<\/p>\n
Yesterday I mentioned that there were three steps to remember anything permanently:<\/p>\n
I mentioned that practice testing and distributed practice were listed as the two most effective studying methods, in a comprehensive survey published here<\/a>.<\/p>\n Today we\u2019re going to talk about the last part of that step: distributed practice. In particular, we\u2019re going to talk about implementing this in your learning habits, since it can be a simple idea to read about, but a tricky one to actually apply.<\/p>\n \u2014-<\/p>\n How do we forget things?<\/p>\n Cognitive science has long been interested in this question, and one of the oldest experiments in psychology, done by German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus, provides clues to the answer.<\/p>\n Ebbinghaus was rare for his day in that he actually conducted experiments to prove his theories. He was particularly concerned with memory, or how we end up forgetting things over time. To test his theories, Ebbinghaus memorized information and then recorded his ability to recall it later, at different intervals of time.<\/p>\n Unfortunately, testing memory of real facts means the possibility of contamination from the outside world. Did you remember that Mogadishu is the capital of Somalia because you studied it yesterday, or did you catch a glance at it being mentioned in a news article this morning?<\/p>\n Ebbinghaus avoided this problem by memorizing nonsense syllables, and recording his ability to remember them later.<\/p>\n He discovered that he forgot syllables on an exponentially decaying curve. Nonsense words he studied were quickly forgotten. But stronger memory representation by connecting, like we discussed yesterday, and periodic review of the material, would result in the memories lasting far longer.<\/p>\n Indeed, if you follow Ebbinghaus\u2019 original logic, memory can be sustained permanently, by reminding yourself of an idea on an ever-lengthening timescale. With each practice session using the idea, the next session can be scheduled even further in advance, with the memory becoming more stable and less likely to be forgotten.<\/p>\n \u2014-<\/p>\n Modern scientific experiments back this research up. We quickly forget things that were studied, but with increased exposure, stronger representation and spaced repetitions, memories have a far longer shelf life.<\/p>\n Today I\u2019m going to discuss three methods you can use to apply Ebbinghaus\u2019 original research to your own learning.<\/p>\n \u2014-<\/p>\n Method One: Bulk Memory Management using SRS<\/strong><\/p>\n The clearest application of the scientific research on spacing is found in spaced repetition software. SRS, including the popular application Anki, apply the idea of spacing to flashcards. The idea is simple: remember an idea and a new reminder is queued at a longer interval in the future, forget it and you get a chance to relearn with a shorter interval.<\/p>\n