How memory works

Nobody knows exactly what memories are made of in the brain, but a great deal is known about how memory works in practice. Here are a few key points:

Everyone has a good memory, but, just like with muscles, your memory needs to be exercised - you need to practice learning and remembering.

Memories fade over time, so they need to be reinforced in order to become strong. The way that works best is to review what you've learnt at increasing intervals. For example, after you've learnt something (and tested yourself), take a short break of about fifteen minutes, then test yourself again. Review the material if you've forgotten something. Then, repeat this after a day or two - no longer. Then, repeat again after a week or two. This may sound like a lot of work, but the reviews may take only a fraction of the time it took to learn in the first place and you'll spend much less time revising.

This requires quite a bit of planning and discipline! But it is worth it. If you wait too long to review what you've learnt, the memory has faded so much that you have to spend nearly as much time reviewing as you did learning in the first place. Unfortunately, this is what many students do.

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