A System to Help You Remember
(Speech before a Toastmasters International club)
“Doctor, doctor, I've lost my memory."
"When did it happen?"
"When did what happen?"
I think that we all have had moments when we tried to recall telephone numbers, names, faces, etc., and became frustrated because we could not do so.
Well, I have very good news for you. Most likely you do not have a poor memory. You may only have difficulty recalling what is stored in your brain. So today I will briefly demonstrate how, with a some practice, you will be able to recall a lot more than you might ever have thought possible. With lessons learned from The Harry Lorayne Memory Isometrics CourseÓ Time magazine called it “a never-fail system to remember everything.” It teaches you how you can store information and assemble a virtual file index in your head. And later retrieve this memorized information again by using this virtual filing index.
This is basically how this memory system works. You visualize ridiculous pictures of ordinary objects. Like me jumping over your tables while wearing only a bikini. Around my head. You visually link the objects you want to remember in a ridiculous fashion. Use your imagination to make objects or circumstances ridiculous and preposterous.
You “rediculize” objects by visualizing them being in one or more of four states or conditions: Action, Exaggeration, Proportion and Substitution. You will be amazed how much easier it will be to remember something which is ridiculous. And the more ridiculous your visualization incorporating any of these four states, the better you can remember them, and in the sequence in which you linked them together initially. And with time you will even forget the ridiculous images which helped you remember.
Years ago I remembered someone’s long-distance phone number by using this method. It was represented by the words Lot, Leach, Fan, Rock, Tin. Soon thereafter I did not even remember the underlying numbers per se, or how I visualized their object substitutions. I just dialed the numbers which I recognized in these words and remembered them without difficulty, even though I called this number very infrequently over the years.
When trying to remember numbers, it is the sounds of the consonants in these words which are substituted for the numbers. Consonant sounds such as S, T, R, M, N, etc. But we will exclude the use of consonants which can sometimes be silent such as “h” or” w“.
To help us remember the consonant-number association, we choose consonants that remind us of the numbers they most closely represent. For example, the consonant “t” resembles the digit “1.” “n” can represent 2. To help us remember this association, “n” has 2 legs, 3 is “m” which has 3 legs. And so on.
To help us remember the association of the basic digits which make up our decimal system, we can remember the expression: “TeN MoRe LoGiC FiBS. I kid you not.
For example, to help us remember long numbers, we visually link a sequence of objects, keywords, to represent numbers. The underlying numbers are represented by the consonants in the words. Suitable words for use with number-word associations from 1 through 100 are listed in the hand-outs which I gave you. You do not have to remember these, because you can choose your own peg words. But I found it easier to memorize this list, and did so by using the Harry Lorayne method. That way I don’t have to think up new representative words. With some practice you can even count with these words just like with numbers.
Now then. In order to remember as many numbers as you wish, you visualize their representative objects in ridiculous ways, and link them with ridiculous associations. This is a lot easier than you might think right now. I can assure you of this, because if I, a sieve brain, can remember such memorized sequences for a long time, most everyone can do so also. And this becomes easier with practice and the re-use of the same 100 words. You can practice visualizing the number-consonant pairs instead of counting sheep. Or practice visualizing them while driving a lonely stretch of highway. Doing so will even make you arrive a lot faster at your destination.
Now let me demonstrate how you might visualize a ridiculous sequence of objects to help you remember something intangible, something which you cannot see or feel. Something which is the most difficult for most of us to remember. A long series of numbers. Let’s remember the digits represented by the symbol P . In mathematics it represents the ratio of 3.141 ad infinitum. For the first number 3 visualize your “Ma.” Then a “tie” for 1, because it contains only the consonant “t.” “Rye,” as a loaf of rye bread, can represent 4, because it only contains the consonant sound “r.” And so on.
