Memory Training with a World Record Holder: Part 3
Date Posted:
February 25, 2019
Date Recorded:
January 29, 2019
Speaker(s):
Dr. Boris Nikolai Konrad, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior
Description:
Boris Konrad, one of the world's top memory competitors and a PhD in Neuroscience, offered a unique workshop that transforms your memory in one day. During this five hour workshop, Boris takes you through classic "Method of Loci" memory training step by step until you have built up enough mental infrastructure to memorize, by yourself, fifty random items.
Boris Nikolai Konrad is a unique memory expert: A neuroscientist at Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, himself a World class memory athlete who set four Guinness World Records for memory as well as one of the best memory trainers in the world, known for his interactive keynotes and fascinating workshops he frequently gives for universities, companies and associations around the world. - https://linktr.ee/borisnikolaikonrad
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Some question may be asked. I got asked, I can say something about. So this is another app-- here, a startup, quite big one. Memrise, which is focusing on language learning. So it's this one, Memrise. They're pretty big. They were one of the most downloaded language apps for a number of years by now.
And what they do is that they crowdsource keyword image finding for languages. So if I'm here at my Dutch words-- sorry, for me, the menu now is German. I didn't switch it. What it does is when I don't know a word, and it's the first time, you can select different images or keywords people put in. Like the word firm-fixed means fast in Dutch. In English, it's firm. So you maybe screw it fast, so it gets really fast-fixed. So it's an image I like, so I select this one.
So this is what you can do for-- this one's a heart. Pretty easy, you maybe don't need an image. So this is Memrise. So like "memorise," just no O. "Mem-rise." And it has a focus on language learning. It have tons of material available for tons of languages, from basic to more advanced. And of course, the more common the languages, the more materials in there. Like if I say, I want to speak English-- let's say, US English-- there's like a million people already using it to study Spanish. And so it's crowdsourced quite well, and so you will have a lot of good ideas. So that's a tool for language learning, Memrise.
So we have one question on here. Which language did I learn or study? So yeah. English, but I don't use Memrise for it anymore, so if I now come across terms I don't know, I still use images for that. But yeah, I don't specifically study English anymore. The same actually for Dutch. So I know my Dutch is also nearly on the level as my English is. I never saw a single teacher for Dutch ever. When I moved to the Netherlands four years ago, I went to Memrise. I downloaded the course, "1,000 Most Common Dutch Words," memorized it in a weekend, and then got quite good in understanding what I heard, and then started to just produce sentences.
There's maybe also a point for language learning. So my system would be, I start with pronunciation. So at least for all alphabet-based languages, like Spanish, Dutch. If I have the word like this N with this thing on top in Spanish, I need to know if it's-- the word's not "manana," but "mañana." I need to be able to read it without maybe knowing what it means.
If I'm speaking Dutch-- in Dutch, yes, this letter G, it doesn't sound like a G, but more like a [THROAT SOUND]. Something like a problem with your throat. So you need to know what it is. So when I see the text, I'm able to read it. So when I get my words to study it, and it says, for example, G-O-K-K-E-N, it's not "jokken" or something, but it's gokken, which means to gamble or to guess. So I can make keywords then going into that direction.
So first step is pronunciation. I want to be able to read it off. If I study Russian-- don't really study Russian. I did a Russian TV show last summer, so tried to learn a few dozen sentences, just for communication. First thing is I need to be able to read Cyrillic. Where again, I can make images to learn the characters of the alphabet. That's the first step. And then I can read it, and then I can learn words. So my second step is really learning words.
And then the system like Memrise also has, just looking at the most common words. Like a typical textbook students have, you have a whole chapter about cooking. Yeah, great. If you're cooking with someone in the language, it's nice, but I like just the practical approach. 1,000 most common words, something like this. Because if you know the 1,000 most common words, and then you get a text in this language, you pretty much understand what is around, and yeah, it helps you.
And then afterwards-- so just speak it. And maybe for some of you, that's more necessary as advice than for others. Saying like, people who grew up in the US, they don't have much of a problem with that. If they don't learn any second language, that's their problem, but if they want to do it, they don't worry too much about making mistakes.
