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Is speed reading really possible?

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Re: Is speed reading really possible?

#141

Post by tjbiddle »

I'd argue with a few points made in this article. Subvocalization can most definitely be minimized - Not removed completely, but minimized. The article brought out a study from NASA stating that there were minute muscle movements, which I would believe - but if you can minimize it to a dull effect, can drastically improve your speed of reading.

As with "fancy eye movements" as some have claimed it - Whether they have much of a help, I'm not sure. Personally I generally read with my right eye, and my left eye tails a fraction of a second behind which generally helps pick up a few details I may have missed - But I notice I have trouble with this if a page's width is too large (HN has a fairly large width and I will read much faster if I make the window smaller). Anything more than that seems as if it would be fairly difficult - But I haven't read into the various techniques.

Can you learn to read at the crazy speeds mentioned in the article? Probably not. Speeding your reading up though seems definitely plausible - At least it seems to work for me, but I can't draw a very good conclusion from just myself in the sample.

Re: Is speed reading really possible?

#142

Post by lius0035 »

I once heard a talk by an top government official who says she has to read a briefing book of hundreds of pages every single day from 10p.m. to maybe 1a.m. Of course, They skim a lot and they probably know a lot about the issues already but still they must read at a much higher speed than a college kid to finish that kind of reading assignment every day, right?

I know some people who read a book a day and I can't do it a week, and none of them need to advocate their reading speed. They must read a few times faster I do, I think.

Does anybody here read new texts, with no skimming and a decent comprehension at 1000wpm?

Re: Is speed reading really possible?

#143

Post by Jd »

bostonvaulter2 wrote: post #138
Jd wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, but I don't like it. It is too slow. I only do it when I am forcibly on a long car-ride and driving and can't do something else.

Maybe audio books at 1.5x or 2.0x speed?

Never thought of this, but I like the idea a lot. Are there any iOS apps that allow you to speed up the play speed of your music library?

Re: Is speed reading really possible?

#144

Post by est »

tokenadult wrote: post #71

Wow. That was well worth a read, at whatever reading speed gives you full comprehension. The author did a good job of reading the previous scientific literature on the subject, and relating important issues to one another. He examined both historical claims (supposed world records of reading speed) and scientific claims (statements about how people read in general). I read quite a few books about speed-reading when I…

Fun fact: people don't write books or articles in Cantonese. Except like forums or chat messages.

Re: Is speed reading really possible?

#145

Post by faboo »

tokenadult wrote: post #128
dudurocha wrote: post #94

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If anybody is deaf, how can he read?

It is actually exceedingly rare for someone who is "profoundly deaf" (cannot hear at all) to learn to read. Most of the deaf people with high levels of schooling completion are people who began life hearing, or who had moderate deafness and considerable support from a family who were capable in sign language.

Having gone to RIT in New York, which contains the National Technical Institute for the Deaf, that seems a dubious claim. I lived with and went to school with a lot of deaf people, many completely, utterly deaf (no hear aids of any kind), and even took classes taught by people who were completely deaf. While reading and writing English was difficult for some (due to learning it after American Sign Language and a frequent de-emphasis of English at many primary and secondary schools that admit deaf students), being unable to hear at all was not an insurmountable obstacle to reading and writing proficiency.

Re: Is speed reading really possible?

#146

Post by frobozz »

nhebb wrote: post #98
tokenadult wrote: post #71

Wow. That was well worth a read, at whatever reading speed gives you full comprehension. The author did a good job of reading the previous scientific literature on the subject, and relating important issues to one another. He examined both historical claims (supposed world records of reading speed) and scientific claims (statements about how people read in general). I read quite a few books about speed-reading when I…

> Don't worry about fancy eye movements too much, and don't worry about subvocalization too much. I took a speed reading class back in the 80's, and it focused on these techniques. I gave up. I found that I was concentrating so much on trying to move my finger fast and not subvocalize that I lost focus on the activity at hand - reading. I was an engineering major, and the techniques weren't practical for my academic…

> When reading fiction and non-academic work, it took the joy out of reading. What was the point of reading a novel fast if I didn't enjoy it.

Agreed. Personally, I think that if you don't subvocalize at least the dialogue in a novel, you're missing out.

Re: Is speed reading really possible?

#147

Post by joe5150 »

Anderkent wrote: post #55
joe5150 wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"(Of course, this was all in the 1970s, when what one read was black text in a familiar font in neat rows on white paper, all at least somewhat thoughtfully arranged. Things are different now ...)" Different how?

Nowadays one mostly reads online. Adds, adds everywhere.

I thought CurtMonash was referring to books nowadays, and I must disagree with him if he's suggesting that typesetting, book design and the quality of book production was better in the 1970s than it is today.
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