Mnemonics…and their utility

A mnemonic ( /nəˈmɒnɨk/,^[1] with a silent “m”), or mnemonic device, is any learning technique that aids memory. To improve long term memory, mnemonic systems are used to make memorization easier. They do so by increasing the efficiency of the process of consolidation. This process involves the conversion of short term memory to long term memory. Commonly encountered mnemonics are often verbal, such as a very short poem or a special word used to help a person remember something, particularly lists, but a mnemonic may instead be visual, kinesthetic or auditory. Mnemonics rely on associations between easy-to-remember constructs which can be related back to the data that are to be remembered. This is based on the observation that the human mind much more easily remembers spatial, personal, surprising, physical, sexual, humorous, or otherwise meaningful information, as compared to retrieving arbitrary sequences.

First letter mnemonics

One common mnemonic for remembering lists consists of an easily remembered acronym, or phrase with an acronym that is associated with the list items. For example, to remember the colours of the rainbow, use the mnemonic “Richard Of York Gave Battle In Vain” or the fictitious name “Roy G. Biv”. Another one is HOMES to help people remember the names of all of the Great Lakes (Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior.) Another mnemonic is “Bill Brown Realized Only Yesterday Good Boys Value Good Work”, representing the colours black (0), brown (1), red (2), orange, yellow, green, blue, violet, gray, and white (9).^[4]

Mnemonics for numerical sequences

Mnemonic phrases or poems can be used to encode numeric sequences by various methods, the most common using the number of letters in each word. For example, the first 15 digits of the mathematical constant pi (3.14159265358979) can be encoded as “Now I need a drink, alcoholic of course, after the heavy lectures involving quantum mechanics”. Piphilology is the practice dedicated to creating mnemonics for pi.

Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mnemonic

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