People who grew up in Asia-- I see that a lot even with memory athletes. So memory sports in China at the moment is pretty big. If you want to be in the Chinese team, you have to qualify from the city championship, to regional, to state, to national, then to the national team. It's like tens of thousands of people who do it in China. Many of them have perfect grades in English, but I can't talk to them. And I'm pretty sure I could if they would just dare to open their mouths, but they are so afraid of making mistakes. And that's really sad, because it hinders them in really learning the language. Because I can send emails with them, which is nice, but when I meet them, it would be nice to also be able to talk to them. They're so afraid of making mistakes that they don't dare to speak.
And it really doesn't matter. If someone walks in here who's lost and speaks hardly any English, and just stays, I where exit, we still understand, OK, he probably didn't want to be in this building, and show him out. If he asked, toilet needed, or toilet need, that's very simple. Yeah, OK, we'll bring him there. And then maybe we say something in an appropriate simple English back. OK, I show you the toilet. If you have the words, you start to pick it up.
I never had a single Dutch lesson ever. I never saw anyone teaching me Dutch. And my grammar certainly isn't perfect, but I speak it now pretty well. So that would be my process, really, for language learning.
And I wanted to show you a little video from when-- TV show I did in China of the first question of how can I access the knowledge, actually. It's also fun to watch, at least for-- not Chinese people, I guess. Maybe for Chinese people also. It was very popular on Chinese TV. It has very high audience numbers. It's basically the American show "Superhumans." Maybe you heard about. It's basically the Chinese version. So I was competing here. I'll jump around a little bit and comment on it.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
- [SPEAKING CHINESE]
- [SPEAKING GERMAN]
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: The task is, you see here in the background, they have those cups. What you see in the background there is cups labeled 1 to 100. And now there are shuffled dices. And under each cup, there will be four dices.
- --to your training--
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: You know this guy, maybe?
- --you develop a memory palace, a visual image. But you are in two contests tonight, each with its own--
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: They're talking. Maybe they will actually start doing something.
[VIDEO PLAYBACK]
[MUSIC - TAYLOR SWIFT, "SHAKE IT OFF"]
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: They shake up dices in these columns.
(SINGING) Haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate. Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake shake, shake. Shake it off. Yeah, because the players gonna play, play, play, play, and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Let me guess. 4 and a half seconds to look at each cup. 100 cups, yes.
- [SPEAKING CHINESE]
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: So 100 cups, and then we get asked-- we'll be tested to ask a single cup. Like, what is number 27?
- [SPEAKING CHINESE]
[END PLAYBACK]
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: So that's one task, and you saw I need a little moment-- the Chinese guy, as well-- to get to the answer, but I don't need to walk through all 1 to 40 to find the answer. And, of course, I'll also show you what I do with the numbers, but we'll come to that in a little while.
First, I want to come back to this method of loci, and that's the act you should-- you will not be able to do this later today, so don't expect that, but you will understand exactly how I did it, and that's the idea. And to do is this, I needed a memory palace. A memory palace for me is just basically a set of locations. So the method of loci is kind of the term for this technique, which you will also find in scientific papers, and then previously I usually called it a root, because in Germany, we talk about roots a lot, or sometimes you find the term journey. A journey is in a set of locations.
And basically since the Sherlock series got popular, again, people like to talk about a memory palace. So a memory palace, for me, is just a set of locations. And we really want to do it here together. Now, so we want to build up in our mind a set of locations. That's the goal.
And this is just some hints. So when I do it, how do I do it? I try to look at known locations. Well, you don't live here, so maybe your apartment or the place you live-- it works even better, but we're here now, and that's known enough. Particularly people who like the Sherlock-- they like to-- they think the idea is to come up with a totally fictional place, which you can do, but it's my opinion, way harder.
If you take a place you know and know well, it works way better, in my opinion, because you make use of what Robin and I talked about the whole time, that you already have all these locations in your mind. So it seems a bit weird to me to come up with fictional locations you first have to get into your mind to then make use of them if you can use all those that are there.
I try to make unique locations. With that, I basically mean that I would kind of label out most of the objects' locations. So instead of room or empty space, I really have table, chair, and so on. But then, of course, I shouldn't repeat too much, because you want to link something with it. And if I would take, OK, chair number one, chair two, chair three, yeah, that's too similar. You couldn't distinguish that anymore afterwards. Which doesn't mean that there can't be more than one chair. If it's different chairs, it's no problem at all.
