

Ask HN: How to remember what I've read in a book? - jozi9

I read a lot (non-fiction) but I also forget a lot. So, why I read  that lot if I forget the 90%? How can I improve this?
======
gtani
\- make little red X's in the margin for important points,

\- make cheat sheet or an outline out of those, connected ot Table of Contents

\- "triangulate", read multiple books on one topic, say, C++ programming. Make
sure they're good books, there's some horrible C++ books out there, and some
horrible deceptive amazon reviews.

_______

Cal Newport has some good study hacks on
[http://calnewport.com/blog/](http://calnewport.com/blog/).

HN has lots of study hacks threads:
[https://hn.algolia.com/?q=study+hacks#!/story/forever/0/stud...](https://hn.algolia.com/?q=study+hacks#!/story/forever/0/study%20hacks)

Also this book has lots of interesting ideas for $6.54 + shipping:
[http://www.amazon.com/Passing-Exams-Dummies-Patrick-
Sherratt...](http://www.amazon.com/Passing-Exams-Dummies-Patrick-
Sherratt/dp/1742169252)

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entreprenewb
Some thoughts:

1\. Take notes while or after you read. Not too much, but enough to summarize
what you've read. This is especially good because if you do forget what you
read you can just refer to the notes.

2\. Explain what you've read to someone else. Or imagine you're explaining
what you read to your grandmother.

3\. Find a way to use what you just learned in a new way or maybe continue to
read more on the topic to reinforce what you've just read.

4\. Take breaks. It's easy to zone out and start skimming. Allow yourself time
to digest the new content. I find this helps for particularly dense or
abstract topics.

5\. Some people say it's easier to remember things that are novel or
emotionally compelling in some way. Maybe create a mnemonic or imagine a scene
or metaphor to remember the key points of what you have read.

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lovelearning
If it's prose, I write one or more essay(s) on the topic after reading the
topic and mulling over it for 1 or 2 days.

Oh - and this one makes me look crazy but here goes nothing - I teach it....to
myself that is, in my own mind that is, usually while exercising! How weird is
that! I become these 2 persons in my head - 1 is the teacher, 1 is the student
- and I pretend that teacher-me is teaching the subject to student-me, using
own vocabulary. Sounds weird, but it works for me.

If it's programming, I implement the concepts I read.

If it's math, I write notes, solve related problems and try to come up with
related corollaries.

In general, _using_ whatever I've read in some way seems to help me a lot.

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brickcap
tldr; you tend to remember a) things that interest you and b) things that you
repeat.

I am also very fond of reading but I usually read fictional books. One of the
things that I have noticed is how I tend to remember the plot even after a
long time. For instance a few days back I was reading a Sherlock Holmes story
(the speckled band) after about a decade and I was surprised at how well I
remembered the solution to the puzzle. Incidentally I have also noticed this
on previous occasions like when I turned the pages of count of Monte cristo or
the three musketeers or other books that I enjoyed back in the day and I
instantly found myself "in the world" when I expected to be "out of place".

On the other hand I tried reading a Shakespeare play that I had the
opportunity to read before in my high school and I didn't remember it quite as
well. No wonder there because I never enjoyed his work even though I tried
many times. So my conclusion is that I tend to remember things that I like.
Even if I forget them I get up to speed very quickly.

But the problem is there are things that are good for us that we might not
enjoy. I don't particularly enjoy reading non fictional books but I know it is
important that I read them if I want to learn. So I read them slowly making
progress each day. Often taking handwritten notes and re reading things that I
found interesting the first time around.

I have this theory that if you read anything some parts stick in your brain
and they stay with you forever. Even if you feel like you have learned nothing
you always take something with you. It could be a changed outlook on the
subject or maybe a better understanding but you never leave empty handed if
you read. I have no evidence to support what I have said though it's just
something that I have noticed in my self :)

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vishalchandra
Make a presentation on what you have read. Present it to a group or at the
least put it on Slideshare.

More than just taking notes (which are more effective than not taking notes),
when you try to present something (or explain to others) is when you really
capture the knowledge in your head for a really really long time.

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mhoad
I created my own personal wiki where I would keep book notes from the various
things I read. I really like it as a solution personally and it was nothing
more complicated than a 10 minute wordpress install on a $5/m VPS though you
could arguably use Evernote in much the same way for free if you prefered.

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elviejo
I had The same problem... Muy solución is two fold: 1\. Use anki for spaced
repetittion 2\. Read a lot more con the same subject... For that I use
audiobooks and audible... That has made muy morning jog... A lo more
productive.

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Ryel
Depends on the reading material

Technical books: Spaced repetition

General story-telling: Re-read chapters/reflect on deeper meanings and try to
be "in the moment" while reading.

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p-pat-ni
You could use Goodreads to keep track of books 'to read' and 'read'. Adding a
review once the book is read, will help you summarize it and retrieve it
later.

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nitin_flanker
HI could anyone here let me know that why I got negative points for this
comment of mine -
[https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8333921](https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8333921)

-nitin

