You updated your password.

Reset Password

Enter the email address you used to create your account. We will email you instructions on how to reset your password.

Forgot Your Email Address? Contact Us

Reset Your Password

SHOW
SHOW

Scientific Secrets for a Powerful Memory

Don't forget ... um ... to ... whatever. Watch this super helpful video that will help you increase your ability to remember the things that we clearly can't.
Scientific Secrets for a Powerful Memory is rated 4.2 out of 5 by 96.
  • y_2024, m_3, d_27, h_9
  • bvseo_bulk, prod_bvrr, vn_bulk_3.0.38
  • cp_1, bvpage1
  • co_hasreviews, tv_13, tr_83
  • loc_en_CA, sid_1965, prod, sort_[SortEntry(order=SUBMISSION_TIME, direction=DESCENDING)]
  • clientName_teachco
  • bvseo_sdk, p_sdk, 3.2.1
  • CLOUD, getAggregateRating, 4.77ms
  • REVIEWS, PRODUCT
Rated 1 out of 5 by from What secrets??? Totally bored! To avoid inconvenience, I will not asked for my money refunded,
Date published: 2023-04-13
Rated 5 out of 5 by from I purchased Powerful Memory several weeks ago and love it. I also have many other courses in my Liberary from Great Courses that I sit down at my computer and enjoy keeping my brain engaged. I am getting old and must work on my brain to keep sharp.
Date published: 2022-12-20
Rated 2 out of 5 by from Nothing new here. I expected a great deal more insights than what is presented here.
Date published: 2022-10-16
Rated 5 out of 5 by from difficult to learn Good presentation and he makes it clear that it is a difficult system to learn but the system turns remembering numbers into a visual scene for long term recall.
Date published: 2021-11-03
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Outstanding Dr. Vishton is just simply awesome. Neat, polite, thorough, clear, humble, loves teaching, just awesome. Any course he teaches is great.
Date published: 2020-11-14
Rated 5 out of 5 by from Loved it major system really help, method of luci also great for lists
Date published: 2020-11-06
Rated 4 out of 5 by from Engaging, but not a "How To" on Memory Improvement This was a very interesting series of lectures on how your brain stores and recalls memories in pictures and whole concepts. A couple (two) of memory tricks are presented, but the rest of the seies is about how the brain functions and why the tricks work. You can binge watch the entire series of lectures in about three hours.
Date published: 2020-03-21
Rated 3 out of 5 by from A wasted opportunity, sufficient for beginners This short 6 lecture course presented by Professor Peter Vishton attempts to present the underlying foundations to achieving a good memory. Understandably, I had to limit my expectations for I have had much experience with memory techniques in the past and have read much on the subject. The fact is that one must be realistic when considering his/her expectations from this 3-hour course. That is to say: it will not prepare you for the World Memory Championships. Training one’s memory takes much time and practice if you wish to see significant changes. Unfortunately, this course only devotes two of the six lectures to applicable techniques (one technique for each of the two lectures), with the remaining four focusing on what I would consider the “basic science of memory”. Let us consider the first two lectures in Isolation. The first lecture deals with what your memory is and how it is designed to be good at remembering certain things by supplying some interesting examples. It is here that Professor Vishton introduces you to the Major System, allowing you to convert numbers into images. After rapidly going through the system via the briefest of explanations, he proceeds with a sufficiently clear example. The second lecture sees Professor Vishton follow up with a few examples of how the Major system can be applied to memorise a string of numbers. Here is where we find our first problem. When teaching this system, one must take care to provide examples that are clear and easy to find associations for. His example is poor (the LaSH LeeR example) and would serve to give the beginner the wrong idea. You want to focus on objects; things that move, things that you can visualise and avoid verbs when creating associations. Professor Vishton also skips over the subtle difficulties that newcomers to the system can face. He should have devoted an entire lecture to this system. The remainder of his examples are clearer, and hopefully the viewer will consider these easier to associate with. (If you're curious, I would have picked LeeCH in place of LaSH, and LawyeR in place of LeeR). Thankfully, the second lecture deals with what I would consider one of the most powerful tools (and the reason this course isn’t a complete waste of time): the method of Loci. Here, the instructor supplies an example of its use, and how effective it can be in encoding information. Considering this is a beginner's course, I didn’t agree with his method of chunking two items into last room (the milk and orange juice) which can