In the first chapter, I will introduce the system. I recommend that anyone who is already familiar with memory palaces, the creation and placement of mental images, and is familiar with them, should start here. If you have not heard of memory palaces, I recommend that you first read my chapter on the memory palace and look up the memory palace on the internet (e.g. www.artofmemory.com), and I also recommend that you read Joshua Foer's book Moonwalking with Einstein, he writes about the memory palace in the chapter on the memory palace. In the memory palace (= method of loci), we can only place words that we can imagine, such as our everyday objects, such as coffee maker, hair dryer, etc. Abstract words are more difficult to transform into images, because they do not have a specific image. Such words include, for example, the words culture, probability, or the names of medicines, such as suramin. Scroll down for more examples, I will write many more examples later. By memoria sillabarum, we can memorize abstract words based on their sounds that we cannot find an image for. First, we break these words into syllables. Then we replace the syllables with words that we can imagine and that start with the same syllable. For example, suramin becomes a surfboard, on which Amanda lies, and ink drips from the ceiling and stains her. She tries to wipe it off, but the ink only stains her even worse. I read about this method in Joshua Foer's book Moonwalking with Einstein. To make my learning easier, I added the following: I collected the visualizable words I knew. Breaking difficult-to-visualize words into syllables and transforming them with a memoria sillabarum is not that easy, because for the syllables of a difficult-to-visualize word, you would need to find visualizable words that start with the same syllables. Often, people don't come up with enough and appropriate visualizable words, they just sit over the difficult-to-visualize word and time passes. And when studying for an exam, speed matters. That's why I thought of collecting the visualizable words I knew. This is the main topic of my vocabulary blog. With this vocabulary list, you can easily find words that start with a specific syllable in Microsoft Word using the Ctrl+F key combination, so you can learn faster than just looking up words by heart. I put a period at the beginning and end of each word, which is good because when you press Ctrl+F in Word, the search box appears and you can search for the syllables. For example, let's say I need to remember the following word: suramin . I spell it out: sur-am-in, and then I search my list for the syllables .sur, then .am, then .in . The system works by pressing ctrl+F and then typing a period in front of the syllable you are looking for. This will give you these results from my list: .......surf. .surfboard. .Surgeon. .Surgery. .Surgical gown. .Surround. .survivor......... ......amalgam. .Amanda. .Amazon. .ambassador. .amber. .ambergris. .ambrose. .ambulance... ….........Infrared. .Infuser. .Inhaler. .injection. .ink. .Ink bottle. ..………….. This is how it became a surfboard with Amanda lying on it, with ink dripping on it. It's a rebus, a picture puzzle. So it's much faster to transform the words with the word list, than to think about what could start with these syllables, we already have almost all the visualizable words that we can think of. Let's try to write the words phonetically in the list as we pronounce them, e.g. replace the letters w with v, y with i with the find and replace function, because we pronounce them the same way. I think the memory by syllables method works well for everyone in their native language. However, it is universal in that in every language there are about the same visualized things, words, the method works in other languages too. There are languages where we write words differently than we pronounce them, I think we do well if we use a phonetically written word list for memorization. There are converters available online, such as English phonetic converters, which can convert English words into phonetic symbols. Another example is the Chinese language, where words can be written phonetically using pinyin writing. If someone wants to translate the lists into their native language, I recommend e.g. Google Translate on a desktop computer, which can also be used to translate documents. My Spanish and English word lists inserted into Microsoft Excel needs to be translated into the appropriate language, merged, the repeated values removed, then sorted in alphabetical order, a period placed before and after the words, then pasted into Microsoft Word, and you can use it. It is advisable to set wider margins, e.g. 6-8 centimeter per page, in Microsoft Word, so that it can be used more comfortably. This can be done in the following way: Translate the word lists with a translator, merged, then paste it into column B in Microsoft Excel. The easiest way to do this from Microsoft Excel is to copy and paste it into a Word document, then copy and paste it from there into the other Excel document. Remove the repeating values. Then, sort the word list in Excel in ascending order according to ABC, then save it. Then, copy dots down to columns A and C. Simply type a dot in cells A1 and C1, select it, and