Phenomenal memory: features, how to develop

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

Phenomenal memory is an amazing phenomenon. This definition refers to the ability of exceptionally fast memorization of information, and its subsequent reproduction. At the same time, the material can have amazing volumes in the complete absence of a semantic connection between its components. That is, if a person with such an ability is given a piece of paper with a random set of letters, numbers, images and symbols, he will remember it no matter what.

Expert Opinion

Interestingly, phenomenal memory is as much of a mystery to scientists as it is to everyone else. The mechanism of the ultra-high speed of assimilation by the human brain of information that only a computer can remember at such a pace is impossible to understand.

There is only a guess. Allegedly, electrical impulses produce something like an "encoding" of the gray matter of the brain - by analogy with writing zeros andunits in a computer. What does it say? The fact that the human brain is a system of "recording" information similar to a computer. There are only two differences. This is the speed of "writing" and the amount of memory. But, nevertheless, some people have a phenomenal memory. And their "writing" speed is faster than usual.

Photographic memory

This is the most common "variant" of the phenomenal ability under discussion. The people to whom it is characteristic are no different from the rest. They may forget a relative's birthday, shopping for bread on their way home, or paying for the Internet.

But, let's say, such a person found himself in an unfamiliar city. He stayed there only a day, and then he left. And after many years, he again had a chance to find himself there. What then? It will not be difficult for him to remember all the roads, bus stops, the location of shops, etc. Closing his eyes and trying to reproduce his long-traveled path in this city, he will be able to “see” not only the streets, but even the names on the plates, numbers houses, faces of passers-by.

Other types of superpowers

Now we can talk about the types of phenomenal memory that are less common than photographic. In particular, about the auditory.

People to whom it is characteristic easily memorize a huge amount of audio information. Usually musicians can boast of this ability. And many. It is enough for them to hear a musical composition once, then to play it on their instrument. And some composers immediately rewrite the music they like by ear into a musical notebook. They don't even have to double-check the correct song by playing it first. Musicians know very well how notes and registers sound. Therefore, transferring what they heard to paper, they mentally play the composition again.

There are still people with a phenomenal memory of a mathematical nature. And it really can be called a superpower. Because such individuals are able to perform the most complex calculations in their minds. And even remember in detail those that were made by them earlier.

People with text memory can't help but wonder too. After all, it is enough for them to read or hear the text once (be it a story, verse, novel, etc.) in order to reproduce it later.

Developing ability through imagery

Many admire those who have a phenomenal memory. A considerable number of people are obsessed with the development of this ability, and they can be understood. Well, if there is no such gift, then you should not despair. You need to tune in to self-improvement and start training.

You need to remember the first rule. All information must be transformed into images (usually visual). They should be:

• Colored. The brighter the colors, the easier it will be to remember what is colored in them.
• Big ones. The image must be large, regardless of the actual dimensions of the imaginary object.
• Detailed. Details are important, and we must learn to focus on them.your attention.
• Bright. It doesn't even need to be explained. Everyone understands that dim images are remembered extremely poorly.
• Voluminous. Trying to examine the image in your head from all sides, you can not only detail it, but also contribute to the development of the imagination, which is also important.

This method is suitable even for busy people. It is very convenient to develop a phenomenal memory with images, because they surround us everywhere.

Associations and mnemonics

These are probably the most popular ways to improve memory. For example, in order to remember a long mobile phone number, many people try to find an important date in it, their birthday, postal code, etc. Some do it differently. They create images: a 2 looks like a swan, a 1 looks like a candle, a 5 looks like an English S, etc.

What about mnemonics? This set of techniques implies the creation of event chains by a person. Here the ability to think figuratively plays an important role. For example, you need to remember a chain of the following words that are not related to each other in any way: bus, snake, hat, bottle, rain, yellow. How to do it? Easily! It is enough to imagine how a snake in a yellow hat rides a bus in rainy weather. The picture is bright, isn't it? That's what was said above. The brighter the image, the easier it will be to remember something.

Reading

Its meaning and importance in progressself-education cannot be overestimated. Reading is a complex cognitive character decoding process that aims to understand text. People with phenomenal memory tend to absorb a lot of literature.

To develop this ability, one must read. It just needs to be done right. Having chosen the “correct” literature (with sufficient semantic load), you can proceed to thoughtful and thorough reading.

A person should supposedly "cling" every word written in the book with a glance, and immediately analyze it. Surely many found themselves in a situation where they seem to have read a whole page, but did not understand anything. This is due to the lack of concentration and a thorough approach. But by noticing every written word, a person will learn to comprehend everything that he reads. And then remember. In the future, it will also be possible to develop the speed of reading. Phenomenal memory (as an ability) is inextricably linked with the ability to quickly get acquainted with textual information and assimilate it.