cause interference especially if you’re just starting to become familiar with the system. Regardless, I thought this example was clear enough to demonstrate the method efficiently. If your purpose was to learn applicable memory techniques, then you may stop here. Now, having learnt this information, you’re ready to apply it. The first thing you’re going to do look to the guidebook for more examples and (hopefully) some exercises, only to find that there is no guidebook. I believe this to be the most outstanding flaw of this course. I am aware that it is a very short course but considering how to instructor talks about how easy it is to forget material only to not provide a means to reinforce that material is careless. At a minimum, a recommendation for a website or app (there exist plenty) where the viewer can revise and practice his/her new skills would have been appreciated by the learner. Having a good memory book (recommendations later) by your side would prove useful to remedy this inexcusable omission. As for the remaining lectures, they serve as an exploration of memory and provide some basic science behind the concept. Much of this material I would consider to be filler, to spread the course across the six lectures. It is common knowledge that diet and exercise amongst other factors are all important when it comes to retaining optimal cognitive function. The remainder of the material feels like it belongs to another course, and indeed, such advice can be found in numerous other Teaching Company courses and in greater detail. To clarify, it is not that this feels necessarily out of place, but this extra time could have been devoted to solidifying what had been learnt in the first two lectures, with more applications. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- We live in a time where bookshop shelves are weighed down by titles on self-improvement, with the fight against cognitive decline being a primary concern. Memory Improvement books litter these shelves (and online), which begs the question: Why should you watch this course? For some people, this could be their only exposure to memory techniques and hence they could learn much from those first two lectures. In addition, Professor Vishton is pleasant to listen to (even if he does trip over his words from time to time and prematurely looks to another camera before the switch takes place). This course could motivate them to at least try the systems, and/or read one of the many excellent memory books. For these reasons, this course is worth your time as a skeletal introduction to the subject of memory improvement. On the other hand, for those of you who are familiar with the basics of memory improvement or have taken a course (via a book or some other means), there is nothing new here. Allow me to summarise as follows: Pros + Pleasant Instructor + Introduces two excellent systems: The Major System and Method of Loci Cons - Too brief in places - Some examples could be better thought out - No Guidebook - Only the first two lectures pertain to applicable memory techniques ----------------------------------------------- Recommended Books on Memory: When it comes to books, we are at the point of saturation (especially if one looks online). There exist different systems, different approaches to the same material. The authors below were instrumental in laying the foundations of what you will find in almost any book. I personally recommend the following: The Memory Book by Harry Lorayne – The classic book on memory. Covers the Major System with many applications. Highly recommended. How to Develop a Perfect Memory by Dominic O’ Brien – Eight times world memory champion. Any of his books will suffice as they all effectively deal with the same material. He deals with the Method of Loci and its applications. I highly recommend his audiobook “Quantum Memory Power” which also serves as an excellent introduction to memory techniques. Note: He doesn’t use the major system but another system to memorise numbers (the DOMINIC system) which is worth a try if you're curious. From this point it is up to you where you want to go, and how far you want to improve your memory. This course may not be the panacea to every memory problem you face nor will you be competing in the Memory championships upon completion, but that isn’t the point. If you take anything away from this course, it should be this: Your memory can be improved with a little time and effort, no matter what your age may be. Try to remember that.
Date published: 2020-02-25
  • y_2024, m_3, d_27, h_9
  • bvseo_bulk, prod_bvrr, vn_bulk_3.0.38
  • cp_1, bvpage1
  • co_hasreviews, tv_13, tr_83
  • loc_en_CA, sid_1965, prod, sort_[SortEntry(order=SUBMISSION_TIME, direction=DESCENDING)]
  • clientName_teachco
  • bvseo_sdk, p_sdk, 3.2.1
  • CLOUD, getReviews, 6.08ms
  • REVIEWS, PRODUCT

Overview

Tap into your brain's hidden potential and increase your memory capacity with this brief and effective course taught by a professor of psychology.

