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Phrae

Possibly Very Effective Learning Tool?

4 posts in this topic

Supermemo with Incremental Learning

So I have know of this resource for more than 5 years but have never really delved to it.

It seems I understand a lot more about it than I did then. I have no idea of the effectiveness and practicality of this matter but I would like to share it with you and have your thoughts.

Basically it's using an application called SuperMemo with learning and retention techniques implemented in a much thorough manner than Anki.

Check out this article: here

There is a trail that can be found here

the main website is here

but my point is to ask is this even practical? There is a hell of a lot of information in there that makes me uneasy to just skip.

(the reason I am linking is because it is not the orange supermemo website that pops up as a google search... that is a different one)

Edited by Phrae

"Water takes shape of whatever container holds it." --

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Okay I found unusual informaition about the author of this that goes by the name of Dr. Piotr Wozniak

  • I disappear for months at a time. When I work on an important project, I often cut off all my links with the outside world. This works wonders for focused work on a single subject. Naturally, this can be exasperating for everyone else, esp. that I send no notifications and all my mail is redirected to a colleague. The privacy level in my communications is dismal
  • I do not attend conferences or business meetings. In short, I do not travel. In this modern electronic world, I consider travelling an unnecessary risk, as well as a waste of energy and time. All my work can now be done over the Internet. I have never been aboard a plane. My last conference and the last business meeting took place in 1999. My last train trip took place in 2004. My most recent experience of smelling the interior of a car occurred in 2011. I have no driving license
  • I do not have a cell phone. I design my schedule around my circadian cycle using the Plan feature of SuperMemo. Phone calls at unpredictable moments of time make the execution of the schedule difficult, and for some slots, impossible. For the same reason, I do not use Internet telephony. This is explained in Planning a perfect productive day without stress. I am not a Luddite. I will use a phone for learning at some point in the future. However, I am still waiting for the right kind of SuperMemo that will make that worthwhile.

More info here...

I actually am starting to admire this person..:

Philosophy

I would like to recapture the idealized image of pre-industrial scientist who could focus entirely on his research pursuits. Like Newton in plague years, or Darwin on Beagle, or Darwin in his later years when he was writing the Origin of Species. Modern scientists justifiably complain of the need to juggle family life, administration, travel and commute, publish-or-perish pressures, battling for grants, student supervision, lecturing, information overload and Inboxes bursting at the seams. Contrast this with Darwin's work in his study, walks in nature, time for family, and pacing himself slowly to write the text that changed the world.

This ideal is supposed to be served by the drastic measures I take: creative vacation, ditching the cell phone and travel, using mostly e-mail for communication, working on one project at a time, blogging as opposed to rigorous publishing, using bare feet rather than a car, etc. Not only does simplicity serve the efficiency, it is also a good formula for a happy life.

I regret that my e-mail communication is erratic. There are countless interesting people in the world. I would love to know them all and learn about their lives, habits, their learning and their sleep, their creative habits and methods, the way they raise their kids, etc. and yet I need to squeeze this all in a reasonable time slot. Hence incremental e-mail processing that isn't great for continuity and yet it is best for extracting long-term value from communication. Quality should take precedence over Quantity. Please stay in touch independent of my shortcomings.

Edited by Phrae
love of life

"Water takes shape of whatever container holds it." --

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It totally works. I used an SRS (though it wasn't SuperMemo specifically) to memorize the basic Japanese kanji (over 2000 of them).

I find that SRS programs like SuperMemo work best for memorizing discrete bits of information that are easily categorized and referenced. "Facts" basically. Works great for learning vocabulary, and I think it's a revolutionary idea, as long as the user understands its limits. It is for memorizing, not learning.

However, in this day and age, we underestimate the important role that memorizing can play in learning. When we have things memorized and easily retrievable in our brains, it makes learning (putting the facts all together in a model) and being creative a lot easier. It frees up space for other things, rather than having to struggle to remember basic stuff.

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@eleveneleven The thing is that he uses it for learning. 


"Water takes shape of whatever container holds it." --

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