How to gain more from your reading • Hacker News Board

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#81

Post by alessivs » Fri, Jul 23, 2021, 3:28 AM UTC

jldugger wrote: post #75

alessivs wrote: post #69

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Every mentioned problem (workload, new vs. old reading task distribution, scheduling, plus retention) is exactly what incremental reading–at least, as implemented in the other prominent SRS–aims to solve (which it does, rather well). Does the Anki IR plugin not tackle them?

> (workload, new vs. old reading task distribution, scheduling, plus retention) I've never really understood the appeal of IR as defined elsewhere. My reading queue isn't just wikipedia dumps or some other 100 percent valuable source, often it's somewhat speculative. I really don't want to read 3 sections from random journal papers and then create cards; I need to once over a paper to even be sure the cards created a…

> I need to once over a paper to even be sure the cards created are worth remembering.

In my experience, this task is still better when distributed over time. Time-distributed reading involves distributed judgement of quality.

What Incremental Reading would do for you, given enough sources and/or sufficient coverage of the subject matter, is effortlessly resurface highlights and cards whose usefulness was initially doubtful. Each resurfacing would be in a successively reshaped knowledge network that stands a better chance to help you understand its merits and role between other pieces of knowledge: between reviews, this network is forming and expanding in an initial stage, to then contract, solidify, and be pruned of noise.

When evaluating the usefulness of the card or piece of knowledge, without IR one may fall back to simply taking a snapshot of the network at t1 and t2 and judge on those premises. With IR you will have made the piece integral to the network the moment it is created, and will evolve as part of it. In the end, this piece may not be simply kept or discarded, but perhaps reassigned to complement a different source, or morphed into answering a different question. Whatever the result, it has better chance to serve your purposes (and even this capacity may be reassessed in the future).

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#82

Post by dgs_sgd » Fri, Jul 23, 2021, 4:10 AM UTC

To add to the great advice in this article, a rule of thumb I have is to plan to write a review for the book I'm reading right from the get go. When I know I need to write a review once I'm finished, I play closer attention to the book's ideas, write thoughts and criticisms down, etc.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#83

Post by austhrow743 » Fri, Jul 23, 2021, 4:47 AM UTC

dSebastien wrote: post #51

BeetleB wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Printing is something I started to do some months ago. Instead of keeping the tab open for weeks, I decided I'd print anything I want to read and place it a physical "inbox". Some tips: I print 2 pages to a side, so 4 pages per printer paper. Even long articles don't use too much paper, and for my eyes it's still readable (there are a few articles where I need to enlarge first). I print using either Firefox's "Simpli…

I did this for ten years. I would print 10-15 articles each day, and read those during my ~2h of daily commute. I've learned a ton of things that way. I'm not proud for the environment, but the physical aspect did have its importance.

I wonder how the environmental impact compares against potential alternatives. Like if instead of reading those pages on your commute, you'd bought yourself a new hand held console every few years to play, or decided that since you're not using the time anyway then you might as well drive yourself to make the trip a little shorter.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#84

Post by leokennis » Fri, Jul 23, 2021, 5:39 AM UTC

onethought wrote: post #66

leokennis wrote: post #5

This article is, perhaps unsurprisingly, very well written and structured. A joy to read compared to most internet writing! It vibes pretty well with my own "rules" for reading: * I read one book at a time * In general I only read when I feel like it, but I will read every day: if I don't feel like it, I'll just read one page * At any point am I allowed to stop reading a book and pick up a new one * I do not track "p…

Does rule 1. And 3. Not mean you read multiple books at once? Just not simultaneously :)

Haha nice catch ;-)

What I meant with “stop reading” is “stop reading entirely”. If I read a book and at 50% think: I could probably finish it but it’s not really enjoyable at all, I just delete it from my ereader.

No sunk cost fallacy here :-)

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#85

Post by machinehermiter » Fri, Jul 23, 2021, 11:04 AM UTC

sanderjd wrote: post #19

I have really struggled with this, especially since having kids. The problem for me is that I have very little time to read, so I either have to read fast or read very little, reading fast doesn't really work as the article describes, so the choice is to read very little, but then that makes choosing what to read a big commitment, and that leads to analysis paralysis, and then I end up reading nothing because it's to…

I think this is exactly the spot audio books come in.