Then very important again is the order. So we heard it with the body, right? We started at the bottom, and by that, we have given order. That's really important for locations, as well. Usually, in a room, I start next to the door, and then I go with or against the watch, the clock.
I don't like search around, what's the most unique, striking object, because then I would lose the order. Having a logical order, just looking around in a room, that's good enough. And then I group it. I try to group it always in 10 locations.
I have 10 locations in a room or in a direction. It's targeting, [? I think, ?] the question that came earlier. Do I need to then walk through all my locations? No, I don't, because I know I have maybe 10 locations in this room, and then the next 10 are outside.
And if, like you said, I have a meeting at 8:00, and the first things I remember here in the room-- and then I have another meeting at 10:00, then I just go on outside. And then in the afternoon, I want to think back of the meeting of 8 o'clock. I know it's here in the room.
If I want to think of a meeting at 10 o'clock, now that's outside. I don't even have to look here in the room, because it's grouped. Does it make a little sense?
I think it will be more clear if you just do it together now. Because here's what I wanted to do. I want all of us together. We're a big group. I just think it's just good enough we can do it in one group. So don't want to split it up. Time is also limited.
We'll do it together. And your task is now to really remember these locations, and I'll ask you to repeat those locations for me. And I ask you, right now, don't make any notes. Try to really remember it. And when we're done making 50 locations, then I will ask you to write it down, because, of course, it's handy if you later, tomorrow make the review, and you can't remember one location to be able to look it up.
But if you write it just down the whole way, you don't get it into your mind, and that's the goal. OK, do we agree on that? Awesome. Yeah, sure?
AUDIENCE: So does it always have to be a house, an apartment with rooms? I notice that different people said they're good at different kinds of memory. Could it be different things, like going through countries in the world, or going through different apartments that you've lived in, within which there are rooms, or different kinds of images? Or do you really think that there's this one best method?
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: It can be all those different things, and I still answer the best method is to do it really with the rooms, with the location, because it's already a concept. If you jump from apartment to apartment, it's different places in your minds. They are not-- they're linked by time, and it still works, but it works-- in my opinion, certainly it's getting better if you really do it like this way. That's what I highly recommend.
And then we can argue how small or big a location can be, but I think this is details. To me, it works best the way I just described it, and it doesn't have to be indoors. It can also be, as I said, the outside on times square. And then I change direction a bit or change in another street after 10 locations. That works nearly equally well.
There is one paper I know really tried to study it scientifically if indoor or outdoor locations work better, and in their studies, they had that outdoor locations worked better and the my PhD-- it was one of my first studies. So I set everything up and tried to replicate it and had exactly the same effect as the opposite effect that indoor worked better. So I think that's-- there's neither proof, for now, that one or the other works better.
For me, in person, maybe that's also why my study, when I introduced people, it worked best. It seems to work a little better indoors than outdoors, but the effect isn't big. But if I really take totally spread out locations-- like that within-- one said going from Germany to the US, it feels too apart for me for my feelings.
Shall we just begin? So again, you have to listen and try really to picture these locations. So maybe after every 5 or 10 locations, I'll ask someone, give me the last location, please. And then if I ask Katie, does it-- oh, yes, yes, Katie, not me. But try to test yourself. Check yourself. Do I also know it?
So yeah, do it for yourself. So that works best. So I'm now here in the front. If I would come in through this door, I would just look, what's the first thing striking out. So it would be this-- called a [INAUDIBLE] or--
AUDIENCE: Called a lectern.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Lectern?
AUDIENCE: Podium.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Podium, lectern. So again, how we call it doesn't really matter at all. It doesn't matter which word you give it if you can picture it in your head. So if you speak another language than English as first language, name it in your language. That's totally fine, but so there's this podium. That's the first location.
And then just look on, and then maybe a few-- of course, there's a lot of bookshelves, but notice this right away. This is a bookshelf. That's number two. Number two is the bookshelf.
Then I have the screen here. This a huge screen for the projector image. That will be number three. We just go on in this direction. We have a window here with the blinds in front of it. That's number four. So the blind of the window is number four.
Then here's like this Mac. So this Mac here-- that's number five. And maybe we had five-- what's the hand? That's barely-- I'm not careful enough with my hand. I throw it down. Oh shit, sorry. I turn it over.
