The Complete Memory Improvement Course

You will find that the memory was considered so important in ancient times, that the Greeks had a special goddess of memory, named Mnemosyne.

Legend says that an ancient greek poet, Simonidis of Ceos was the inventor of the method of Loci or the memory palace technique, where large amounts of data can be remembered in order by placing images that represent the data into mental locations or journeys.

In modern times, this art seems a rather unimportant branch of the human  activity.  But, in the ages before printing, a trained memory was an important weapon for social success, to ensure, by means of an infallible memory, advantage over others. 

During the Middle Ages, the Art of Memory was very appreciated, a science close to Magic.

This Art has attracted and still attracts many people, because, like any magic, it is a source of POWER.

Up until the latter part of the 19th century it had been generally assumed that the phenomena of the memory could not be addressed by experimental methods.In the mid-1880s ,the young German philosopher Hermann Ebbinghaus developed the first scientific approach to studying memory.

Some of his findings from his work (such as the concepts of the learning curve and forgetting curve, and his classification of the three distinct types of memory: sensory, short-term and long-term) remain relevant to this day.

After psychiatrists and neuropsychologists have demonstrated that everyone can improve their memory if they want to, memory improvement became a well-studied field.

More and more people became aware of the possibilities of memory training and this activity has become very popular. Eventually , memory improvement has formally  became a sport since 1991,  created by the inventor of Mind Maps and expert on Mental Literacy, Tony Buzan and Chess Grand Master, Raymond Keene OBE and features national and international championships.

Memory formation is a sequential operation where information processing moves from the present (sensory memory) into short-term memory and eventually moves into long-term memory. What we usually think of as “memory” in day-to-day usage is actually long-term memory, but there are also important short-term and sensory memory processes, which must be worked through before a long-term memory can be established.

The different types of memory each have their own particular mode of operation, but they all cooperate in the process of memorization, and can be seen as three necessary steps in forming a lasting memory.

When we actually want to learn something, it is long-term memories we are interested in.

So, how are they formed?

And how can we strengthen our memories by applying the memory-training techniques ?

In this lesson, you will learn the memory improvement principles that make some images more memorable than others and how you can apply these concepts to improving memory.

The loci method is the oldest technique of memory, being invented by the Greek poet Simonidis in the fifth century BC.

This method uses familiar locations to help you memorize important information.

You associate all the words  you want to learn with the route markers and combine them into  one image. When you want to remember these words again, you  simply go through the route markers in the same sequence and  all the words appear in your mind's eye.

The Roman Room technique works by pegging images coding for information to known things, in this case to objects in a room.

If we wish to remember much material we must equip ourselves with a large number of places.

The Journey Technique is based on a mental journey through a place you know well, like a building or town. Along that journey there are specific locations that you always visit in the same order.

 It will help you to remember the correct order and can easily be used over and over again for different purposes.

How The Peg System works?

A Peg System can be thought of much like a wardrobe which contains a number of hooks for hanging clothes on. The hangers themselves never change, but the clothes which are hung on the hooks can be infinitely varied.

In this lesson you will learn how this system works, then ,in the next lessons, I will present you the main Peg systems.

Alphabet systems are typically used as a type of Mnemonic Peg System to memorize lists of up to 26 items in order.

The Animal Peg system is a good method for remembering medium length lists (up to 26 items) in a specific order, in such a way that you can tell if items are missing.

This method is especially suitable for kinaesthetic learners.

 The principle of the body parts system is that you "attach" one item from your list to be memorized to each body-peg in turn.

When you need to recall your list of items, your body acts as a memory-trigger and help you to remember the items.

In this lesson, we will move on to another type of peg method, whose code is based on digits.

Just as the alphabet method is based on the fact that you will not forget the order of the 26 letters, the number-rhyme method is based on an equally simple system of pegs: the numbers from 0 to 9.

 This technique is especially suitable for predominantly auditory persons.

The Number-Shape system is a very simple and effective way of remembering a long number or a list in a specific order, similar with the Number Rhyme System.

It’s  a type of peg system based on peg-numbers, too.

