Hi Reader, Over the past weeks, Iāve done another deep dive into cognitive science! This time, I set out to uncover the real science behind one of the most widely used study methods: spaced repetition flashcards. The promise of spaced repetition is simple and appealing: improve your retention by reviewing information at optimal intervals. But when I looked at the stats, I found that many learners over-rely on spaced repetition. 67% of students use flashcards and spaced repetition. But less...
almost 3 years agoĀ ā¢Ā 1 min read
Hi Reader, Today's newsletter is a little different! Instead of sharing learning tips and strategies, I wanted to tell you about what I've been up to for the past few months. As you may know, the original reason for creating Traverse was to learn Chinese, so that I could communicate with my wife's friends and family. After the Traverse method helped me master Chinese, I wanted to put it into practice by living in China and speaking with locals. For the past three years, this dream was...
about 3 years agoĀ ā¢Ā 3 min read
Hi Reader, Flashcard practice is a common part of the learning process for many students, whether in medicine, law, engineering, language learning or other subjects. But itās also a practice that can very easily start feeling like a drag, if you review hundreds of isolated facts in a row. So in todayās email, Iāve gathered some resources which help you create flashcards that are effective, fun and challenging to review, without becoming tedious. 1. Augmenting Cognition by Michael Nielsen...
about 3 years agoĀ ā¢Ā 2 min read
Reader, if you are anything like me when making connections between notes, you have experienced that after linking every note to anything that even seems remotely related to it, you end up with something that resembles the following: (Source: https://every.to/superorganizers/the-fall-of-roam) There sure are a lot of links here. But is our brain really such an unhelpful mess? Today, Iāll explain why itās easy to overdo links, and how instead, you can be conscious about making connections to...
about 3 years agoĀ ā¢Ā 1 min read
Sleeps and breaks make you smarter... did you know that, Reader? Anyway, I hope you had a great Trivia day yesterday. The winner are Derek, Yusuf, Andrew, Stephen, Eliceo and Kay - congratulations all! As for the others: You can still get this book at launch price here.. But in case youāre wondering what exactly youāre getting, Iāve included a little excerpt in here. It answers the questions: How are long-term, short-term and working memory distinct from each other? Why should you retrieve...
about 3 years agoĀ ā¢Ā 2 min read
Yes, what I hinted at in the subject line is possibleā¦ But only if you let go of the conventional approaches to learningā¦ Which are: Aiming to understand and memorize. Instead, you should focus on evaluating, creating or analyzing right away. Your brain will immediately take care of the rest. Simply try it out when you learn next timeā¦ it will be challenging, and perhaps youāll be wrong about a couple things, but thatās the way to learn. If you want to learn more about concepts like this and...
about 3 years agoĀ ā¢Ā 1 min read
Reader, this is your brain whenever you learn by using spaced repetition or reading notes: Just kidding... Hereās what actually happens and why encoding is more efficient: For each learning subject, your brain has a different bucket. And, after a while, each bucket leaksā¦ meaning you forget stuff. You could try to patch the holes with spaced repetition. But for that, youāll have to invest lots of time into endlessly repeating flashcards. Thereās an alternative that mostly prevents leaks long...
about 3 years agoĀ ā¢Ā 1 min read
Weāre always to hungry to know more, consume more, learn more. But often, the only way forward is to first unlearn what is blocking you. Unlearning bad habits, mindsets and practices is key to unlocking next level learning and moving to a higher path. In this email Iāve collected 4 things you need to unlearn. #1 Unlearn linear note-taking & flashcard overload (YouTube): Dr Justin Sung The master of unlearning is Dr. Justin Sung. He demonstrates how many of the learning methods you might have...
over 3 years agoĀ ā¢Ā 2 min read
(Thereās a special announcement in the P.S. section, but if you want to have a mindset-shift, read the whole email.) Hi Reader, shit happens: š You read a book and thought you remembered pretty well. But the next day you want to tell a friend and you end up stammering, realizing youāve forgotten 90%. (And thereās one huge underlying cause behind the problems. Read on and perhaps you can guess it.) š You view the curriculum for your next test, and the amount of content is so vast that you ask...
over 3 years agoĀ ā¢Ā 2 min read