drag it down to the bottom. There should be a dot in each cell. In cell D1, I typed =A1&B1&C1 , and copied this instruction down to the bottom of the word list. This way, dots were added to the beginning and end of the words, so for example, the word surfboard became .surfboard. Then, paste the resulting column D into Microsoft Word, clicking on “keep text only” when pasting. With the search-replace function, in the word list inserted into Microsoft Word, by replacing the paragraph marks with spaces, we can then set the margins to wider (e.g. 7-7 centimeters on the right and left sides) and get a convenient word list. For the replacement, in Word (find and replace), you have to go to special, within this there is the paragraph mark marked ^p, this has to be replaced with a space, thus all paragraph marks are replaced with spaces. The narrower word list is good because this way we can open another document next to it, it fits on the screen. I also made copies of the Microsoft Word word list when studying, so I could search for several syllables in parallel. I highlighted frequently used words in the word list, for example by coloring them in red, so that next time I could find the appropriate, frequently used words faster. When studying, I recommend that you study from a PDF document. At the beginning of studying, start a memory palace in your head, and in the PDF document, write down what you place in the memory palace about the words and phrases, e.g. the rebuses, and also where you placed them in the palace. I often created the PDF documents that contained the developed teaching material from Word documents, setting wider line spacing so that there was enough space in the PDF for writing notes above the words. I also put the presentations from the ppt format into PDF for note-taking. You don't always have to use the memoria sillabarum, it only helps if you have no other way to turn a concept into a picture. I wrote down in the PDF what picture I placed in the palace and where inside the palace, because if I didn't write it down, without repetition I would forget it in a few days and have to start over. What I did was to first slowly memorize the material, write it down in the PDF document, and then review it once before the exam by reading in the PDF which pictures I had placed where in the palace. If I hadn't written it down and it had only existed in my head, I wouldn't have been able to repeat it and I would have forgotten it. It was very important to repeat it one more time before the exam, otherwise I wouldn't have remembered it during the exam. When using the memoria sillabarum, it is also recommended to use single-letter encoding words (this was also suggested by Thomas Bradwardine), for each letter of the ABC, you need to choose a word that begins with the same letter as the letter you want to memorize. Here, I use fruits and vegetables as examples as single-letter encoding words, the names of these fruits and vegetables only encode their initial letters for me, but it is recommended to carefully select your own images instead, which are the most memorable for you. For example, I used apple to encode the letter "A", broccoli to encode the letter "B", and cantaloupe to encode the letter "C". For each letter of the ABC, you need to choose a suitable word. These single-letter encoding words help even if there is no suitable visualizable word that begins with the given syllable, in which case we can fill in the "gaps" with these single-letter words. For example, if the name of the antibiotic Streptomycin needs to be transformed, I search for the word fragment “.stre”, let it be stretcher (medical device) . Let’s assume that there is no visualized word in our system that starts with the syllable “pt”. I choose a word encoding one letter for the letter p, let it be pineapple. The syllable “tom” will be tomahawk. So the image will be a giant pineapple lying on a stretcher, which I slice with a tomahawk. Let's take an example where we can use the memoria sillabarum, say within Pharmacology, among the antibiotics, aminoglycosides can be learned in the following way: I will write down the outline of the course material that I will memorize, and under each line I will write down what images I converted them into and where I placed them: Aminoglycosides : “amino acid + glucose” I imagined a food supplement container full of amino acid powder, to which I mix glucose powder. (I put it in front of the fence gate of my grandmother's house.) - concentration-dependent bactericidal antibiotics “confetti + cantaloupe + ent”, “cider”: A huge Ent (from The Lord of the Rings) sprinkles confetti on the ground from a cantaloupe rind cut in half: (In the flower garden, in front of the bush, to the right.) Bactericide = cid= cider (I crush cider on the concrete under the window.) - they cause mistranslation “mistletoe + transformer + latex suit”: A latex suit woman is picking mistletoe from under the transformer, lying on top of the transformer. (The mistletoe is below, the transformer is in the middle, the latex suit woman is on top. (I imagined it on the stairs, the transformer is at the top of the stairs, the mistletoe is below, the latex suit woman is lying on top of the transformer.) - They bind to the 30S subunit of ribosomes I will memorize 30S. Here I am using the number-shape method, breaking 30 into 3 and 0, and replacing the digits with images that resemble the shape of the digits. 