Now close your eyes and actually visualize your mother, “Ma,” which represents the digit “3.“ She is so tall that her hair is getting scorched by the sun. Actually see her giant stature with your mind’s eye. This is ridiculous Exaggeration in size. Then add a fluorescent, psychedelic tie, hanging from her waist, and it is so long that Ma keeps stumbling over it. Ridiculous Exaggeration and Action. The next number in the series of P is 4, so link visually a long “tie” with a whole loaf of “rye” bread fixed to its end. And they are spinning around your neck. You are desperately trying to take a bite out of it as it zooms around. Ridiculous association and Action. You associate the tie with a ridiculous way of eating “rye” bread. Next is again a “tie” for the next digit of 1. And so forth.
But we are running out of time. So in conclusion, I will prove that this system works by reciting one hundred-fifty decimals of P in proper sequence, while you can follow me on your hand-outs. Please count how many mistakes I will make. 3.14159 26535 .......... 83011 94921.
“Doctor! Doctor! I just remembered today is Valentine's Day. So I better sleep at home tonight.
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Are greed, ignorance, denial and inaction killing us?
Hardly a week or month passes without me learning about someone who has had, has, or is being treated for cancer or other largely environmentally-caused diseases. Therefore I attended the recent Magic Valley-area forum sponsored by the Comprehensive Cancer Alliance for Idaho. Even though this event was preceded by broad news coverage only few people bothered to attend.
Illnesses which I never or barely heard about during my early years are now afflicting evermore people, i. e. cancer, multiple sclerosis, chronic fatigue, diabetes, etc. Just by learning and observing attitudes, life-styles and environments, one can often predict as to who will get such diseases. Generally, subtle environmental assaults on God’s creations seem to precede their emergence. And in ever-younger age groups.
Humanitarian Albert Schweitzer predicted decades ago: “Man has lost the capacity to foresee… he will end by destroying the earth. Man can hardly even recognize the devils of his own creation.”
In terms of human suffering, the ongoing, self-caused torturing, killing or dying of thousands of innocents in the slowest, most miserable ways imaginable is far more destructive than foreign terrorists. Because this receives too little public attention, most afflicted individuals suffer for years in lonely silence. Yet when compared to “sensational terrorism,” our “silent suicidal terrorism” receives very little effort to crush it. Compare the billions we spend on the "war of terrorism" with what we spend on remediation, prevention and enforcement to keep us healthy to begin with.
Because we do not yet seem to have a centralized combined, coordinated effort to identify the causes, places or perpetrators of man-made illnesses in Idaho, I want to suggest that various interested organizations, support groups and individuals come together to establish one single think tank/research group. Such a group could also serve in an advisory capacity to corporate and educational entities and/or as a lobby to our legislature. Why? These illnesses seem to have some commonality of causes, time, space and horrendous impacts.
I am convinced that drastic situations require drastic measures, because I grew in a drastic environment. Guilty home-grown environmental terrorists must be severely punished. And “whistleblowers,” that is “morally-correct” people, must be rewarded. Toxins can travel long distances and may cause dreadful illnesses forever. In anyone. Therefore we must work together to remove them. If not, too many of will suffer or perish from our own greed, ignorance, denial and inaction.
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Let’s conserve and not pollute.
Because our environment is already very polluted, we cannot allow any more poisonous operations into Southern Idaho.
Collective behavior and actions in the past have proven that we do not always do what‘s best for us. Unbeknownst to me, I personally have been exposed to many hazardous materials during my lifetime. And this has been slowly catching up with me. Last year I accidentally discovered that I have had MCS (multiple chemical sensitivity) for decades. This condition can be caused by a one-time high level exposure or long-term low-level intake of any one of many different chemicals. My main reaction to such has been that I get evermore uncomfortable, and sometimes to the point of “I’m drowning” panic, the longer I stay in poorly-ventilated buildings. Google returns more than thirteen million links for “indoor air pollution.” Millions of people suffer MCS but have not been able to identify what is causing their symptoms and reactions which can take many forms.
