ricci did this not only in his mind but in his religious teachings as well. Indeed, to communicate the larger ideas of Christianity, Ricci often adjusted the Gospels so that the visual pictures he had fashioned could do, as Spence puts it, "the right work." Our takeaway as memory enthusiasts is that it really all comes down to flexibility and letting your mind fill in the blanks once you've got mnemonic imagery that is good enough to do the right work. 4. Information Can Be Broken And Put Together Again Ricci had the mind of a strategist. Instead of trying to memorize Chinese ideographs as a whole, he would allow them to be as complex as he found them, but cut them into pieces so he could better create images for them. By doing this, he had an easier time compounding multiple meanings onto the same ideograph. Spence gives the example of "yao," which may mean to want, to need, shall and fundamental. To fit all of these possible meanings into the single mnemonic image he placed in his Memory Palace, Ricci saw a Muslim tribeswoman from the Xixia territories. She has fundamental beliefs that oblige her to do certain things. In other words, her fundamental beliefs require that she wants, that she needs and that she shall. Once created, Ricci places this image of the woman in his Memory Palace so "she will stay there, in the quiet light that suffuses the Memory Palace, calm and unmoving, for as long as he chooses to leave her." How Do You Stack Up When It Comes To Breaking Things Down? The point being that most, if not all pieces of information can be broken down into multiple components. Even the smallest words, in a language like Chinese Mandarin, can be separated to learn better and memorize tone structures. The Magnetic Memory Method for language learning takes this approach a step further by using Bridging Figures that we can apply to numerous similar word pieces and the various combinations they make with other sounds to form complete words. Using the MMM, you can also trigger both the sound and the meaning of the word using the actions and interactions of the Bridging Figure in your Memory Palace. Cool Stuff Or What? 5. Study As Many Memory Masters As You Can It was common during Ricci's time to quote from a number of different sources. We still do this in many books today, but in the world of memory, you'd be hard-pressed to find too many references to books written by other memory trainers. Many want you to think that they've got the best "system" and no one else exists. That's fine and dandy for branding and marketing purposes (though it's ultimately destructive in the age of the Internet). Luckily, Ricci had no such concerns, nor did Spence. Here are just a few of the many names who come up: Hear Be The Root Of All Eloquence Cypriano Soarez. De Arte Rhetorica. Spence thinks Ricci first learned about Memory Palaces in this book. Cypriano connects the structured placement of images to help recall information to the eloquence of the thesaurus (thesaurus eloquentae), which he calls the "root of all eloquence." Pliny's Natural History. In this book, Pliny apparently cites a number of memory experts, passages that Ricci translated and placed in his own book. Frances Panigarola. Ars Reminiscendi. War. What Is It Good For? Absolutely … Mnemonics? Ricci may have met Panigarola personally, a man said to have used one hundred thousand stations in a very large number of Memory Palaces. He apparently used a lot of puns to make his images memorable. These images tended to reference current political disputes and wars between nations. Tip: Since wars involve a lot of historical figures and over-the-top activities, the history of war is a ripe source for exaggerated imagery and intensely memorable personalities. We can also see that many of the mnemonists of Ricci's era tended to use mnemonic imagery appropriate to their times. We, on the other hand, can use the Internet to examine swaths of history and come up with images as old as cave drawings and as new as Banksy. We're in the finest moment of all times to be fully and completely visual. We are rich. Guglielmo Gratarolo (sometimes spelled Gratoroli). De Memoria Reparanda. The Weirdest Way To Use Emotions To Make Information Memorable Gratarolo's key tip is that the images we create should be so powerful that they "move one to laughter, compassion or admiration." We could add to this disgust, fear and even anger. As people who need to remember, we need all the help from our emotions we can get. Gratarolo also appears to have been the first to use something akin to what we now call the Person Action Object technique (PAO). "After designing a memory location on conventional lines, he then positioned in each an object – a chamber pot, a box of salve, a bowl of plaster were his first three examples – and then had separate figures, each based on individuals he knew well and each carefully named, jolt the scene into mnemonic action. Thus in rapid sequence Grataroli presented his friend Peter as picking up the chamber pot full of urine and pouring it over James, Martin putting his finger in the ointment box and wiping it over Henry's anus, and Andrew taking some plaster from the bowl and smearing it over Francis's face. If one could link these vignettes by pun, analogy, or association of ideas to given concepts, one could be guaranteed never to forget them." That Truly Is Disgustingly Unforgettable! Ignatius Loyola. Spiritual Exercises. Loyala stressed that Jesuits be mentally present at Christ's death. "No violent detail is to be avoided," he wrote, quoting Ludolfus of Saxony. By focusing on the extremities, the priests would not only better remember the Gospels. They would strengthen their overall abilities with memory techniques. Host von Romberch. Longestorium Artificiose Memorie. Romberch described entire memory cities to be divided by categories such as shops, libraries, slaughter yards and schools. How specifically this kind of division should work is not clear. Nor is his suggestion to use "memory alphabets." These were to be based on the logical combination of humans, plants, animals and objects. Of all Ricci's contemporaries, Romberch seems to have been most closely aligned with the Magnetic Memory Method. The ability to use general methods to create specific systems for specific memory purposes is perhaps the most profound approach we have. Hater's Gonna Hate … Not everyone in Ricci's time held memory techniques and mnemonics in high esteem. In Of the Vanitie and Uncertainties of Arts and Sciences, Cornelius Agrippe said that the "monstrous images" required by mnemonics dulled the mind. He even went so far as to suggest that mnemonics "caused madness and frenzy instead of profound and sure memory." Erasmus and Melancthon agreed and Rabelais went out of his way to mock memory techniques. In Gargantua, the title character learns to memorize bizarre books of grammar and the commentaries written on them by Bangbreeze, Scallywag and Claptrap. The Worst Thing You'll Smell All Day Although Gargantua can recite these books backward and forwards, Rabelais does not present the skill in a virtuous light. Instead, Gargantua "became as wise as any man baked in an oven" and when speaking to him about his memorized knowledge, "it was no more possible to draw a word from him than a fart from a dead donkey." Those who mocked memory techniques and the ability to use a Memory Palace really missed out. But Their Loss Is Our Gain … … and their mockery contributed to the preservation of these extraordinary techniques for learning, memorizing and recalling anything. The Enduring Tragedy Of The Memory Palace Of Matteo Ricci Sadly, Ricci spent so much time in China, but apparently wasn't aware of the countless Chinese mnemonists capable of memory feats that made his abilities pale in comparison. So although we get a wealth of information in his writing about the Western mnemonic tradition, Ricci could not expose us to the untold treasures of the Chinese memory wizards as part of his extraordinary career. For this reason, I've been inspired to start learning Mandarin Chinese. Two weeks deep into the language, my results using several Memory Palaces to memorize Pimsleur dialogs has been even more successful than anticipated. I'll be talking more about exactly what I'm doing, so stay tuned and be sure that you've got my free Magnetic Memory Method Memory Improvement Kit so that you're subscribed for notifications and can learn the techniques to use along with me. And like Ricci … Use Knowledge To Change The Entire World For The Better Until next time, keep busy learning and practicing the art of memory. And as always, keep yourself Magnetic! Further Resources Mandarin Chinese Mnemonics And Morning Memory Secrets The post The Memory Palace of Matteo Ricci appeared first on Magnetic Memory Method - How to Memorize With A Memory Palace.