Recommended Reading 

These 10 Scientific Ways to Learn Anything Faster Could Change Everything You Know About Dramatically Improving Your Memory

Notes and Key Takeaways:

• You are more likely to remember something if you say it out loud. For example, if you need to memorize a list of names, you should say each of them out loud instead of simply reading a list of them again and again.

• Distributed practice leads to better retention than cramming. For example, it is generally better to spend one hour per day studying for a test, than it is to study for the test for five hours straight on the night before.

• You should change up the way you practice. I used to be incredibly guilty of not doing this. I would practice one to two soccer moves for weeks on end, instead of taking a break from them and working on new ones. For those guitar musicians out there, you could apply this rule by practicing strumming on Monday, fingerstyle guitar on Wednesday, and pentatonic licks with a pick on Friday.

• Exercise. Studies have shown that exercising can have significant beneficial effects on memory.

 

Treating ADHD without stimulants

Excerpts:

• “Every year in the United States, doctors write 20,000,000 prescriptions for stimulants like Ritalin to give to kids for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.”

• “These drugs are thought to act by increasing dopamine and norepinephrine levels in the brain. Guess what else can increase dopamine and norepinephrine levels? Exercise.”

 

Another great video on the topic of ADHD

Notes:

• I’ve posted this clip before and I’ll probably post it again. It contains my favorite true short story of all time. (And it’s in spite of what the title would suggest, it’s told in English).

 

Journal Excerpts

The fact that a person did something you feel is amoral, or said something you disagree with, does not invalidate everything else that they have done or said.

It’s very easy to talk about how unhappy people need to “just be positive” or “have better attitudes” when things are going well for you. 

If I do X, what will happen? Just keep asking and attempting to answer this question, and you’ll eventually arrive at the truth. 

Asking someone a question they enjoy answering is like asking a musician to play a song they enjoy playing. 

If you find doing nothing unbearable, it’s probably a sign that spending some time doing nothing would do you a lot of good. 

Why is it that witnessing simple acts of kindness can move us to tears? Many scientists probably think the reason is purely Darwinian; That this response exists because it makes those who exhibit it more likely to pass on their genes. Something tells me that’s not the case.

 

Photo of the Week by David Lazar