In the previous post we described some theoretical aspects related to speed of generation and linking visual markers. Here I want to dive in into some interesting conversations on the subject.
Scientist007 :
A problem with using markers.
Now the use of markers can be used anywhere, anytime, with anything. However, I have problem with their use. Which is the following:
1. Creating efficient and highly detailed markers takes time!
Technically while I am reading something, I have to stop and think of a marker every time, which can be very frustrating! I want to finish and get through reading the content.
2. Forgetting what the markers reference to.
At times when I create a marker, I forgot what it supposed to refer to! For instance I create a marker for an appointment at 2 PM. The marker is a plane with “two” wings. I then eventually remember the marker but forget why I created it the first place.
In these two cases, what should I do to solve them and what do you recommend?
Thanks,
Dr. Lev Gold
Sometimes I feel that students try too hard or drift away with their imagination. The markers should roughly correspond the material they represent: do not add details that are not there. If you had a meeting with travel company imagine a plane, but if it is with a client imagine 2 coins, and so on. Highly detailed markers mean that you encode a lot of information into those details. If you do not have that much information – maybe you should not add that many details. You can try to read more advanced stuff on http://www.keytostudy.com/analytical-skills-superlearning/.
Jonathan A. Levi
To paraphrase, I think Lev means that your image should be detailed (picture the markings on the coin), but not with information that you don’t have. Makes sense?
Dan Morrison : Marker generation speed – how to gauge improvement?
Love the course so far! Quick question:
How quickly are you expected to generate markers when you first begin reading? I still find that if I need to remember a detail, I sit and dig in my memory for an adequate marker (a family friend, childhood memory, etc) for later recall. When I take the time (usually anywhere from 5-20 seconds depending on the density of the material) it works, but I end up reading the article much slower than I used to.
Alternatively, if I want to read faster I find I create less descriptive markers but am able to “read in pictures” as the texts indicates, but since the markers are more generic the retention falls. Additionally, if creating markers on the fly they usually don’t relate to one another, as my mind is trying to grab whatever is most accessible at the time.
1) How do I learn to make more high quality markers on the fly? Any specific exercises for fast encoding? As I said before, given enough time I can encode most anything, but I want to improve speed.
2) What sorts of activities or tests can I run to see if I’m improving?
Dr. Lev Gold
By the end of the course you are expected to generate and link about 1-2 markers per second with 3-4 details each. There are plenty of exercises on http://www.keytostudy.com/category/exercises/. Choose whatever order that makes sense.
Blair Silverberg: When does linking happen?
When exactly does linking happen? Should you link markers together one-at-a-time as you create them or do you remember all markers in working memory and at the end of each paragraph link them together? It seems that both thinking of markers and then linking markers takes time and that this slows the overall reading speed. How is this overcome?
Dr. Lev Gold
I will give a more complex in-depth answer here…
With each new piece of information you learn (correlated to saccade eye jump) you can do many things:
1. Create a brand new marker
2. Add detail to existing marker
3. Create a non-trivial link between two existing markers
….
As you read a paragraph you generate a network of markers. At the end of each paragraph you should pause for a moment and amend the network of markers by analyzing what you just learned in the paragraph and how it connects to the other parts of the section. At the end of the section/article, you should close your eyes and analyze how the whole section relates to the body of knowledge you are trying to build….
Blair Silverberg
This makes sense but it generates a few new questions:
1. A week into the class I notice that I am currently much more constrained by my speed of creating or linking markers than by my saccade speed. I assume that the exercises for week 1-4 are sufficient to help with this. Is this correct?
2. Should you expect dramatically different reading speeds for different types of material? For example, I can imagine that adding detail to a robust network of existing markers is always faster than generating brand new markers or creating links between markers you have never linked before where you spend time brainstorming what the most memorable link should be.
Dr. Lev Gold
Usually you do not add markers for everything, but prioritize amount of information you need to retain from each text. If you are reading complex and detail-rich texts, you will be limited by your marker creation speed. You do not brainstorm on liking, but rather use the first association you get when analyzing the material. Please read http://www.keytostudy.com/cant-visualize-fast-enough-reading-speed/ before asking further questions on the subject.
Blair Silverberg
The link was very helpful and answered my question, thank you.
