Speak, memory

A favorite class I took in my computer science studies was a cognitive science elective in the ATLAS institute. Taught by the brilliant Michael Eisenberg it gave a broad overview of cognitive science, artificial intelligence, and human computer interaction.

In it I wrote a research paper on memory and I still carry the books today. A fantastic first read in memory is Moonwalking with Einstein. Joshua Foer was a journalist writing in the New Yorker Magazine when he became interested in competitive memory. As part of the research for this book he competed in and became the 2006 USA Memory Champion. The book is a great read for anyone interested in memory or in subcultures.

If you would like to improve your own memory for names, grocery lists, facts, a good one is from 1974 : The Memory Book. I taught my seven year old daughter how to remember a grocery list using its techniques of making vivid imagery (You walk into the grocery store and you are swimming in honey, there’s honey flowing in from the left and right, you swim through the honey and you come to a giant bee burping out hotdogs, etc.) Hours later she could remember the list and the story; like they say in the book- “It’s easy, it’s fun, it works.” There are many books like this but this one is a classic and it’s easy to find used.

For a deep dive into memory and to learn how the classic orators remembered speeches before the use of paper The Art of Memory is a great read. Learn about memory palaces the art of memory from Greece to the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and beyond.