How to Remember Anything: The Proven Total Memory Retention System (12 page)

• If the air conditioner was invented in 02, common sense would suggest that it was not 1802. It was
19
02.

• If you know anything about the sinking of the
Titanic
, common sense, again, would suggest that it was not in 1712 or 1812, so it had to be
19
12.

• Common sense might not tell some people whether the safety elevator was invented in 1853 (which seems much too early) or in 1953 (which seems much too late). You could miss this one by 100 years, but common sense would not allow you to miss it by 1,000 years. Therefore, instead of using just 53, you would use 853, just to avoid any confusion.

• You may not know in which century the Crusades began, but if you were interested enough in history to want to know that information, common sense would surely bring you within 1,000 years of the event.

The parking meter was invented in 1935.

1.
See a parking meter.

2.
For 1935, change 35 to a Code Word:
m
ule.

3.
Associate the
m
u
l
e with the parking meter. Visualize a parking meter with a
m
u
l
e standing on top of it!
M
u
l
e = 35 (19
35
).

The air conditioner was invented in 19
02
.

1.
See the air conditioner.

2.
Change 02 into a Code Word:
s
u
n
.

3.
Associate the
s
u
n
with the air conditioner. Visualize the air conditioner with the
s
u
n
coming out of it instead of air!
s
u
n
= 02 (19
02
).

The
Titanic
sank in 19
12
.

1.
See the
Titanic.

2.
Change 12 into a Code Word:
t
i
n
.

3.
Associate the
t
i
n
with the
Titanic.
Visualize the
Titanic,
made of
t
i
n
. Maybe that’s why it sank!
T
i
n
= 12 (19
12
).

The safety elevator was invented in 1
853
.

1.
See the safety elevator.

2.
Change 853 into a Code Word:
f
i
lm
.

3.
Associate the
f
i
lm
with the safety elevator. Visualize the safety elevator made of
f
i
lm
!
F
i
lm
= 853 (1
853
).

The Crusades began in 1
095
.

1.
See the Crusades.

2.
Change 095 into a Code Word:
sp
oo
l
.

3.
Associate the
sp
oo
l
with the Crusades. Visualize each Crusader carrying a gigantic spool, so he could wind his way home after the Crusades!
Sp
oo
l
= 1
095
(1095).

THE PRESIDENTS AND THEIR TERMS OF OFFICE

The Number Code can be used in combination with the other techniques to learn more complex information. For example, if you wanted to learn all of the presidents of the United States, the sequence in which they served, and their terms of office, you would use the numbered Cube, the audionym, association, the Number Code, and the Link system. It sounds complicated, but it is remarkably simple and easy. Following is a list of the presidents and their terms of office:

I will show you how to learn the terms of all the presidents. You may want to learn just some of them. You should learn at least enough of them to understand how the system works for this type of information.

I recommend that you take time to learn
all
the presidents and their terms of office—even if you learn only a few at a time. It will give you a sense of accomplishment and it is an excellent practical example that uses all of the techniques you have learned so far. It would also be great as a family project to share with your children or grandchildren.

To learn any type of project information, you should always analyze it before you begin because it can eliminate a lot of unnecessary time and work. To learn the terms of office of each president, for example, there is no need to learn how long a president served. A new term begins on the same day the previous term ends, even in the event of the death of a president. You need learn only the year in which a president’s term began, because you will know it ended when the next president took office.

It will also eliminate unnecessary work by knowing that only the first two presidents served in the 1700s. All the rest began their terms in the 1800s (until the twenty-sixth president, who entered office in 1901). Natural memory, common sense, and having some idea of when the president served will enable you to eliminate the first two digits from all of the four-digit dates.

Since you already know the names of the first nine presidents, by adding just one link to the audionym for each president, you will know the year he entered office. You will then know his complete term (because he served until the next president entered office).

At the time of writing of this book, there have been forty-three presidents. To learn all of the presidents and their terms using the Cube method, it will require five rooms (your Units Room as well as your 10s, 20s, 30s and 40s rooms).

1.
See a
washing machine
in location 1—the back left corner of your Units room. The washing machine has a gigantic watch
f
o
b
bursting out of it! (I do not like to use
f
o
b
for this association because too many people don’t know what a fob is. It is an ornament worn on a ribbon or chain for a pocket watch. The problem is that
fob
is the only useful word in the English language for number
89
.) Washington: 17
89
.

2.
See the
ad
at location 2—the left wall of your Units room. The ad has a
b
oo
k
(
97
) bursting out of it!
Adams
: 17
97
.

3.
See a
chef
at location 3—the front left corner of your Units room. The
chef
is wearing a
s
ui
t
(
01
)!
Jefferson:
18
01.