3= trident spear, 0= ball. I imagine a trident spear (3), which I throw a ball (0) at, skewering it = 30. I memorized the letter S with strawberry, which is a fruit that starts with the letter S. (To the right of the wall in the living room, from the armchair, a huge trident spear protrudes, onto which I have skewered a ball. A large strawberry is happily bouncing on top of the ball.) - not effective against anaerobic bacteria: "anaconda + aerosol": I imagine it upside down (this means negation) an anaconda hanging upside down, swinging and spraying aerosol from a bottle = not good for anaerobic (I imagined it above the nightstand.) - They mainly effective against Gram-negative bacteria It could also be done with a memoria sillabarum, e.g. graphit mango negligee attache case, but I think it's easier if I place pink sticks and balls. (Gram-negative bacteria stain pink with Gram staining.) (I imagined it in the big double bed, with pink sticks and balls sleeping in it.) -nephrotoxic and ototoxic: "kidney beans, ear" Nephrotoxic = kidney toxic = I imagined kidney beans, ototoxic = they damage the inner ear: I imagined an ear. I imagined tapping my huge ear and kidney beans falling out of them: (I imagined myself in front of the radiator.) - they also have a post-antibiotic effect: "postman + antibiotic" I imagine a postman coming out and spilling all the antibiotics out of his bag. (I imagined it in the corner between the closet and the wall.) - are excreted in urine in active form I imagine injecting small balls/beads (active ingredient) into a large stickman, and he peeing them out unchanged. (I imagined it in the closet, the balls are knocking on the side of the closet.) The active ingredients: Amikacin: "Ami Dolenz + kayak + cinnamon": I imagine Ami Dolenz raising her kayak above her head to avoid the cinnamon powder that would fall on her head. (In front of the TV I imagined a lake, with Ami Dolenz sitting in it, the he lifts his kayak above his head, and cinnamon powder falls on him from the top of the cupboard.) Gentamicin : "generator + Tamara": There is a large generator on a power pole that Tamara has climbed onto and is clinging to. (I imagined it behind the small armchair.) Kanamycin : "kangaroo + Ami Dolenz + cinnamon": A kangaroo is jumping, with Ami Dolenz riding on its back, who is carrying cinnamon sticks on her back (I imagine her coming out of the mirror in the next room.) Netilmicin : "net + illusionist + Mickey Mouse": I imagine a net that the illusionist steps on, Mickey Mouse pulls the rope of the net, thus catching the illusionist. (I imagined the net under the small glass table, the illusionist on it, and Mickey Mouse on the glass table.) Paromomycin, for example used to treat amebiasis and tapeworm infection: “paraffin + omelet + omega letter”, “amoeba, tapeworm”: Paraffin , which is melted, liquid. I dip the omelet into it, which has the omega letter written on it. (I imagined it in the box.) Amebiasis : I imagined an amoeba. (In the painting, it climbs on the wall above the crate and eats the painting.) Tapeworm: (I imagined the painting was hung on the wall with tapeworms.) Spectinomycin, bacteriostatic antibiotic: "speculum + tin foil roll", "statue + tick": I imagine a large speculum swallowing a tin foil roll. (On top of the cabinet.) Bacteriostatic antibiotic: 'static = “statue+tick” : A statue picks ticks out of its own body. (On the carpet in front of the drawer below.) Streptomycin: e.g. used to treat tuberculosis: “stretcher(medical) + pineapple + tomahawk”, “ tuber + cullender” There's a giant pineapple lying on the stretcher, which I'm slicing with a tomahawk. (I imagined it on the exercise bike, to the right next to the wall.) I am washing tubers in a cullender. (On the small stool.) Tobramycin : Also used to treat infections caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa .: “Tobias + rag + Mickey Mouse”, “pseudoscorpion + Mona Lisa”: Tobias has a rag on his head with Mickey Mouse jumping on it. (I imagined it on the toilet. ) Pseudoscorpions guard the Mona Lisa painting (The painting is on the windowsill.) The above was just an example, which I intentionally shortened; the entire course material was a huge amount, which would have been very difficult for me to learn just by repeating. We have seen that we do not have to form sentences or grammatically correct expressions from words when we form our rebus pictures. It is more than enough, and perhaps more memorable, if we mentally stack the images on top of each other, like placing Amanda on the surfboard, onto whom ink is dripping from the ceiling, so we stack the images from bottom to top, and thus, by reading the images from bottom to top, we get back the original word (suramin). This way, it is even easier to read the order of the syllables back than if we had mixed up the pictures, because this way we only need to list the pictures from bottom to top, and their first syllables will give the word we want to remember. So, you do not necessarily have to come up with grammatically correct, meaningful things from the pictures or words, you just