So put the hand on top. Maybe you see a hand here. This is the fifth location already. So repeat it one more time. The podium was number one. The books is number two. The screen is three. The blind is four. The Mac is five, OK? Good.
So I have to ask someone. I'm looking around. Who? Pointing you at the front. Do you want to name us the five locations, please?
AUDIENCE: Should I--
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: You just name it. You don't have to walk around. So begin with number one. What's the first location? Just tell me the five locations we already have.
AUDIENCE: Podium.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Book shelf.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Screen.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Window.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: And the Mac.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Awesome. So that's already five. Then we just go on. For me, it would be here the chair is number six. Chair is number six.
Thinking how many we should do here in the room. We could probably even do more than 10. Could even do 20 in the room. It's a big room. So but chair is number six. And then the clock-- that's number seven. That's a large clock.
The clock is number seven. And then we have the technical box. Maybe those are-- the stuff-- the cables, the box itself is number eight already. But then extra-- it's a bit on the side. The camera on top-- that's number nine. So number nine will be the camera, OK? Number nine is the camera. And then I can take-- you want to do more.
AUDIENCE: Could we make Chris number 10 with the--
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: We could do Chris number 10, sure. So Chris is number 10. So Chris is number 10. So that's good. I like that one. Good one. I like that.
So we had 6 is a chair. 7 is the clock. 8 is the cables. 9 is the camera, and 10 is Chris, OK?
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah, looking around. Robby, can you give us all 10?
AUDIENCE: Podium, bookshelf, the screen, the window, the Macbook.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Or the computer, the chair-- so the chair, the clock, the cables, the camera, Chris.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Cool. Great. So that's 10 locations, and we can do some more in this room. It's nicer. I'll make it a little-- to group it, I go all the way from here, and then maybe go around the back and then to the front. So maybe the bagels or just the food here. That's number 11. 11 is the food itself.
And then just coffee, some coffee cans-- that's number 12. So 12 is the coffee. It's different enough to the food. So there was 11 or 12 is the coffee. Then 13-- OK that's the Stata Building. That's number 13. So that's popping out a bit, and, well, if you come this direction it could also take this pillow.
Pillow is the right word? Column?
AUDIENCE: Pillar.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Pillar.
AUDIENCE: Pillar.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: So the pillar is just number 14. And then coming back, just the table itself. So we get their-- [INAUDIBLE] the table itself-- that's number 15. So number 15 is the table.
So it was a bit confusing, so we make it clear. 11 is the food, the bagels, the food. 11 is the food. 12 is the coffee. 12 is the coffee. 13 is this interesting architecture, the Stata.
14 is a pillar. It's a wide round pillar. That's 14. And 15 is the table here itself. And then 16 is the rising [? reflective arts. ?] Can you see it?
AUDIENCE: Artwork.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: The arts, the artwork. Red, purplish artwork. Can I move this even further? So yikes, that one. So we've got that one. That's number 16, right? 16.
Then 17 is the trash cans. 17, the trash cans. Then 18-- the switches. 18 is the switches. Switches, 18.
Let's see [INAUDIBLE]. This direction could go to the middle. So 19 then just is like the table or the middle part itself is the 19. And 20 is kind of me and my laptop. So there was a Mac, but that's very different. So me with the laptop is number 20.
So 16 was the artwork in the corner-- 16. 17 was the trash can. We have 18-- the switches. We have 19, the table row-- the long row with the middle part. And 20, laptop or me.
So it's 20 is already quite a bit. Yeah. Amy, do you want to start with number one? Number one.
AUDIENCE: Podium.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Bookshelf.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Screen.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Window, Mac, chair, clock.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Cable, camera, Chris.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: OK, awesome, so that's the first 10, the first group. Well done. Good job. So you can choose someone to go on. Who should continue? Christian?
AUDIENCE: Great. The food.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: The coffee.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: The Stata Center, the pillar, the table.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Awesome.
AUDIENCE: The sculpture, the trash cans, the switches, the gap in the table, and you and your laptop.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Awesome. Did everyone get it?
AUDIENCE: Yeah.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: So that's 20 already. So let's meet it around here in the hallway just outside. So we go on outside in the hallway. So if I come out here, the first thing I notice is this rooter-- router? Router or rooter? What do you say?
AUDIENCE: Router.
