A 50-year-old English trained teacher is stumped whenever a student asks him the meaning of a word. He tells the student, “I’ll check and let you know.” Thereafter, students stopped asking him questions as he did not know the answers. Such extreme situations can arise when your memory does not work properly. Most of us have forgotten that memory too can be maximised with constant exercises.
For most elderly people memory lapses are just a normal – if annoying – part of life. Mild deficits in memory do begin in the 40s and 50s and increase in later years, but stress, fatigue and a mere lack of attention can all trigger temporary memory glitches in people of all ages. If you train your memory to remember facts and figures when you are young, you are unlikely to face such memory lapses in your old age.
Many people find it difficult to remember names. One day I met a woman who wanted to introduce her husband to me. She said, “Meet my husband …” and turned to him and asked, “What’s your name?” Such hilarious situations can be avoided if you train your memory to remember names. The best way to prevent the problem is to use the name of a person as frequently as possible. Psychologist Liz Zelinski of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles says you have to repeat the name several times if you want to remember it. This is essential if the name is an unusual one.
Absent -mindedness
Most people cannot remember where they put their keys, spectacles or mobile phones. Such episodes of absent -mindedness – forgetting where you left your things or wondering why you just entered a room – are caused by a simple lack of attention. “If you want to remember something, you have to encode it deeply,” says Daniel Schacter of Harvard University. Encoding means paying attention to an event you want to recall later. Your failure to encode properly will lead to annoying situations. For instance, if you put your mobile phone in your pocket, pay attention to what you did.
Lack of interest in what you are doing is another major cause of forgetfulness. If you are an English teacher, take an interest in the language. Otherwise you will not be able to remember the meaning of words and grammatical rules. Sometimes,patients forget to take medicine at the stipulated time. Visual clues can help prevent such absent-mindedness. If you put the bottle of pills in a prominent place, it will remind you to take a pill at the correct time. When you put the bottle of pills in a cupboard, you will forget it completely.
There are some memory boosters. Those who do exercises regularly have a higher level of a brain protein crucial to memory. Researcher Carl Cotman says, “I believe that people who engage in regular exercise will be able to think better – that includes remembering – over the years. According to Liz Zelinski, lack of sufficient sleep can cause fatigue leading to absent-mindedness. A recent study shows that a cup of coffee will also boost your memory. She also says Ginkgo Bibola will improve memory. It may make people feel energetic and better able to pay attention.
New words
Some students find it extremely difficult to remember new words and their meanings. In a study conducted at the University of Michigan, a group of students studied a list of words in two separate sessions. Some of them studied the words in a small cluttered room. The other group split the sessions between two environments. During a test the students who studied in multiple places recalled 53 per cent more than the others who studied in a room. When I wanted to learn a list of new words, I used to carry the list even while travelling. Whenever I had the time, I simply read the list with absorbing interest. By doing so I managed to remember the words and their meanings.
To use automated teller machines (ATMs) you have to remember your PIN number. For some people this is a difficult task. Dominic O’Brien, an eight-time World Memory Champion, says you can write a four-word sentence to remember your PIN number. For instance, if your PIN number is 4223, you can make a sentence: “This is my PIN.”
Just before examinations most students try to remember facts and figures by cramming. However, cramming is not a good method to remember facts and figures because you will forget them immediately after the examination. If you wish to recall statistics, reviewing the material periodically over a long span of time has been proved to be more effective than cramming. This technique dates back to 1885 when psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus discovered that he could learn a list of nonsense words if he repeated them 68 times before being tested the next day. Recent research has demonstrated optimal intervals for study sessions.
New language
Learning a new language at any age is good for your memory. When I started learning Latin which is a dead language, I found it quite interesting. The knowledge of Latin will help you to understand many English words. The best way to learn a foreign language is to read it and listen to it.
In order to enhance your memory you can use mnemonics. The word comes from the name of the Greek goddess of memory Mnemosyne. Mnemonics are memory techniques for superior memory performance. If you have organised your mnemonics well, you will be able to run through any knowledge you have been learning. Mnemonics helps you to remember facts and figures while waiting for a bus or train or while waiting for your turn at a crowded dispensary. Mnemonics is also useful for running over knowledge you need to remember in quiet times. However, you should not try mnemonics while driving.
Maintaining a diary is necessary to remember day-to-day events. This is because you cannot store every little thing in your memory. Very often people keep a large desk diary and a small pocket diary. Large desk diaries permit much greater detail than small diaries. Wall charts are another option. The advantage of wall charts is that you can see the whole year at a glance. For more ambitious people there are sophisticated personal organisers that contain a diary, address book and telephone numbers. Pocket organisers are now in common use. Watches with alarms are another useful device. Electronic voice reminders can also be useful in the Digital Age.
Amazing memories
Memory techniques should be regarded as an aid, not a crutch. They will enable you to absorb and retain information, but will not help you to understand it. Memory techniques cannot replace learning. They can, however, be used to store lots of information which you may wish to manipulate from memory. Memory techniques can supercharge your learning in a very powerful way.
History records a number of people who had amazing memories. Many of us may not be able to match their astonishing feats. For instance, Stephen Powelson memorized 22 of the Iliad’s 24 books, a rare feat. Powelson has left us many memory tips:
• Short practice sessions accomplish more than a single long one
• People learn chunks and patterns
• There are tricks of the trade, called mnemonic devices
Powelson memorised the Iliad because it hit him like a ton of bricks. You will also remember anything if you love it.