[extropy-chat] Self-Enhncmnt: data acquisition at high speed

[David Lubkin]

I discussed my reading speed, and observed that

 > I'd expect that peak reading speed is correlated with IQ given that
 > response times for elementary tasks seem to give the best measure of IQ.

Samantha Atkins wrote:

>It hasn't much to do with IQ except when reading material that requires a 
>bit faster intellectual uptake.

Well, seems to me that's trivially wrong, since if you have two people 
otherwise identical with different reading speeds for the same degree of 
comprehension, the faster reader will have learned more, and will 
consequently have a higher IQ test score.

Also, I complete tasks requiring analysis or pattern recognition very 
rapidly, which increases one's score on some IQ tests, and perceive that 
I'm using much the same "mental muscles" as when I'm reading.

> > I peak at a little over a second a page, or around 12,000 wpm. It's too
> > exhausting to continue for long, and no fun, but useful in a pinch. My
> > sustainable rate is still quite high though. ...
>
>At what kind of material do you get these speeds?  To sustain that over 
>even technical material would afaik require a near photographic memory or 
>a high level of training.  What training have you had?  Is this just 
>natural for you?

The highest speeds are for ordinary fiction and non-fiction, and easier 
technical material. Difficult material definitely slows me down. I have had 
no training. I'm not sure how it developed over time. I was not a 
particularly early reader; I learned just before first grade. I have never 
subvocalized or had any of the other faults that would interfere with 
reading speed.

My skill may be related to the age-limitations on language fluencies -- in 
the non-English languages I speak, I can speak as rapidly as in English and 
I can dream in them, but I read slowly, word-at-a-time. (What are other 
people's experiences with reading in non-native languages?)

The first English data point was at eight, in fourth grade, when I clocked 
at 1200 wpm on non-fiction. High speed is line-at-a-time, peak speed is 
essentially paragraph-at-a-time. High speeds are very sensitive to 
typographic issues, such as font and column width.

It seems to me to be largely a question of pathways and neurotransmitters; 
I'm rich in some and sadly deficient in others. We can discuss the 
deficiencies another day :-).

Every once in a while, I get a fresh insight into underlying biology. For 
instance, I love women singing soprano and violins, and was amused to 
discover that my hearing is most acute in that frequency range.


-- David Lubkin.