The Times-News stated that almost one-half of Idahoans will get cancer, which is only one of numerous partly self-caused diseases. I have scanned its obituaries for many years, paying attention to the causes of death. What hazardous intakes have caused many people dying from cancer to be in the fifty-sixties age bracket? I myself have been asked to dispose of gallons of a volatile cancer-causing chemical into the ground. When I refused I was punished. And years ago a hobby gold miner showed me more than one ounce of mercury which he had recovered out of a creek while panning for gold.
Even though America has only about five percent of the world’s population, we use about one quarter of the world’s energy. Relative to other developed countries we are wasting a lot of it. Therefore like them, we have a lot opportunities to develop conservation practices throughout our entire economy. Especially since most of our high-consumptive energy manufacturing sector has moved to Asia.
Instead of producing more electricity to light up the skies in the metropolitan areas along the West coast “for security,” let’s direct our precious resources to educate ourselves and to improve the quality of our lives. More dollars do not necessarily improve such. We no longer have the luxury to keep fooling ourselves, because too many of us have been getting very sick from our collective suicidal activities.
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The Pollution-Learning Connection
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention documented that up to more than 600,000 children are born each year with chord blood mercury levels great enough to result in diminished IQs. Deeply think about this.
Probably because I was extremely traumatized in many different ways, I have always been obsessively curious about health and social problems. Having lived in a primitive area, which had only non-electrified wells and cesspools during six years of my childhood, and having traveled around “developed” and “underdeveloped” countries, polluted and unpolluted environments, have given me additional insights into peoples’ health, behavior, attitudes, etc.
Obvious symptoms of deterioration are pervading much of our society. Therefore one must conclude that our pervasive spiritual and physical self-polluting are great contributing causes of our declining quality of life.
Up into the sixties there was almost no public discussion about how to educate children. Everyone was generally healthier, because of a cleaner environment, more nutritious food etc. Children were able sit still, concentrate on their tasks and learn more easily. Since then we have tried evermore revolving programs to raise our declining educational results, but with little success at best. My long-time research indicates that this is partly because the electro-chemistry of our bodies is changing in response to our changing chemical intake. These chemicals come mostly in the air we breathe, water we drink, and the ever-greater amounts of “junk food” we gulp.
That is one big reason why a growing number of people are doing the most unbelievable stupid things, which nearly or sometimes even kills them. Some of them get nominated for the ever-popular, sadly humorous Darwin Awards. And others, informed people, are fleeing to areas of lesser pollution and try to eat more nutritious, “organic,” foods, if they can afford to do so.
But besides mercury, there are literally thousands of man-made chemicals around the earth. A few school districts have realized this, and have had the courage to take a step in the right direction to eliminate addictive “junk foods” from school lunches and vending machines, even though they will “lose money” doing so.
If we really want to help our children, then the first and best actions we can take, is to strive to get everyone into the best of health by purifying our bodies and our environment. If we don’t, no amount of money spent on “education” will yield better results, because our bodies and brains cannot function properly.
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We Must Fix Our Schools or Keeping Sinking
Today I will show you why it is very important to reorganize and improve our public education system.
Over the last few decades evermore Americans have been, and I use this word loosely, have been servicing each other. That is, we have been producing ever fewer goods of value, especially such of lasting value. Durable products which can be used, traded or stored to enhance our future. Therefore it can only be a matter of time before we exhaust our ability and resources to be able to buy cars, plastic action-hero toys and thousands of other things from foreign countries. This widening imbalance between servicing and manufacturing within our nation, and vis-à-vis other countries, can be directly attributed in great part to our evermore misguided educational activities.
Last July, The Times-News published an article by a retired U of Idaho professor. It was titled “Funding for public education doesn’t add up.” This professor stated the following: “…public school costs are 40-45% higher than for private schools…, a minimum of 36% of public school expenditure is wasted…, public schools now have 6½ employees per student, and teachers make up only 40% of school employees.”
