𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗧𝗼 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝗔𝗻𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆

I spent a lot of time researching the most effective learning methods. Some are proven good, and some are proven bad.

One of the methods that worked well for me was the "𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗱." You can use it to learn anything, from your exams to new fields you want to research.

Hermann Ebbinghaus, a psychologist, was the first to study memory analysis in the late 1880s. He accomplished this by spending years remembering lists of made-up, incomprehensible phrases. Ebbinghaus could track the rate at which memories "decay" over time by documenting his results, including how many times he studied each list, the intervals between his study sessions, and how much he could remember.

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝘃𝗲, a graph he created, represented this degradation rate. Although the Forgetting Curve has significantly impacted the study of memory, it is also somewhat deceptive. It supports the notion that memories fade with time.

Author Benedict Carey explains the "𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻" idea, a new theory of disuse, in his book "How We Learn". This theory helps explain why some memories seem to endure while others seem to fade. The first principle of this theory is that memories have two distinct strengths: storage strength and retrieval strength.

1. 𝗦𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵 - not deteriorate over time. Information is stored once it has been obtained, and the brain determines that it has reached a certain level of relevance. Only frequent recall or use will increase storage strength.

2. 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗴𝘁𝗵 – the ability to access the memory – does fade. It’s fickle, not as voluminous as storage strength, and needs regular maintenance.

As a result, "forgetting" is a problem with accessibility. Although it is in storage, you cannot locate the memory. According to the second tenet of the "Forget to Learn" hypothesis, learning increases when memory is revisited, the more the retrieval strength has decreased.

So, how should we learn to optimize retrieval? Try with 𝗦𝗽𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗱. Here is an example of when you should repeat things:

1. First repetition: 1 day

2. Second repetition: 7 days

3. Third repetition: 16 days

4. Fourth repetition: 35 days

But of course, this depends on the interval when you need to learn something, so these times could change.

How can you try the Spaced Repetition method? With old-school flashcards or apps like Anki.

What is your best learning method? What works for you?