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How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?

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Re: How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?

#71

So as a phd student I’ve learned the thing about reading research papers is that yes, it takes ages to read your first 2-3 major papers in a field, but after that, you’ve probably picked up a lot of the vocabulary and basic ideas, and you’ll be surprised at how little content many additional papers have once you’re actually steeped in the lingo.

This! So many other comments are basically describing shortcuts. Skim it, read the abstract, read the paragraphs backwards etc. Those tricks might be useful some day, but first you need to learn how to read a paper straight through.

Accept that you're going to be slow. Start with a paper you know will be worthwhile, something seminal in your field.

Get rid of all distractions, preferably by going to a different environment. Leave your phone at home or at the very least silence it and leave it in your bag. Print the paper out on dead trees, or otherwise display it on a medium that cannot display a web browser or other digital distractions.

Just start reading, deliberately reading every word. Underline or take notes in the margin if those might be your thing. When you get to something you don't understand, don't skip past it and figure you'll fill it in from context - read it again and make yourself figure out exactly what it means (exception: you can try figuring things out from context, but limit it to several sentences). You might have to look some things up to gain understanding, which un/fortunately today is via the web, but don't get distracted. If you're feeling overwhelmed you can take a break, but don't jump to another activity. Stick with it.

Eventually you will learn how to read dense things quicker, how to quickly figure out where something fits in a field, whether reading something in depth is worth it. But that will only come with experience.

Re: How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?

#72
post #2

Leave your phone at home, print out the material if it’s not already on paper, and go to a library. Also bring a notebook and pen for scaffolding your understanding on paper. Make sure you have nothing you need to do afterwards or that you block out 2x the amount of time you think it will take, so there is no time pressure or need for you to be thinking about the other tasks you will need to get to. When you need to…

"Don't beat yourself up over or try to force it" is really important when trying do things that takes time to cultivate as a habit where progress seems slow.

Re: How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?

#73

Back when I was a TA if a student had come to me with the problem you are describing and the compensatory technique you are using I'd tell them they might have mild to moderate dyslexia. If you're a university student you probably have access to a student support service that can assess you and advise you if that is the case. In the mean-time some people find using the [1] OpenDylsexic typeface helps and coloured ove…

I definitely agree with this. I might have dyslexia of some sorts. But my psychaitrist rejects that idea as I could read books easily in the past(when the books contained numbers)...I am medicating for schizoid personality disorder as it seems so idk if that is affecting me..sizodon, proate, and zosert are the medications that I am using currently.

Re: How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?

#74

For non-fiction, I almost never read every word in order, from start to finish. I think about what question I want to answer, and how I can get that answer quickly. The table of contents tells you how the book is organized, and the index shows you what's in it. I usually look at those first, then flip to the parts I want to know about and read them. For research papers, I almost always start by reading the abstract a…

actually I am decent at learning from videos. Problem occurs when there are no videos to learn. I sometimes wonder how will I learn after college?

Re: How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?

#75
post #25

Another comment mentions the possibility of a reading disorder. Since you have a pretty good measure of "45 minutes to read/comprehend 3 paragraphs", have you tried text-to-speech and seeing if you're faster that way? Or maybe reformatting the text with layout, font, font-sizes that work better for you? Not suggesting either solves the problem, but the small experiments might help identify an issue. I have also had p…

I even went to doctor to see if I have reding dyslexia but I am just getting proate, zosert and sizodon tabs IDK if anyone of them is for dyslexia...PS in the past I could easily read textbooks(that used to have maths in them)..so I am not sure what it is. I am decent at reading slides as well. My problem is getting the gist by reading stuffs. I simply can't get what is the gist after reading paragraphs. brain extension as they say it.

Re: How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?

#76

You're complaining about reading 3 paragraphs. I think this problem is different from what other's are thinking. People are thinking you don't have the attention span or self control to read something dense or heavy... I think it's something more than that. You could have a certain condition.

my issue is with getting gist after reading sth...i simply can't get that..i.e comprehend what I read properly in my own words. I try to memorize what is written in book as I don't get gist. So I prefer learning from slides from various US universities.

Re: How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?

#78

You're complaining about reading 3 paragraphs. I think this problem is different from what other's are thinking. People are thinking you don't have the attention span or self control to read something dense or heavy... I think it's something more than that. You could have a certain condition.

my issue is with getting gist after reading sth...i simply can't get that..i.e comprehend what I read properly in my own words. I try to memorize what is written in book as I don't get gist. So I prefer learning from slides from various US universities.

maybe it's dyslexia or something. You should see a doctor about it.

Also this is what "dyslexia" means:

"a general term for disorders that involve difficulty in learning to read or interpret words, letters, and other symbols, but that do not affect general intelligence."

Re: How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?

#79

If you’re in university your school probably offers student development classes. One or more of them should cover study habits. You could also consider talking to a mental health professional. I can’t diagnose you, but a few things you mentioned make me wonder if you may have a mild form of one of these: * ADHD * Dyslexia * Internet Addiction

I am taking proate, zosert and sizodon. I didn't have dyslexleia in the past and could read bookds(they used to contain lots of numbers tho).

Re: How to read research paper, textbook, long text content?

#80

Is that an issue with willpower or concentration? I think it's the latter. I would suggest you to do some meditation. Throwing an arrow in the air but it might be the case that your mind is wandering too much when you start reading. Doing some concentration practice will help.

I don't think that's problem. My problem is getting gist by learning.
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