[Paleopsych] The Statesman (India): Mind over matter: Principles and Techniques

[Premise Checker]

Mind over matter: Principles and Techniques
http://www.thestatesman.net/page.news.php?clid=18&theme=&usrsess=1&id=84700
[How dubious would Mr. Mencken be about all this?]

Jul 28, 2005    Biswaroop Roy Chowdhury

The field of memory is ever evolving in so far as principles and techniques are 
concerned. And due to this evolution there is no stopping of refreshment and 
adaptability for there are as many principles and techniques as one asks. These 
being easy to learn and to work upon, the principles and techniques work as 
wonders and remain refreshed forever, if learnt once. This can be understood, 
perfectly, by the ensuing content.

Take the instance of those who drive a car. It proves that 95% of those who 
drive cars require improving their memory because all of them forget the place 
where they have parked their vehicle or put its keys. They have driven their 
car to a shopping centre/ airport/ movie theatre/ friend's place, and having 
completed their tasks, have returned only to find that they have completely 
lost it (i.e. forgotten the location of their car).

Don't you agree that it's impossible? The car weighing more than 2 tons which 
they drove, opened and closed the door and locked it as well, has been lost. 
Surely the brain could not possibly forget such a thing? But the whole process 
of forgetting can be understood as it is the most easily understandable thing. 
At the same time one can overcome this problem of forgetting by applying simple 
principles and techniques. Why it happens is due to absentmindedness. As a 
person is so occupied with the aim of visit, he /she forgets or finds it 
relatively unimportant to remember the location of his car.

How can one overcome this problem? This again is very simple. One has to apply 
3 memory principles and 12 memory techniques.

The three memory principles are as under.

1. Our memory is based on Association, i.e. it works by linking things 
together. For example as soon as your brain registers the word "apple" it will 
remember link - the colour, the tastes, texture and smells of that fruit, as 
well as experiences, friends and occasion connected with it.

2. What has to be memorised should have an " image" that should be a 
multi-sensory image. By this the objects get reinforced into our brains and 
thus become unforgettable.

3. Last but not the least is the principle of location. In other words, for 
your brain to remember something that it has imagined and associated, it must 
also have that memory image in a special location. Here you can take the 
example of a library. If you walked into a library that had a million books and 
wished to find a specific one, would it be easier if all the books were piled 
up in the middle of the floor and you had to randomly search, or if all the 
books were beautifully and elegantly catalogued and ordered? Obviously the 
latter.

The 12 memory techniques are as under.

Association, image and location principles can be well assisted by the 
following 12 techniques.

1. Synaesthesia/ sensuality- it is called blending of senses, as this blending 
produces enhanced recall. Therefore, it becomes essential to sensitize 
increasingly and train regularly your - Vision, Hearing, Sense of Smell, Taste, 
and Touch.

2. Movement - for any image, movement adds another giant range of possibilities 
for your brain to "link in" and thus remembers, as your images move, make them 
three-dimensional.

3. Association - you should link any new information with something stable in 
your mental environment.

4. Sexuality - we all have a good memory in this area. Use it!

5. Humour - images, which are ridiculous, absurd, funny and surreal are more 
outstandingly memorable.

6. Imagination - the more you apply your imagination to memory, the better your 
memory will be.

7. Number - numbering adds specificity and efficiency to the principle of order 
and sequence.

8. Symbolism - substituting a more meaningful image for a more ordering or 
boring image increases the probability of recall.

9. Colour - you should use the full range of the rainbow to make your image and 
ideas more colourful and therefore more memorable.

10. Order and sequence - in combination with the other principles, order and/ 
or sequence allows for much more immediate and increases the brain's 
possibilities for "random access".

11. Positivity - positive images are more recallable than negative ones, as 
latter are blocked by brain and to former, our brain wants to return. So, add 
as many positivity to your image as possible.

12. Exaggeration - in all your images exaggerate the size, shape, colour and 
sound.

This is the way, as memory principles and techniques are designed to be used, 
and if you do that you will do wonders.