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: So that's 21 already-- 21. Then there is this metal box with a warning sticker. No idea what's in there?
AUDIENCE: Electrical panel.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Electrical stuff. So the metal panel-- that's 22. Can you see it? Then one of the pin boards. Latch pin board here-- that will be 23.
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Cardboard.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Cardboard. Where pins-- do you call it pins?
AUDIENCE: Cork. Cork board.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Cork board. And how do you call to pin stuff on there?
AUDIENCE: Push pins.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Push pins, yeah. The cork board with the push pins. That's 23. And then if we look up, there's this lamp shining through the top in the middle here just in the front of the middle. That will be 24 for me-- 24.
And this is actually an exit sign, which is supposed to be exit.
AUDIENCE: We should--
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Like this one.
AUDIENCE: This one.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah. That's 25 already. So we have 21 is the router. 22 is a metal panel. 23 is a cork board. 24 is a lamp shining upwards. And 25, the exit sign, OK?
Sorry, I didn't get your name yet? Otherwise, I forgot. It could happen. But can you give me your name, please?
AUDIENCE: Santiago.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Santiago.
AUDIENCE: Yes.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Can you tell us inside, starting at number one, the locations, please?
AUDIENCE: So the podium, the bookshelf, the screen, the window, the computer, the chair, the clock, the cable, camera, and Chris.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Awesome. Do you want to go on?
AUDIENCE: Yeah, the food, the coffee, Stata, the column, the artwork.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: There's one in between.
AUDIENCE: Table.
AUDIENCE: The table. The table.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Good work.
AUDIENCE: Table, the artwork, the switches.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yep.
AUDIENCE: And the trashcan.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Sorry. I also missed this. Thanks.
AUDIENCE: Trash, the switches.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: And then we are on the table.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yes.
AUDIENCE: And you on your computer.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Awesome, great. And we go on the outside. Diego, do you know what to go on?
AUDIENCE: You mean here?
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: All right, so we got the router. We got the electrical set, the board, the lights, and the exit sign.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah, awesome. So it's already half of what we do. So 25, and now we got on in this direction. 26 is a tree. 27 is the water fountain. 28 is a couch. The couch, 28. 29 is a round table, a round table. And 30 is a fridge. 30 is the fridge, OK?
So we 26, a tree. 27, the water fountain. 28, the couch. 29, round table. And 30 is the fridge. 26 is the tree. 27, water fountain. 28, couch. 29, round table. And 30 is the fridge. How about 31 is the lift? You say lift or elevator?
AUDIENCE: Elevator.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Elevator.
AUDIENCE: Lift is UK.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: It will be 31. 32 is the-- is also artwork, but, of course, totally different to the artwork in the room. So the-- the frame with the picture, 32. Maybe the fire alarm, 33. Fire alarm. 34 is the lab. 35, the stair, the entrance to the stairs.
AUDIENCE: Sorry, could you repeat that?
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: OK, repeat it. 31 is the elevator. 32 is the--
AUDIENCE: Artwork.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Artwork, a picture. 33 is the fire alarm. 34 is the lab. And 35 is the stair-- the entrance to the stairs. So can you repeat for us from number 21? So outside the room, 21.
AUDIENCE: 21-- number-- outside [INAUDIBLE].
AUDIENCE: Router.
AUDIENCE: Router.
AUDIENCE: The router.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: And there is a box, and the board-- the cork board, the lamp, and the exit sign.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Good work.
AUDIENCE: And trees. The water fountain and the couch, the round table, the fridge, and the elevator. The painting, the fire alarm, the lab, and the stairs.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah, fantastic. Wow.
AUDIENCE: Wow.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: That's 35 already. So 36 is a rest room. 36 is a rest room. 37 is the plastic box for the papers. 37.
38 is this plant. So we had a tree, but it looked really different to this one, so that's good. So that's 38. Already 38.
Can you see if there are sprinklers in here? So the sprinkler. So that's 39. Everyone, 39. And then 40, looking up, is these long cables, roof construction with these cables. That's 40 already.
So we had 36, the restroom. 37, the papers and the plastic box. 38, the plant. 39, the sprinklers. And 40, the cables for the roof construction.
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: So 31 is?
AUDIENCE: Elevator.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Elevator.
AUDIENCE: Artwork.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Artwork.