Each number from 0 to 9 is associated with a mnemonic image based on the shape of the digit.

 The Number-Shape technique is  especially suitable for predominantly visual persons.

How does it work?

The Number Symbol Method is a very simple and effective way of remembering a long number or a list in a specific order, similar with the Number Shape System , also especially suitable for predominantly visual persons.

 It’s a type of peg system based on peg-numbers.

Each number from 0 to 9 is associated with a mnemonic image based on a symbolic image of the digit.

The  Sing-a-Long Method is another type of peg method , very easy to learn and also fun to use.

It is especially suitable for predominantly auditory persons.

A mind map is a hierarchical diagram representing ideas, concepts and words that are arranged around a central image or key idea

Originated in the late 1960s by Tony Buzan, Mind Maps are now used by millions of people around the world – from the very young to the very old – whenever they wish to use their minds more effectively.

 It is used to structure, classify, visualize and at times generate ideas for the purpose of organizing information, solving problems and making better decisions.

A mind map essentially pieces together a subject into effective segments or chunks to help aid memory and recall.It is a creative and effective tool to put information into your brain and to take information out of your brain, that literally ‘maps out’ your thoughts.

Learn how to form an acronym when you have to memorize facts or concepts and how to use this simple memory technique.

The Sentence Method is very similar to the Acronym Method.

 Here is how it works: You take the first letter (or an important letter) of the word you're trying to memorize and form a sentence out of it.

 This method is better for longer lists as compared to the Acronym Method.

A Sentence allows you to create much more elaborate mnemonic images  than a single word ,therefore this a more efficient method

"The Chain Link”  or "The Word Train method", works by linking a series of pairs of items (elements in the list that are next to each other) ,like a chain.

In this lesson, you will learn how to use this simple memory technique.

This method uses the linking of the items together with a memorable story featuring them.The flow of the story and the strength of the images will give you the cues for retrieval.

Besides lists,you can use the Story technique for remembering the names of people at a party or at a business meeting, for example, or topics you want to include in a presentation.

The method can also be very useful for your studies, helping you memorize with ease various unrelated things .

The Sound Alike method or the Word Substitution method is a technique that will help you to remember difficult words in the English language or in a foreign language, words that you aren't familiar with.

Rhymes and jingles are so easily recalled that they stick with us, and can be important techniques to help us remember things.

The Major System ,also called the Consonant Peg Method, or the phonetic mnemonic system,is a very efficient technique used to memorize numbers ,shuffled playing cards,dates,historical facts and other long,abstract sequences of items.

The "Dominic" system is one of the most used by mental athletes and is a very important memory training tool.

The PAO system is used by many mental athletes because is very efficient and easy to use.

 It is  an elaboration of the (Person-Action) Dominic system, which is led to a superior level.

Whereas the Dominic system has pair one = the person, and pair two = performing the action, the PAO system uses: pair one = the person, pair two = the action, pair three = the object. 

Ben system is a complex technique, used in memory contests because of its efficiency. The applications of this system are memorizing  Decimal numbers, memorizing  Binary numbers and  memorizing Playing cards.

The creator of this system is Ben Pridmore, a British mnemonist who has won the World Memory Championships three times. 

Why we hide things from ourselves? And what can you do about it? 

By applying the techniques that I will present to you, you will easily remember where you put your forgotten items.

Here is another common memory problem to everyone:You walk into the kitchen with purpose, then stand in the doorway wondering what you went in there to do. Look for your keys? Get a glass of water? Who knows? Your mind is completely blank.

In this lesson, I will show you the method that will help you to remember why you went into that room.

Choosing the right memory technique for you depends on both the length of your list and your personal preferences. In this lesson, I will show you all the techniques that can be used to memorize a list, so you can choose the best method for you

Why is it difficult to remember dates? And what can we do about it?

By applying the memory techniques, the dates are converted into images, that will be easier to remember by the brain.

This way, you can keep your own mental calendar for appointments and anniversaries. With this mental calendar, you have the dates for your work schedule imprinted in your mind, and you've no need to write them down.