About

Peter M. Vishton

The human mind remains one of the most mysterious and fascinating frontiers of modern science. Exploring that frontier yields useful knowledge as well as insights about ourselves.

INSTITUTION

The College of William & Mary
Dr. Peter M. Vishton is Associate Professor of Psychology at The College of William & Mary. He earned his Ph.D. in Psychology and Cognitive Science from Cornell University. Before joining the faculty of William & Mary, he taught at Northwestern University and served as the program director for developmental and learning sciences at the National Science Foundation. A consulting editor for the journal Child Development, Professor Vishton has published articles in many of the top journals in the field of psychology. Among these are Psychological Science, Science, and the Journal of Experimental Psychology. He is also the creator of the DVD What Babies Can Do: An Activity-Based Guide to Infant Development. In addition to teaching, Professor Vishton devotes much of his career to researching the perception and action control of both infants and adults. His studies-funded by prestigious institutions, including the National Institute of Child Health and Development and the National Science Foundation-focus on cognitive, perceptual, and motor development; visually guided action; visual perception; computational vision and motor control; and human-computer interface. Professor Vishton has presented his findings at numerous conferences and invited talks throughout the United States and Europe.

By This Professor

Understanding the Secrets of Human Perception
854
Outsmart Yourself: Brain-Based Strategies to a Better You
854
Scientific Secrets for a Powerful Memory
854
Scientific Secrets for Raising Kids Who Thrive
854
Scientific Secrets for a Powerful Memory

Trailer

Your Amazing Prehistoric Memory

01: Your Amazing Prehistoric Memory

Discover how remarkable your memory ability can be and get an introduction to some of the fascinating ways you can transform your average memory into an excellent one. After a quick memory test to set the stage, Professor Vishton introduces you to one of the most basic ways your memory can encode information: the Major System. With this strategy, you'll learn how to encode numbers into words and t...

34 min
Encoding Information with Images

02: Encoding Information with Images

Focus on one of the simplest tricks for memorizing information: the Method of Loci. Like the Major System, this strategy encodes information into a format your brain is especially good at using; in this case, it ties information to a physical location. Gain familiarity with this method through several engaging exercises. Also, peek inside the mind of mental athletes to see how their seemingly supe...

33 min
Maximizing Short- and Long-Term Memory

03: Maximizing Short- and Long-Term Memory

In this insightful lecture, Professor Vishton walks you through the three steps of successful memory: a perception to short-term memory, encoding short-term memory to your long-term memory, and retrieving information from your long-term memory. In addition, you'll explore how amnesia and other hippocampus-related damages can disrupt this normal memory process; you'll examine some intriguing ways (...

30 min
Why and When We Forget

04: Why and When We Forget

Forgetting happens to the best of us-but it can be mitigated through the use of several key techniques. Among the topics you'll investigate are the "Ebbinghaus forgetting function," which offers insights into the relationship between time, amount of studying, and the likelihood of memory recall; the most effective way to remember a new set of information (hint: it doesn't involve cramming); and ho...

30 min
Keeping Your Whole Brain in Peak Condition

05: Keeping Your Whole Brain in Peak Condition

To have a good memory that functions at the peak of its powers, you need to keep your entire brain healthy. Professor Vishton shows you how to do just that. You'll learn how not just a part of your brain, but the entire organ, is involved in remembering things. You'll also investigate the science behind studies of exercise, sleep, and nutrition-and the curious ways that a balanced diet, daily acti...

29 min
Human Memory Is Reconstruction, Not Replay

06: Human Memory Is Reconstruction, Not Replay

Why should you bother enhancing your memory when there are computers that can do it for you? In what ways is information stored on a computer different from information stored in the recesses of your brain? What are the limits of how memory functions? What are some important roles that technology can-and should-play in backing up our memories? Why are "source memories" and "flashbulb memories" so ...

31 min