A study done by the American Legislative Exchange Council covered two generations of students. It graded each state using over 100 measures of educational resources and achievements.
Among its findings were:
While expenditures/pupil have increased nationwide almost 23% in constant dollars over the past 20 years,… standardized test scores have remained relatively stagnant.
States with the top spending increases since 1978 were Maine up 82%, Connecticut up 80% and West Virginia up 61%.
However, Iowa, followed closely by Minnesota and Wisconsin, had the top performing public elementary and secondary schools in the nation… but ranked 32nd, 14th and 9th, respectively, in per pupil expenditures.
Mississippi, the District of Columbia, and Louisiana ranked at the bottom of student achievements, but ranked 50th, 5th and 39th in per pupil spending.
But the stark reality has become even grimmer than these statistics might indicate. The “It Takes a Village to Spoil a Child” mentality of the new “No Spoils Left Behind” Federal law, has rapidly worsened our national education landscape. The September 2005 issue of the American Spectator magazine states that the new Federal law has taught our nation’s schools one thing: “How to lie.“ To deceive everyone into thinking that they are meeting the new Federal standards. American Spectator further said that “recently the Department of Education conducted a state-by-state National Assessment of Education Progress survey. There was not one state where as many as half of 4th graders were achieving the level of ‘proficiency’ in reading. But according to the tests used by the states themselves, all but eight states were claiming that solid majorities of their 4th graders were ‘proficient’ in reading.”
I said earlier that much of our education efforts are simply waste and entertainment. In addition, the October 3rd edition of BusinessWeek magazine reported that America has a shortage of about 250,000 math and science teachers. A shortage of one-quarter million teachers who should be teaching such subjects to millions of students. The charts which I handed out further verify our misguided educational priorities. Its data was compiled by the National Center for Education Statistics.
Figure 1 shows the number of net teaching hours/year for three education levels for public institutions in seven countries. Primary, lower secondary and upper secondary education for the 2001 school year:
In the USA the net teaching hours/year ranged up to 1,138 in these three educational levels. But for the six other developed countries, the hours ranged in Japan with only 478 hours, to the highest in Scotland with 950 teaching hours. The average of the three combined educational level totals for these six countries calculates out to be 2,190 hours. The difference between this number and the US combined total of 3,387 hours is 1,197 hours.
In other words, the USA public school net teaching hours for the school year 2001 were 55% higher than for the average of the other six developed countries. But unfortunately, this does not necessarily mean that we teach more of what needs to be taught.
This is evident by the data shown in Figure 2. It shows the percentage distribution of first university degrees awarded by field of study and country. The degrees required to produce tangibles of lasting value are in science, engineering, manufacturing & construction. For the USA these types of degrees amount to just 18% of all degrees offered. This contrasts with the other six developed countries, where such degrees range from 21% for Canada to the high of 32% for the UK.
From the historical statistics which I have presented today, we can draw some definite conclusions. I will briefly summarize what we seem to have been doing wrong, and what steps we must take to again become a more productive country:
Overall spending increases for education has not achieved the desired results. For several decades our school systems have been floundering with ADD-like attempts of patching problems with scores of programs and more programs. This seems to be obvious from the inverse relationship between overall spending increases and the overall results.
Too much taxpayer money has been going for frivolities and entertainment. This also takes away from the time which students should be studying important subjects.
We have to concentrate more on teaching the fundamental subjects of language, math and sciences.
We must reward competence and knowledge of teachers of those subjects by greatly increasing their salaries. And we must re-direct other school employees to become more productive in our overall efforts.
May I suggest that we find out what has worked so well for us until some thirty years ago, and why many other countries achieve higher educational results and often at a much lower cost.
The drive to restore a semblance of sanity in education, which we will have to make, will not be easy, but it is our only option to keep our democratic republic from self-destructing.
Thank you.
