ZJun

Tools for Thought

A few days ago, I met a researcher Andy Matuschak who described himself in the following way:

I'm an applied researcher, focused on creating user interfaces that expand what people can think and do. My current focus is an augmented book which actively helps people understand, remember, and use what they read.

I believe personal computers can enable transformative tools for thought: environments that radically transform what people can think and do, so much so that we expand the set of thoughts it’s possible to think. I want to produce alien cognitive and creative powers—as wondrous and magical to us today as a modern visual effects artist might seem to a cave painter.

Which intrigued me. Subsequently, I read some articles written by him. In this article, I noted key points and jotted down my personal thoughts.

  • Introduced a concept about the Mnemonic Medium.
  • Cognitive science's study of long-term memory provides us with effective steps for memory and understanding. Simply following these steps can lead to good results. However, the existing media has limited support for this.
  • Can we creatively build new mediums?
    • One solution is to integrate something like flashcards into articles or learning materials.
    • Expanding on the aforementioned suggestion, we can integrate spaced repetition, employing intervals like 1 day, 5 days, 2 weeks, 1 month, 2 months, and beyond. This model of spaced repetition has demonstrated significant effectiveness.
    • This type of approach is referred to as Spaced-Repetition Memory Systems (SRM systems).
  • So, the key is to review in a planned manner, and the challenge lies in incorporating this idea into existing mediums. Because it's difficult for normal people to execute this strategy manually. It's akin to knowing a lot about principles but finding it challenging to live a well-rounded life. People need a tool to assist them.
  • Here, let's delve deeper into the Spaced-Repetition Memory System
    • Currently, SRM systems are predominantly utilized in language learning scenarios.
    • How can we integrate this system into more intricate learning scenarios? This direction is worth further research.
  • Cards are a great way to organize knowledge.
    • When we engage in thoughtful card writing, we deeply contemplate how to understand, abstract, represent, and organize information. This process itself aids in memory retention and internalization.
  • Utilizing stories proves to be an effective method in enhancing memory as well.

Reference

这几日无意间遇到了一个研究者 Andy Matuschak 他是这么描述自己的

I'm an applied researcher, focused on creating user interfaces that expand what people can think and do. My current focus is an augmented book which actively helps people understand, remember, and use what they read.

I believe personal computers can enable transformative tools for thought: environments that radically transform what people can think and do, so much so that we expand the set of thoughts it’s possible to think. I want to produce alien cognitive and creative powers—as wondrous and magical to us today as a modern visual effects artist might seem to a cave painter.

发现挺有趣的，于是阅读了一些他的文章，本文记录一些核心观点以及个人的思考

  • 介绍了一个用于增强人类记忆的记忆辅助型媒介 (Mnemonic Medium)
  • 认知科学 (Cognitive Science) 领域关于长期记忆的研究提供了一些辅助记忆和理解的步骤，但是现有的媒介对此的支持却很有限
    • 认知科学一直是自己比较关注的领域，从大一接触到它就觉得很有趣，后续抽空更系统得学习梳理一下
  • 是否可以创新性的构建出新的媒介呢？
    • 一个方案是在文章中内嵌类似 flashcards 的卡片
    • 并且在此基础上增加周期性的回顾 (Spaced Repetition) 比如1天、5天、2周、1个月、2个月。指数模式去做回顾规划十分有效
    • 这样的系统通常被称作 Spaced-Repetition Memory Systems (or SRM systems)
  • 重点是有规划的复习，以及如何将这个方案更好的嵌入到现有的媒介中，因为让普通大众去手动执行这个有规划的复习真的很难，就像道理懂了一大堆依旧过不好这一生一样，大众需要一个工具来内化这个流程。
  • Spaced-Repetition Memory Systems 展开探讨一下
    • 目前SRM这种模式更多的被使用于语言学习以及一些简短的概念和事实记忆中
    • 在更复杂内容的学习中如何更好地嵌入这种模式呢？这是一个值得研究的方向
  • 卡片是一个很好的梳理知识的方式
    • 在思考如何去构建和组织一张优秀的知识卡片的过程中，我们需要努力思考，需要考虑如何去更好的表征，需要更深入的理解，这个过程就已经在帮助我们记忆了
  • 故事也是一个协助记忆的很好模式

参考阅读