Twitter | Pretraživanje | |
Andy Matuschak
In a recent chat with and me about , suggested that the mnemonic medium is a new kind of catechism. We laughed, but… that's a pretty interesting lens! (thread)
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se" More
Andy Matuschak 2. pro
Odgovor korisniku/ci @andy_matuschak
A typical example of a catechism: Q1: What is the chief end of man? A1: Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him for ever. At the surface, catechisms are about memorizing doctrine. But they also effect a change in *identity* through repeated exposure.
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"
Andy Matuschak 2. pro
Odgovor korisniku/ci @andy_matuschak
Likewise, spaced-repetition helps people remember concrete material, but it also triggers re-engagement across time. Great: maybe readers will spot new connections when they return after a few weeks. But maybe that repetition also fosters a change in identity!
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"
Andy Matuschak 2. pro
Odgovor korisniku/ci @andy_matuschak
With spaced repetition, you’re not just "a person who read that essay that one time": the repeated engagement may make you feel you're a “student of that topic,” in some more continuous sense. The tail might wag the dog. I'll confess that my own experiences here are mixed.
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"
Andy Matuschak 2. pro
Odgovor korisniku/ci @andy_matuschak
Some questions I'll see for the 20th time and answer by rote, with no emotional connection at all to the original source. Other times I’ll find myself wondering new questions about the topic, feeling gradually more “in contact with” that topic over time.
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"
Andy Matuschak 2. pro
Odgovor korisniku/ci @andy_matuschak
That’s all indirect: changing identity by memorizing details associated with that identity. But maybe you can use these systems to alter your identity more directly.
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"
Andy Matuschak 2. pro
Odgovor korisniku/ci @andy_matuschak
Sticking with quantum for the moment, one example might be: “At this instant, what unsolved question do I instinctively find most fascinating in quantum computing?” (nothing on the back). If you saw that regularly over months, would you identify with that space more deeply?
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"
Andy Matuschak 2. pro
Odgovor korisniku/ci @andy_matuschak
You can imagine creating cards about new habits (“Think of a new concrete situation in which I’ll have trouble leaving space for others to speak.”) or values (“What’s an unusual recent situation in which you thought on the century scale?”).
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"
Andy Matuschak 2. pro
Odgovor korisniku/ci @andy_matuschak
These are all narrow examples of spaced repetition as more general "programmable attention." More exotic systems can be used to schedule arbitrary fine-grained tasks associated with some new identity, like iteratively reaching out to interesting people in a new field.
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"
Andy Matuschak 2. pro
Odgovor korisniku/ci @andy_matuschak
Seems we're a long way from catechism, but hey, this one has a similar flavor: Q: What is your Name? A: … Q: Who gave you this Name? A: My Godfathers and Godmothers in my Baptism; wherein I was made a member of Christ, the child of God, and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven.
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"
Frank Ashe 4. sij
I've come across something similar. Life is giving me the opportunity to go back through my home library. I live near Sydney and in December with fires approaching my house friends insisted, and then helped me, move my library to safety. 1/n
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"
Frank Ashe 4. sij
2/n Hard work by the RFS, and a lucky change of wind, stopped the fires about 4km away. I'm now slowly moving the books back in. Slowly, because I'm now touching each book, and dipping into way too many to read snatches. ...
Reply Retweet Označi sa "sviđa mi se"