AUDIENCE: And map?
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: There was one before.
AUDIENCE: Oh, the fire. Yeah, the fire alarm. And then the lab.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: And then the stairs.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah. And go on.
AUDIENCE: And the restroom. And then this mailbox.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Right.
AUDIENCE: Tree. And then the sprinkler, and then the cable.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah, that's good. Andy, can you help us in the room? Begin it from number one.
AUDIENCE: OK.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: So everyone stay with him. So Andy's doing it, but you also have to think it yourself.
AUDIENCE: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Podium, bookshelf, screen, window, the iMac, chairs, clock, cables, camera, Chris, bagels, coffee, Stata, column, table.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Right.
AUDIENCE: Artwork, trashcans, switch. The hole in the long table and your computer.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah, great.
AUDIENCE: And--
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: You can choose someone to go on.
AUDIENCE: Fred.
AUDIENCE: Oh, I am nervous. So the router, the electric board, then the pin board. Then the lamps, then the exit sign, then the tree inside. Then the water, then the couch, table, fridge. Elevator, artwork, fire alarm, lab entrance, restroom, cardboard box, and after the cardboard are the plant, this fire alarm, and the cables.
AUDIENCE: Wow.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Awesome.
AUDIENCE: I think that--
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: That's 40. 10 more. We go this way. So I'd say then-- so we already have 41? The 41 is the lobby of the McGovern. The lobby with the receptionist of the McGovern. That's 41, OK? Then 42 can be this direction board.
AUDIENCE: What is this?
AUDIENCE: Direction board.
AUDIENCE: A directional board.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: That's 42.
AUDIENCE: Directional board.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: OK? Did you get it? 42 is the direction board.
AUDIENCE: Glass.
AUDIENCE: Glass.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: 43, the glass. Green building, 43. 43. So 41 was the reception. 42, direction board. 43. 44 is like these lounge chairs over here. Come right out. You can see it-- 44.
AUDIENCE: Lounge chair.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Just like the dining area. It's a bit large, but it's fine-- dining area. Did you get that? Dining area. So dining area is 45 already. You got 41 we said McGovern. 42 is the direction board. 43 is the round desk. 44 is lounge chair. [INAUDIBLE].
So I'd say, if you take some outside, it's just another [? flare then. ?] 46 could be this chimney, where the smoke is coming out. 46, the chimney where the smoke is coming out. 47, the fence-- the long fence, 47. 48 is the track-- the rail. The rail, 48.
49, the car park, where the cars are parking, 49. And then 50 just the-- oh, the grounds. [INAUDIBLE] the grounds parking here. So 46 is the chimney. 47, the fence. 48, the rail. 49, the car park on top. And 50, the street.
AUDIENCE: The street.
AUDIENCE: Street.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Repeat first from 41 down here. 41?
AUDIENCE: OK, so 41 is the lobby.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: And 42 is the sign. 43 is the glass circle. 44 are the chairs. 45 is the seating area. 46 is this pillar with the smoke coming out. 47 is this fence. 48 is the tracks. 49 it is the car park, and 50 is the street.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah, fantastic. OK? So can you start with number one, please?
AUDIENCE: Number one?
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Yeah, so what was the--
AUDIENCE: Podium.
AUDIENCE: So OK, the podium, the bookshelf, the screen, the window, the chair, right? What?
AUDIENCE: Mac.
AUDIENCE: Oh, sorry, the Mac. Then was it the chair? Then it was the cables.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: There's one before.
AUDIENCE: Before. In between the cables and something.
AUDIENCE: Oh, the clock.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Clock, cables, camera, thing of food, coffee--
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
AUDIENCE: You missed the guy, Chris.
AUDIENCE: Oh, sorry, Chris.
AUDIENCE: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: He's moving also.
AUDIENCE: He's a moving target.
AUDIENCE: Chris, thing of food, the coffee, the Stata, the column, the table, the artwork, the trash can, the light switch, the hole, and then you and your laptop.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah, awesome.
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: So, yeah, all the way to 20.
AUDIENCE: The router.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: The electric box, the pin board, the lights on the hallway.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Exit sign.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Then you'll have the tree, the water fountain, the couch, the round table, and then the refrigerator.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah, awesome, great. Who wants to go on? Yeah, Martin?