In order to cope up with today’s lifestyle, you have to be able to remember a lot of numbers, or you’ll end up getting all confused.

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to use the learned memory techniques to better remember numbers , so you can perform your usual transactions quicker and more efficiently.

In this lesson, you will find simple techniques that can ensure your success in different situations that you face everyday in your career, including public speaking activities.

Memory is like any other discipline, if you don’t consistently use it, you lose it!

The good news is that you have at your disposal a whole arsenal of memory techniques that can really help you when you are a student.

All known memory techniques are applied for study and learning, they were designed for this purpose.

In this lesson, you will learn the systems used by memory experts, consisting of techniques and tools that will allow you to become more effective in learning foreign languages.

Memory experts have tried various systems and methods to help their memory for names.

All of these systems have certain common steps to follow, steps that we will see in this lesson

Using humor well is a sign of intelligence and creativity. 

In this lesson, I will show you how to use the memory techniques to effectively retain jokes and funny stories.

The World Memory Championships is an organized competition of mental sports in which competitors memorize as much information as possible within a given period of time.

A true Olympiad of the brain, the World memory championship has taken place annually since 1991. 

In this lesson, I will show you what these disciplines are and how they are scored in the World Memory Championships.

The Major system operates on a number of levels, depending on the amount of time you are prepared to devote to learning the system.

In a previous lesson you could learn how to use The basic level of the Major system ,which involves coding single digit numbers into small words.

You  could see the 10 associations code of this level.

 Based on this simple code, we can develop a code of 100 images, thus moving to level 2 of the Major system.

In this lesson, you will learn how to use the major system for memorizing long binary numbers

In this lesson, you will learn how to use the major system for memorizing playing cards and we will memorize together a 10 cards sequence.

In this lesson,you will learn how to create and to use your code for memorizing long numbers with the Dominic system.

Binary  numbers used in memory competitions are large sequences of the digits 0 and 1 arranged in an arbitrary sequence (30 digits/row).

In this  lesson, you will learn how to create and to use your code for memorizing long sequences of binary numbers with the Dominic system.

In this lesson you will learn how to memorize a whole pack of shuffled playing cards by applying the Dominic system.

This variant works by systematically converting the cards into memorable images. 

In this lesson, you will learn how to use the PAO system for memorizing long numbers and you will memorize the first 60 Digits of the number PHI with the PAO system:
1.618033988749894848204586834365638117720309179805762862135448

In this lesson,you will learn how to create and to use your code for memorizing long sequences of binary numbers and you will learn how  to memorize a sequence of 90 binary digits:

111101100110000011101011110010111100001110101111011110111101011010000111001011100011101001

In this lesson, you will learn how to use the PAO system for memorizing long sequences of playing cards.

 By using the PAO system, the mental athletes can remember a deck of cards in only 25 seconds. 

In this lesson,you will learn how to use  Ben system for memorizing long numbers. 

In this lesson, you will learn how to use  Ben system for memorizing long sequences of binary digits. One of the disciplines of World Memory Championship is to memorize and to recall as many binary digits  as possible.Computer-generated numbers are presented in rows of 30 digits with 25 rows per page.Ben system enables you to convert any ten-digit-long string of ones and zeros into a unique image.

By placing 3 images in one locus of a journey, Ben system turns each row of thirty digits into a single mnemonic image.

In this lesson, you will learn how to use  Ben system for memorizing long sequences of playing cards. 

This technique only requires 9 stages to memorize a deck of cards, so it is probably the most efficient card memorization systems, a true nuclear weapon for your memory.

After presenting all the memory techniques, we can now make an analysis that will allow us to understand the advantages and disadvantages of each method, and how to choose the right method for each memory test.

If we now know that memory training makes us smarter, how can we start this activity?

Using a training strategy will help you achieve remarkable results.  

In this lesson, you will learn the steps for creating an efficient memory training strategy

After learning what memory training is about, in this lesson we will see some examples of training schedule, learned from well-known memory experts.Because each person is different, you will need to create your own style of training.