When I am driving in the car, cutting the lawn, walking for exercise..I am "reading". I make time to walk 50 min a day without exception and you just rip through books if reading 50 min everyday.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#86

Post by mrjivraj » Fri, Jul 23, 2021, 1:51 PM UTC

coder-3 wrote: post #68

mrjivraj wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you have a simple system to keep track of the notes you take? I ask because I also started taking notes, primarily because I want to write about some of the things I come across. I write an investment newsletter ( https://playingfordoubles.substack.com ) I probably need to get myself some type of filing cabinet to keep track of articles I'd like to revisit in the future.

I was going to recommend the Zettelkasten method then realised you asked for something simple. But for others who are curious or don't mind a more involved system then I would recommend it. Works digitally as well.

thanks, i will look that up nonetheless.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#87

Post by jmd509 » Fri, Jul 23, 2021, 1:52 PM UTC

technothrasher wrote: post #37

jmd509 wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Here's something I've experimented with that I don't see recommended often - In similar circumstances, I'll leverage both the book and audiobook. This way when I'm on the move, I can pick up the audio version where I left off and keep the momentum going. Downside is you invest a small amount of time syncing between the two sources, and there might be additional cost associated. Upside is you gain more cumulative read…

I have a very hard time absorbing audiobooks. When I read, I often stop and follow the train of thought that a particular passage has begun in my brain before then proceeding on with the reading. I automatically do the same thing with an audiobook, but by doing that I miss content because the audio continues while I'm thinking and I don't pay attention to it. Sure, I could stop and start the audio, but I typically do…

I have to admit, I agree. I have friends that plow through audiobooks, but I don't absorb them well either. I like them for fiction, which I personally read for pleasure and don't analyze as closely as nonfiction, and to act as a bridge between print reading sessions. I've also found listening to podcasts sort of 'trains' your mind to attend more closely to long-form audio.

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#88

Post by okareaman » Fri, Jul 23, 2021, 4:04 PM UTC

blueyes wrote: post #67

okareaman wrote: post #40

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My main takeaway from Bloom's book that has served me well, is to clear your mind of groupthink and preconceived notions that he calls "cant" to approach the text with an open mind. From the blurb on Amazon: "Shedding all polemic, Bloom addresses the solitary reader, who, he urges, should read for the purest of all reasons: to discover and augment the self. His ultimate faith in the restorative power of literature re…

It's clear from Bloom's introduction, written in 2000 I think, that he believed US society and particularly universities like Yale, his employer, had entered a dark time in which ideologies were blinding readers to the humanity of the authors, their characters, and to themselves.

From my casual attention to the subject, I hear it's even worse now

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#89

Post by sanderjd » Fri, Jul 23, 2021, 4:13 PM UTC

CuriousSkeptic wrote: post #65

sanderjd wrote: post #19

I have really struggled with this, especially since having kids. The problem for me is that I have very little time to read, so I either have to read fast or read very little, reading fast doesn't really work as the article describes, so the choice is to read very little, but then that makes choosing what to read a big commitment, and that leads to analysis paralysis, and then I end up reading nothing because it's to…

My solution to this was to simply read books (and other works) I wanted to read for my kid. (Luckily there is some overlap in interest) Was pleasantly surprised to discover the depths of some children’s books though. Can heartily recommend anything by Tove Jansson f.ex

Thanks! I'm in the phase where my eldest is old enough to have opinions about which books to read, but too young to have those be interesting ones (though some are fun to read, like Fox in Socks).

Re: How to gain more from your reading

#90

Post by sanderjd » Fri, Jul 23, 2021, 4:14 PM UTC

copperx wrote: post #64

sanderjd wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm sorry, I know I'm being dense, but I don't vocalize when I read, even quietly. Are you suggesting that reading out loud is a technique you use to pay attention better, or do you mean it metaphorically?

There was some research that suggested that reading aloud is better than silently for retention. I had never vocalized before, and I'm struggling to do it because it slows you down so much, but it indeed increases my retention.

Very interesting! Thanks!