AUDIENCE: The lift, the art. [INAUDIBLE].
AUDIENCE: Painting.
AUDIENCE: Painting. And the alarm, the lab, the stairs.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: And the restroom.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: The glass holder, and the plant.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: The sprinkler.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: The cable-- I mean on top of the roof.
AUDIENCE: Yeah, awesome, good.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: And someone else again [? pick up ?] there.
AUDIENCE: OK, the headquarters, the directions, the glass, the chair? Yeah, the chairs, the eating area, the smoke.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: The rail.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: There's one before.
AUDIENCE: Fence.
AUDIENCE: The fence.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah.
AUDIENCE: Rail, cars, and then the street.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: OK, cool. So we go upstairs now, and I want you now to write it down in your own words. So it doesn't matter what you use, but try this time-- try to write in numbers 1 to 50, because we have the groups. If you miss one, you can see which groups there should be missing, OK?
I hope you can hear me. So if you have something to write, write it down, and put the numbers in front. Now, it's not the goal that you know immediately number 37 is whatever, but if you now write it down, you see if, in a group, something is missing, because you'll notice where a group is.
I'll type it in, and you can get the slides, of course, and then you will also have it in the slides. We'll go on in a little bit and practice it in a moment. So now you did something to do another little demonstration, because I want to talk a little bit-- looking at the time, not too much-- about numbers afterwards. I'll do a little demonstration on that one.
Can someone time a minute for me? Someone times a minute for me. Can you give me, again, ready, get set, go, and then after a minute, tell me to stop? So give me a minute. So 9, 2, 8, 3, 1, 7, 2, 9, 0, 9, 9, 3, 5, 7, 1, 9, 5, 6, 7, 3, 2, 1, 2, 2, 0, 9, 4, 1, 1, 6, 2, 7, 2, 7, 3, 5, 0, 1, 9, 2.
AUDIENCE: You didn't tell them that I just typed those numbers in.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah, so he just typed the numbers randomly in. I didn't prepare that. So I asked him to type me random numbers on the screen so I could remember these. I'll bring back my slide.
So this is now our locations, if you're still missing one or two, in my own words. So if you choose a different word, it doesn't matter at all. If you saw it as the same location, that's good enough, but if you want to check any, that's how I named them.
AUDIENCE: What was your strategy with those numbers?
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: I'll explain to you in just a couple of minutes. First, I want you to practice with the memory palace one more time. So for the example, with the body list I gave use the images, right? I told you. Remember, you're walking through [INAUDIBLE], and now I want you to come up with your own images.
So we want to 20 words again. So to really practice making these associations, we do it one on one. So per location, you have to come up with one image to only remember one word. I'll walk you through the locations. So the locations are still fresh, so you don't miss one, but you have to come up with your own images, OK?
So the first location was the podium, and don't make notes now. Will you try to do it in your head? So again, I think it was a bit too fast. I think I need to be more clear.
The task is, again, to remember 20 random words. I'll give you 20 random words, but this time I will not tell you what to picture. I'll just name the location, and then I'll give you the word. If you don't understand the word, [INAUDIBLE], then ask. But otherwise try to come up with your own image in your mind. Try to come up with an image in your head to remember that word.
Is that clear? A clear instruction? Otherwise, please ask. OK, cool.
So the first location was this podium, and the word is bean, like a bean, like black beans-- bean. Bean is the first word. You have now to picture something, try to come up with an image to remember being at the podium.
OK, I hope you got something. The second location were the books. The word is a bit abstract, so try to come with an image. It's fame-- fame, like famous, but fame is the word. So you should remember fame. Picture something with the book-- fame.
OK, so the next location was the screen-- the screen. And the word is a duck. The animal is a bird. It's a duck, like Donald Duck, a duck. Helping you here already. So duck at the screen.
And then we had the blinds-- some blinds. And the word is a nap, like a short sleep, nap-- nap and the blinds. Picture something. What's the next location?
AUDIENCE: The Mac.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: The Mac. The Mac. So what-- your soup, some soup. Soup-- that's the Mac. Then you have the chairs. The word is beam, like a beam of light, or beam me up, Scotty-- whatever. Beam at the chairs. Beam. B-E-A-M, beam.