need to stack the pictures on top of each other and let them interact with each other and their environment in the palace. If the word to be memorized had been “surinam”, I would have imagined that there was an ink stain on the surfboard, which Amanda accidentally sat on. It wasn’t easy for me either, but after 2 semesters of persistent practice, I was able to mentally stack images on top of each other quite quickly and let them interact. So the method is based on spatial perception, vision, touch, and smell, and doesn’t require grammatical rules. The meaning of this observation that can be used during university studies is that when using the memoria sillabarum method, for example, if I want to transform suramin using my word list, I can safely forget about the grammatical rules, I don’t have to create a sentence or a story with the surfboard, Amanda, and ink. The point is not to say these words and make them make sense, but to see and imagine the images together in my mind. Abbreviations can be converted in several way, for example, if I need to remember PCR, I either use words that encode one letter (e.g. fruits, vegetables), or I supplement it with vowels, e.g. PiCiaR, and then I search for the syllables .pi, .ci, .ar and convert it. If we don't want to use words that encode one letter, we can also do the following. For example, if I need to convert the word streptomycin, syllabically: stre-p-tom, instead I say stre-ep-tom, so I added the vowel of the previous syllable. Then I search for .stre, .ep, .tom, and convert the word. To better visualize the images, I searched the internet for the given thing, people, objects, this helped me recall the images. I usually used specific, unchanged images. I also learned a lot of new images by searching for images on the internet, which I didn't even know what they were before. I had to search for many words and memorize a good image from the internet, because I remembered something much more clearly if I had seen it recently. I was able to recall people's faces much better if I quickly searched for images of the given person on the internet. Also, never imagine a general image, but a specific one. For example, if I have to visualize a mug, I place my own mug, not a general "mug". Or if I try to visualize a bald person, it won't work, instead I have to search for a picture of a specific bald person on the internet and place that image. When studying for exams, it is not a good idea to use the memoria sillabarum method exclusively. We should only transform words with memoria sillabarum that were not abstract concepts with a meaning in the first place. For example, we can transform the names of certain diseases and the names of the active ingredients of medicines. For example, Gentamicin is a chemical substance that has an image (the structural formula of the substance), but it is not necessary to know this from pharmacology. Therefore, we can safely transform this word, it will not cause any problems. But let's not transform, for example, lymph node, lymphocytopenia, respiratory symptoms, pneumonia, ataxia, fever, which have a real image and meaning, because then we get false knowledge (this is remembering by forgetting, which the book Moonwalking with Einstein also writes about), the original meaning of the concepts is lost. For example, if there is pneumonia, it is better to imagine a lung than to transform this word, because otherwise we get false knowledge. Or e.g. if it is necessary to note that the given disease causes ataxia (movements coordination problem), then we should rather place a picture of a person who walks unsteadily, stumbling. Although we can also say it based on its sound, for example, Atlas + axolotl, but this makes no sense, and we even fool ourselves with it, we will not have real knowledge. However, this funny image may remain in our memory better than an ataxic person, so we will remember it better on an exam. I think that real knowledge and this method are opposed to each other if we use it to transform such words that have meaning. In such cases, the method may make it easier to recall these words, but we will not really know anything. The words transformed using the method may be better retained because funnier, more unusual transformed words are retained better than the more boring original words. This way, this false knowledge is easier to acquire, and our memorization performance increases. Here, it is more about what the person's goal is with learning. Just to recall the information on the exam like in a memory championship, or to acquire usable knowledge? So everyone should think about their goals when they start studying, because performance on the exam and the quality and practical applicability of the knowledge are two different things. This method can be used in a similar way as if we were cheating on the exam, but it can also be used for useful things. For example, if we use it to learn the names and classification of antibiotics, I think that makes sense. But for example, instead of the word lymphocytopenia, I used lyme fruit, which has nothing to do with its original meaning, but since I consistently used it instead, I learned that it means that, and it didn't cause any problems anymore, so it's possible to do that. I suggest that frequently used terms, like lymphocytopenia, don't have to be completely transformed, I replaced them with a single word, a single image, and in this context, lyme means the word lymphocytopenia to me, so this is the easiest, fastest way.

