Memory Systems, Method of Loci, Major, Pegging etc. Options

[Cassox]

I am curious as to how many of you use a system such as this. Kevin Trudeau came out a number of years ago with his "Mega Memory" courses which dampened most people interest in these areas. It's not that theres anything falty with his courses; it's only that their so padded with unneccesary "motivational" speeches that they fill up 12 cassete tapes when they could have been on one.

Overall, I prefer the Major system combined with a few Loci lists. These work great as far as semi-temporary storage of large sums of data. The biggest problem I see is real long-term memory storage. It took me only two days to memorize Pi to one hundred digits. This really isn't that impressive when you see some of the digit span results at some memory tournaments. The problem is that it's been a year and I don't remember it anymore. Don't get me wrong, I could easily repeg it all. I just want something better. The greatest advantage is in priming. Anything I've ever pegged I can relearn incredibly fast. Does anyone know any "next steps" for working on eidetic memory? What techniques do you prefer? In what ways have you modified existing systems, or do you have your own?

[maximus242]

My favorite book is Your Perfect Memory by Tony Buzan. Its a very thin book, it goes straight for the jugular and does not waste any time with unnecessary text.

I think the Roman Room method is best for retention, I did a variation of it for memorizing a list of 12 items and 4 months later I can still perfectly recall the items on the list.

The Major System is the key emphasis in Tony's book, although he goes through basically every single memory technique there is. Personally I am very visual so I find the Roman Room method is the easiest one for me to use. At the memory tournaments some contestants memorize simply by using hundreds of Roman Rooms and then stringing them all together.

[Cassox]

Yeah, I like Buzan. Is Roman Room the same as method of Loci? Is it where you take a journey through a room and interact with items to be remembered? Interesting. I don't like semcubed stuff because I find it difficult to come up ways to emote with just variations in color etc.

[maximus242]

Yea the Roman Room is basically anchoring memories to objects in your room through funny and at times absurd connections to make them easy to remember.

For example you could have a duck riding on a ceiling fan, which might remind you to go to the park. The more funny or unusual the connections are - the easier it is to remember. Boring or monotonous connections are much harder to remember if you ask me.

[Unariunintrudus]

Yes, I know what you mean about some books. I bought a book on lucid dreaming written by a professon at Stanford University. There was a lot of theory and background information which might come in handy in a conversation with a psychologist or psychiatrist, or whatever. I took in note form from the book of over 350 pages or so what I needed to know to induce lucid dreaming; it came out to two pages or three of short notes.

There was a book out in the seventies by Harry Lorraine a man named Lukas who was a famous basketball player. "The Memory Book." It was useful.

I always used my memory when I went to university, and I graduated with a 3.9 average out of a possible 4.0. Having a memory can be useful. If we didn't need it, nature would have left it out when it put us together.