Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once? • Hacker News Board

Re: Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once?

#31

Post by ics » Sat, Apr 04, 2015, 7:43 PM UTC

I used to be able to remember most of what I read verbatim without any effort. These days, the harder I try to filter and remember selectively, the worse my memory gets. What started as a mild compulsion has since become very useful– taking brief notes as I go on a blank 4x6 notecard. I have stacks and stacks of them, and every book I start gets a fresh one. Annotating books in the margins can help you get into it more, but it makes going back much harder (might as well re-read the book) and pains anyone who likes to keep their pages scrupulously clean. My "system" is not very strict but mostly follows these ideas:

    - Every note begins with a page number unless the same as the previous note
    - Notes are separated by a /
    - Underline names/places/any *thing* to look up later
    - Mark very important notes with a star or border
    - Copying chapter titles sometimes helps
    - Copy quotes, quick references (to other works), typos
      (not really necessary, but "Statute of Liberty"...), or
      thoughts & tangents. Typically I just write down a few
      words here and there and then write about them
      elsewhere (on the computer or in my notebook)
    - At the very end, include a brief summary of what I felt
      like or knew about before reading, while reading, and
      after reading. I only find this useful for bios,
      letters, theses, and that sort of thing.

I can: re-read my notes and it will come back, skim notes to narrow down a page range for a detail that I'm looking for, scan the notecards for reference anywhere, keep my notes for library books, etc. That being said, I don't really recommend it to people. If you write slowly, large, or don't like keeping a pen/pencil on hand then it can be annoying.

Aside: I've considered automatically putting these notes into Anki after OCR (the one shown is a messy example, it seems to work though) but I think that's touching a matter apart from the top poster's intention. Rote memorization is useful, but the simple act of writing stuff down by hand has its own benefits without requiring much involvement.

Another thing to point out is that what you read is just as important. The reason I care about extracting references to other works, even if I can't read them immediately, is because it cements a topic in your mind rather than just being another cloud of words and hazy memories. Today I read Species of Spaces (Georges Perec) and on one page he references Forbidden Planet because of the large triangular doors. I made a note of it since I don't actually know what he's talking about (born in the '90s, didn't have TV, didn't see Forbidden Planet, don't blame me). Mentioning it here might actually be enough to make it stick, but I still intend to either read up on the film or, if I have the time, watch it (but not just for that scene!).

Example: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/28629850/Condit%2C%20Car... (side 1 of 2)

Re: Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once?

#32

Post by delbel » Sat, Apr 04, 2015, 7:50 PM UTC

This concept is sometimes called the Forgetting Curve and is described by an formula. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forgetting_curve Also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spaced_repetition

Re: Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once?

#33

Post by ljk » Sat, Apr 04, 2015, 7:51 PM UTC

sytelus wrote: post #25

Your brain has a policy of use it or lose it. If what you are reading is relevant to what you are doing, you would remember it otherwise finer details would mostly evaporate rather quickly. This is not just about books but for other things in life too, for example, your past travels or people you meet day to day. Some people are fortunate to have photographic memory way in to their 30s but that's rare. For most thing…

>For example, after reading a book, writing down the summery, your opinions and insights at that point would help you more than remembering every detail.

I usually type up notes "on the cloud", what's your opinion on writing up notes v.s. typing the notes?

Re: Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once?

#34

Post by SatvikBeri » Sat, Apr 04, 2015, 7:57 PM UTC

Nowadays I use spaced repetition software to capture anything interesting I see in a book (including insights that occur to me while reading), so I basically remember everything I want to. Before using SRS I might remember ~20% of a book.

Re: Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once?

#35

Post by otar » Sat, Apr 04, 2015, 8:04 PM UTC

Shameless plug: https://medium.com/@otar/lifehack-remembering-what-you-read-...

Lifehack: Remembering What You Read

Re: Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once?

#36

Post by nyrulez » Sat, Apr 04, 2015, 8:18 PM UTC

SatvikBeri wrote: post #34

Nowadays I use spaced repetition software to capture anything interesting I see in a book (including insights that occur to me while reading), so I basically remember everything I want to. Before using SRS I might remember ~20% of a book.

Which software is this ?

Re: Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once?

#37

Post by joeclef » Sat, Apr 04, 2015, 8:27 PM UTC

nyrulez wrote: post #36

SatvikBeri wrote: post #34

Nowadays I use spaced repetition software to capture anything interesting I see in a book (including insights that occur to me while reading), so I basically remember everything I want to. Before using SRS I might remember ~20% of a book.

Which software is this ?

A popular one is Anki see http://ankisrs.net/

Re: Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once?

#38

Post by SatvikBeri » Sat, Apr 04, 2015, 8:28 PM UTC

nyrulez wrote: post #36

SatvikBeri wrote: post #34

Nowadays I use spaced repetition software to capture anything interesting I see in a book (including insights that occur to me while reading), so I basically remember everything I want to. Before using SRS I might remember ~20% of a book.

Which software is this ?

I use ThoughtSaver (www.thoughtsaver.com, currently in very early beta), but most other people I know who use Spaced Repetition prefer Anki (http://ankisrs.net/). Gwern has a good introduction to the general concept of Spaced Reptition: http://www.gwern.net/Spaced%20repetition

Re: Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once?

#39

Post by cristianpascu » Sat, Apr 04, 2015, 8:36 PM UTC

ljk wrote: post #33

sytelus wrote: post #25

Your brain has a policy of use it or lose it. If what you are reading is relevant to what you are doing, you would remember it otherwise finer details would mostly evaporate rather quickly. This is not just about books but for other things in life too, for example, your past travels or people you meet day to day. Some people are fortunate to have photographic memory way in to their 30s but that's rare. For most thing…

>For example, after reading a book, writing down the summery, your opinions and insights at that point would help you more than remembering every detail. I usually type up notes "on the cloud", what's your opinion on writing up notes v.s. typing the notes?

I find using a computer while reading a book to be very distracting. Or a phone. I don't like scribbling on a book. I'm hopeless. :)

Re: Ask HN: How much do you remember from books you read only once?

#40

Post by saturngirl » Sat, Apr 04, 2015, 8:41 PM UTC

Depends on your goal.

1. If you want to remember a book, so that you can write about it later in life -> start writing summaries after every chapter you read and a final one at the end of the book.

2. If you want to remember details in the book, so that you can talk clearly about it to someone -> get in the habit of speaking to someone about what you learned from the book, while you am reading the book. It is best if this is your significant other or someone who also has interest in the subject.