If we stick with the memory palace and the methods I have presented, we can improve a lot in learning when we do not have to use logic, but rather “upload” data into our heads. The memory palace consists of places and images. Places are locations (=loci) that we know, which we visit in our minds, we are planning a trip in them, and mentally place our images on the various landmarks. The images carry the information that we want to remember, while the places are the warehouse in our minds. Don’t be afraid because it is not that complicated to use. At the beginning, I felt that it would not work for me, because I could not imagine, for example, my own home well, I saw it all very vaguely. Don’t give up at that point, I don’t remember exactly, but in a few days, 1-2 weeks I got used to it enough to be able to use it, and a person continues to develop afterwards. Before, I couldn't really mentally visit familiar locations, but since then I've changed with practice, and I know it now. It's easy to read about the memory palace on the internet, and I recommend reading Joshua Foer's book Moonwalking with Einstein, he also writes about how the memory palace works in a separate chapter. I'll write a short list as an example, because the best way to understand the technique is to try it. The list: screw, coin, tomato, cap, etc. You can memorize long lists with it, but I'll only show you this for now. In the first location, imagine screwing several screws into the given object, which causes it to crack. In the second location, imagine a large pile of coins, imagine grabbing them, lifting them up and scattering them, feeling them with your hands, hearing their ringing. In the next location, imagine cutting a large tomato and squeezing the seeds onto the given object. Or throw tomatoes at it. Try to taste it in your mind to feel its taste. In the next location, imagine your own hat, which you put on the given object, or put smaller objects in it. Feel what the hat feels like. Try to place the other pictures you want to remember in a similar way. The pictures you place should be unusual, funny, or unique in some way, something you haven't seen before, because such pictures are remembered better than ordinary things you see in everyday life. The best memory palaces for me were familiar houses and buildings, I think because they are not as big as a street compared to us, so they work much better. But any other building, park, city district, street can be a memory palace. To start, I recommend familiar houses using as memory palaces. A memory palace is also suitable for organizing information; we can use individual buildings and their rooms to separate information. For example, when we are moving through a palace with, say, astroviruses, and it has taken over the kitchen and half of the bathroom, I don't continue with caliciviruses in the bathroom, but jump to the next room, the living room. This way, the two topics are better separated in my mind, and my knowledge will be better. (e.g. astroviruses: kitchen + half of the bathroom, caliciviruses: living room + dining room) Unfortunately, this would have been considered a luxury when studying for the exam, because this way I would run out of loci in my palaces sooner, and I wouldn't have enough palaces if I did this. Instead, I moved along a line continuously along the wall from room to room, and I didn't leave a single locus empty. In my palaces, when memorizing, I always placed my images either from the left or from the right. For example, in one house, I always mentally moved from the right, and my first locus was the entrance gate, the second was the flower garden to the right, 3. the window of the house to the right, 4. the back entrance door of the house, and as I reached the house and went inside, I always walked along the wall, and I always packed the mental images into the locations (loci) towards my right hand. I suggest that the reader also develop a similar system. Let's try to place the images into the individual locations (loci) of the palace. I'm including a schematic drawing of this palace of mine here, and how I walked in it. This kind of route in the palace is good for learning long sequences, and I think it's also good for making the most of the storage space in my palaces, which was a must when studying for exams. This way I made the most of the loci of my palaces, but I couldn't mentally separate the individual diseases that well, they could get mixed up in my head, and I could only access the information if I went back to the beginning of the memory palace section about the given disease, and I retraced the palace until the end of the palace section, recalling the images placed there. So if we want real knowledge, we use the rooms and walls as partitions that separate the information. However, for a big exam, it is more useful if we don't deal with the rooms and "walk" along the wall and go through the entire building, so the rooms don't separate the individual topics. There were times when the notes were fluctuating between