Hot Air
The local broadsheet has, today, a fascinating article about a college student who successfully memorized the first 3,141 digits of pi. I say that's impressive—I decided that the first 45, ending in 69399, were good enough for government work.
The online version explains how he does it.
When memorizing numbers, [James] Niles-Joyal, 22, does not simply repeat the digits over and over. Instead, the Ashburnham native sees shapes, emotions, and contours in the otherwise nondescript, non-repeating set of numbers. A series of digits can evoke a "white glow" in his brain, while other sets might look wealthy, or dull, or happy.
"I don't think what he's doing is completely different. All of us do unconsciously use mnemonics to remember," [Boston College psychology professor Elizabeth] Kensinger said. "We know someone's name is Steve because they remind us of another Steve."
Alas, the print version, thanks to the crack reporting and copy editing staff, had the following explanation from Dr. Kensinger:
All of us do unconsciously use pneumonics to remember.
So it's all that hot air that helps me remember stuff. And no wonder I had trouble getting things done when I had bronchitis that time.
Labels: Boston Globe, James Niles-Joyce, revealing typos, Stupid reporting tricks