And then we have the clock. And the word is a lock, like to lock something-- a lock and the clock. Then we have the cables, and the word is tape-- tape. Lock, lock. Yeah, it's lock. And the cables-- it's tape.
And then the camera, and its leash. OK, so a word more people know-- a leash. Like from a dog, leash. Leash [INAUDIBLE]. And then a Chris. And I'm sorry. It's not meant to be a joke, but the word is a comb. It's a comb. It's what it is. So it's comb.
So just quickly I just named the words. So try to think for yourself if you had it.
AUDIENCE: Can you repeat Chris's word?
AUDIENCE: Comp?
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Comb.
AUDIENCE: Cop, like police?
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: No, it's to comb your hair-- comb. So we began with the podium, and it was bean. Books was fame. The screen--
AUDIENCE: Duck.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: The blinds?
AUDIENCE: Nap.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Nap. The telephone-- the Mac? Sorry, the Mac.
AUDIENCE: Soup.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Soup. The chair?
AUDIENCE: Beam.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: The clock?
AUDIENCE: Lock.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: The cables.
AUDIENCE: Tape.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Camera?
AUDIENCE: Leash.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Chris?
AUDIENCE: Comb.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: OK, we go a little faster now. So we had the foods, and the word is fitting to the food, but the coincidence is nuts, like nuts, nut, nuts. Nuts, like are-- yeah, [INAUDIBLE].
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah, precisely. Then it's coffee, and it's a nun. A nun, like religious women.
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: And then, the Stata building, and it's Superman. Superman. And then it's a pillar, the column-- it's rat. The animal, a rat. Rat. And then it's table. It's dashboard, like in a car dashboard. Dash.
And then it's artwork. It's not as advertisement, but it's Nike. Nike.
AUDIENCE: The shoes, Nike.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Yeah. And then the trash can-- it's nugget, like chicken nugget or gold nugget, but it's nugget. Then we have to switch this. It's a mill. A mill.
AUDIENCE: Paper mill or steel mill?
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Whatever you want. A mill, right.
AUDIENCE: Can you [INAUDIBLE]?
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Mill, M-I-L-L, like a wheat mill. Before that, we had nuggets. Nugget, like chicken nugget or a gold nugget. Like a small piece of something.
AUDIENCE: Small amount, a piece of something.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: And maybe at McDonald's they have chicken nuggets, but you also speak about gold nuggets to be found in the water. And before that, we had the brand Nike. Nike. And-- sorry?
AUDIENCE: What it means, sorry.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: What it means I will tell you afterwards. We aren't so far.
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE] nugget.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Which one?
AUDIENCE: The mill.
AUDIENCE: Like a windmill or a steel mill.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: You can--
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: You can also take mail, like in the mail. You can also take mail. If that's easier, let's take mail. But if you remember already mill, it's mill. And otherwise, it's mail.
And we need two more, right? [INAUDIBLE] numbers. We first-- I feel it was a gap, and the word is set-- as set of whatever, the set of dishes, the set-- but the set. S-E-T, set. And then it's the computer or me. It's to me a familiar image. It's bone, like a bone-- bone.
Very quickly. At the food, it was nuts with coffee, nun. This Stata, Superman. The pillar, rats. The table, dash. And the hook, Nike. The trash can, nuggets. Switch, mill or mail. The gap-- it's set. The computer-- it's bone.
Try, if you can, write down the 20 words. Do it in your head, if you like. How did it work? Pretty well.
So again, if you miss now one, two, three, it doesn't matter. I think most people have more words good than they would have thought possible this morning. And even--
AUDIENCE: More than seven.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: More than seven, at least. So but even now, again, if I ask you what were-- don't look at your notes. Word number 12. Word number 12?
AUDIENCE: Nun.
DR. BORIS NIKOLAI KONRAD: Nun, so you don't know it immediately, but you know, well, 11 was-- or 10 was Chris, so it's 11 is the food. 12-- nun. You can figure it out, like what I did in the video. When they asked me number 40, I don't know immediately what's number 40, but I know 1, 11, 21, 31, 41, one back. OK, that's 40. We can find it back like this.
So that's quite important, and if you missed one or two, you might think, OK, maybe I can make a different association. Maybe that image wasn't strong enough for me, and, well, certainly if maybe it was a word you don't know well in English, if you got it in your own language, I hope it's clear. It's probably easier.
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