topics, and I didn't collect all the information that needed to be learned, e.g. about astroviruses, place it along a path, and then do the same with e.g. calici viruses. This was when I was learning from a series of questions, and the questions were jumbled up, not in order. In that case, you can't just start a palace for astroviruses, because then you'll come across some inappropriate information about, say, caliciviruses, and other viruses. You can also do something like this by assigning a palace for astroviruses in advance and another for caliciviruses, and as I read one piece of information, I immediately place it in the appropriate palace, thus saving the time that I would have spent arranging the study material in order. However, this can only be done if it's a small exam, because this technique is very wasteful with palaces and loci. When studying for a major exam, first line up the information and only then place it in the palaces, otherwise you won't have enough palaces. Don't place multiple images that you want to memorize on the same background. For example, a blue sofa that is uniform, with no separate objects on it, is then a single locus, two different pieces of information cannot fit on it. Two unrelated images cannot fit on it. If you place more than one, you can easily forget one of them. However, you can safely put one image group: eg. surfboard, with Amanda sitting on it, ink drips onto Amanda from the ceiling. In the palace, you can go there and back along the imaginary route, so you can even recall the information in reverse order. It is recommended to involve not only our vision, but also our other senses in the palace, e.g. taste and touch, in order to get more memorable images. You can improve a lot with the memory palace if you have to recall a lot of information. It is much more effective than repetition and questioning. The images placed in the memory palace should not just be placed there, but should interact with their environment, e.g. squeeze the tomato on it, screw in the screw, etc. So when I was studying for an exam, along a line, either on the right or on the left, I always walked along the wall or fence in my mind, without wasting any locuses, and since there was a lot of study material, I looked at my palace in very high resolution, I attached a mental image to every small object, e.g. in the flower garden, the bushes, flowers, a rain gutter, a familiar brick, etc., so I went into such details so that more information could fit in my palaces. If some information needs to be denied, e.g. there is no inflammation, then several tricks can be used, e.g.: reversing the image, i.e. an image hanging upside down from the ceiling. Or it is possible to transform the word no or the word not with memoria sillabarum , and place it in the palace next to the other image, e.g. no = noodle, not=notebook. However, let's be careful, because the latter example can already give false knowledge. Before studying with palaces, of course, I had to collect palaces. I was able to acquire my memory palaces by actually physically going and revisiting as many houses, cities, streets, and parks as possible where I had spent a lot of time at some point in my life. I was also surprised by how quickly the landmarks that I had seen many times before came back to my mind. 1-2 times in a given city, or let's say 1-1 hour in a given familiar house, were enough for this, and the landmarks quickly came back to my memory. I also visited the houses, gardens, and streets that I saw more often in my everyday life, which also helped me build more detailed palaces. When studying for the exam, the palaces were automatically in my mind, "saved". I think we shouldn't spend a lot of time visiting palaces in our minds when we're not studying for the exam, it's much more worthwhile to actually visit places we know and have known before, because that way we will automatically have palaces. If that's not enough, later you can go to new, unknown houses and buildings to get new palaces, but in the end it was enough for me to go to places I've been to before in my life. First, it's better to review these familiar places well by actually visiting them. That way you will have palaces faster than if you were looking for new, unknown places. After an exam, when we prepare for the next exam, we can reuse the palaces used in the previous exam. I needed this too, because I didn't have that many palaces. Then the newly placed images overwrite the old ones. When studying with the palace, we should eliminate all distractions, for example, use earplugs or earmuffs to prevent disturbing sounds. We should study alone, preferably in a closed room, so that our attention is not disturbed by other people. Dark locations, such as dark basements and dark attics, are not so good for palaces because the images placed there are less visible. I read about the importance of lighting in a palace in Joshua Foer's book Moonwalking with Einstein and experienced it myself. I also tried writing out individual palaces as text in Microsoft Word in advance, so that I could add the pictures later, but that turned out to be a waste of time and unnecessary. The palaces are always in my head, there's no need to write out individual landmarks in advance to learn.