Down the Memory Lane

As I was mugging up another boring string of characters for my electromagnetic course, I was observing the pattern in which I memorize. I don’t know how interesting I can make this post to you, but it was interesting to analyze myself. Well, I imbibe things much the similar way you download a high quality graphics picture from the net. Initially, I get a blurry image which then gradually, if at all, becomes sharp and distinct. I scan the subject several times and these are the steps I guess I follow.
Step 1 is generally very crucial for me. I cannot remember things unless I know where I am going. Even if I try, as I did for one of the ‘probable’ questions in the test, I feel so uneasy with the progress. I actually went back and figured out what exactly was being accomplished with whatever deduction I was supposed to memorize.

Step 1 ultimately eases step 2. Once I know where I want to end up, I can dispose of the unnecessary portions and concentrate on nothing but the gist. That might not be good if you are studying literature, but that definitely helps studying scientific derivations that involve mathematical expressions running for pages. Specially when the exam is the next morning :P

Step 3 and 4 go in a cycle. As the name suggests, this step can vary a lot from person to person. I find it easier to memorize a list if I note down points in a particular order. Sometimes it helps if some words or their abbreviations rhyme. I find it obviously easier to remember a mathematical deduction that flows logically from one step to the next. This stupid course however had ‘logical’ steps which declare that using the previous equations we can ‘easily’ see that the result follows. Since those were not very easy, I had to look for patterns that relate the initial and the final form. If patterns in step 4 are not apparent I might need to revise step 3.

The more efficient step 4 is the less important becomes step 5. However, step 5 is always there since I have to memorize at least small bits of information even if I have done a great job with step 4.

Example 1 – Q. What are common chemical hazards? (This is a question from a different test.)
Ans. Fire Hazards, Explosions Hazards from incompatible chemicals, Extremely Toxic Chemicals, Lachrymators (substances that irritate the eyes and produce tears), Vesicants (substances that can blister and burn body tissues by contact with the skin or inhalation), Carcinogens (substances that produce cancer)
Memorizing. Step 1 is obvious here. Step 2 would be to note the key words – fire, explosion, toxic, lachrymator (eye irritation), vesicant (burn body tissue), carcinogen (cancer). Step 3 I would note that there are 6 points and arrange them alphabetically Carcinogen, Explosion, Fire, Lachrymator (…), Toxic, Vesicant (…). However this order didn’t suit me much; plus the words ‘lachrymator’ and ‘vesicant’ were new to me. So I arranged them like this Fire, Explosion (Group 1, explosion follows lighting a fire), Toxic, Carcinogen, Eye irritation, Tissue burn (Group 2, toxicity is like a superset; causing cancer, eye irritation, tissue burns are like subsets albeit not exactly and the last three are in alphabetical order). Next is step 5.

Example 2 – I have to memorize the following equations –Note that equation (1) and (3) and similarly (2) and (4) are dual of each other i.e. I interchange ‘mu’ and ‘epsilon’ to get one from the other. It is easier to remember the even-numbered equations. Also in the whole system, there are actually two units. One is and the other is . The rest is a combination of these two. So instead of remembering the whole forms, I would rather remember the two units and how they are used to generate the rest.

Also if there is an equation which says A gives B. I would notice the differences (delta_AB) between the two and remember A and delta_AB and then derive B using the two. There can be a lot more examples. I would be happy to know if you do it in a similar fashion or what other methods you use to memorize. I have one more test to go in this semester. I could use some help.