Edward "Ed" Cooke (born 1982) is a British entrepreneur and author of Remember, Remember: Learn the Stuff You Thought You Never Could. [1] He is also a Grand Master of Memory and the co-founder of Memrise, a freemium online educational platform that uses memory techniques to optimise learning. [2] He grew up in Oxfordshire. [3]
After graduating with a first class degree in psychology and philosophy from Oxford University in 2004 and completing a master's degree in Cognitive Science at Paris Descartes University under the supervision of J. Kevin O'Regan in 2005, he started a career researching, writing about, and teaching memory techniques. [4]
At 23, he became a Grand Master of Memory. [5] Cooke uses memory techniques popularized by the likes of Tony Buzan and Dominic O'Brien, which involves turning raw data - packs of cards, series of numbers, US Presidents - into colourful imagery. His work has found popular application in education. To learn the electromagnetic spectrum, for instance, Cooke proposes transforming each stage (for example, the microwave) into an image (a microwave in the kitchen). [6] He also features prominently in Joshua Foer's Moonwalking with Einstein , having acted as memory coach to Foer, who went on to become U.S. Memory Champion. [7]
He is co-founder of Memrise, an online educational platform that uses memory techniques to optimise learning. [8]
Cooke's latest writings on memory, education and philosophy can be found on his blog [9] and on Twitter. [10]
In May 2015, Cooke appeared in a BBC iWonder guide, Never forget: Can anyone improve a poor memory? presented by Alex Jones. He demonstrates the 'memory palace' technique in order to remember 18 random numbers in one minute.
During 2020's worldwide COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, Cooke and a group of collaborators co-founded The Co-Reality Collective to throw experimental online parties every two to three weeks. These drew hundreds of attendees, and spawned a new web-video platform called Sparkleverse, which was then selected as a host for 2020's online Burning Man. [11]
In 2021, Cooke appeared on Channel 4 TV show Can I Improve my Memory as a memory coach. [12]
In 2021, Ed initiated Sonic Sphere - a multi-sensory spherical concert hall inspired by Karlheinz Stockhausen's Kugelauditorium. [13]
A mnemonic device or memory device is any learning technique that aids information retention or retrieval in the human memory, often by associating the information with something that is easier to remember.
The major system is a mnemonic technique used to help in memorizing numbers.
Memorization is the process of committing something to memory. It is a mental process undertaken in order to store in memory for later recall visual, auditory, or tactical information.
Piphilology comprises the creation and use of mnemonic techniques to remember many digits of the mathematical constant π. The word is a play on the word "pi" itself and of the linguistic field of philology.
Memory augmentation is the process by which one's ability to retain information is increased. The retrieval of memory has been theorized to be untrustworthy, and it can be partially inaccurate and not totally reliable Ubiquitous Memory Systems have been invented in order to reduce these memory mistakes. A study conducted by students of the Information Science Department in Nara, Japan sought to measure different types of memory augmentation. They used a computer system, the "Ubiquitous Memories," to demonstrate if the technology aided to augmentation better than other methods such as notes with a pen and paper, portraits used in a previous trial experiment, and just plain human memory. The results were that the Ubiquitous Memories aided in retrieving memory, and decreased the likelihood of mistakes in comparison to other methods.
The method of loci is a strategy for memory enhancement, which uses visualizations of familiar spatial environments in order to enhance the recall of information. The method of loci is also known as the memory journey, memory palace, journey method, memory spaces, or mind palace technique. This method is a mnemonic device adopted in ancient Roman and Greek rhetorical treatises. Many memory contest champions report using this technique to recall faces, digits, and lists of words.
Study skills or study strategies are approaches applied to learning. Study skills are an array of skills which tackle the process of organizing and taking in new information, retaining information, or dealing with assessments. They are discrete techniques that can be learned, usually in a short time, and applied to all or most fields of study. More broadly, any skill which boosts a person's ability to study, retain and recall information which assists in and passing exams can be termed a study skill, and this could include time management and motivational techniques.
The title mnemonist refers to an individual with the ability to remember and recall unusually long lists of data, such as unfamiliar names, lists of numbers, entries in books, etc. Some mnemonists also memorize texts such as long poems, speeches, or even entire books of fiction or non-fiction. The term is derived from the term mnemonic, which refers to a strategy to support remembering, but not all mnemonists report using mnemonics. Mnemonists may have superior innate ability to recall or remember, in addition to relying on techniques.
Dominic O'Brien is a British mnemonist and an author of memory-related books. He is the eight time World Memory Champion and works as a trainer for Peak Performance Training.
The art of memory is any of a number of loosely associated mnemonic principles and techniques used to organize memory impressions, improve recall, and assist in the combination and 'invention' of ideas. An alternative term is "Ars Memorativa" which is also translated as "art of memory" although its more literal meaning is "Memorative Art". It is also referred to as mnemotechnics. It is an 'art' in the Aristotelian sense, which is to say a method or set of prescriptions that adds order and discipline to the pragmatic, natural activities of human beings. It has existed as a recognized group of principles and techniques since at least as early as the middle of the first millennium BCE, and was usually associated with training in rhetoric or logic, but variants of the art were employed in other contexts, particularly the religious and the magical.
Joshua Foer is a freelance journalist and author living in Brookline, Massachusetts, with a primary focus on science. He was the 2006 USA Memory Champion, which was described in his 2011 book, Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything. He spoke at the TED conference in February 2012.
Morse code mnemonics are systems to represent the sound of Morse characters in a way intended to be easy to remember. Since every one of these mnemonics requires a two-step mental translation between sound and character, none of these systems are useful for using manual Morse at practical speeds. Amateur radio clubs can provide resources to learn Morse code.
Exceptional memory is the ability to have accurate and detailed recall in a variety of ways, including hyperthymesia, eidetic memory, synesthesia, and emotional memory. Exceptional memory is also prevalent in those with savant syndrome and mnemonists.
Eidetic memory, also known as photographic memory and total recall, is the ability to recall an image from memory with high precision—at least for a brief period of time—after seeing it only once and without using a mnemonic device.
Memory sport, sometimes referred to as competitive memory or the mind sport of memory, refers to competitions in which participants attempt to memorize then recall different forms of information, under certain guidelines. The sport has been formally developed since 1991 and features national and international championships. The primary worldwide organizational bodies are the IAM and WMSC.
Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything is a nonfiction book by Joshua Foer, first published in 2011. Moonwalking with Einstein debuted at number 3 on the New York Times bestseller list and stayed on the list for 8 weeks.
The USA Memory Championship is an annual competition that took place every spring in New York City until 2016, and is currently held in Orlando, Florida, after an online qualifier. It was founded by Tony Dottino, President of Dottino Consulting Group, Inc., and Marshall Tarley in 1997. Designed to test the limits of the human brain, the USA Memory Championship is an organized competition in which Memory Athletes (MAs) attempt to memorize as much information as possible in events such as Names and Faces, Cards, Random Numbers, Images, and guest information at a fictional "Tea Party". Since 2018, there is also often an event called Long-Term Memory in which the MAs are given reams of data a month in advance about a wide variety of subjects such as the Periodic Table of the Elements, Space Shuttle missions, NFL Hall-of-Famers, etc. Participation is open to US citizens who are at least 12 years of age. The competition currently consists of 9 total events, 5 of which are online qualifying events, while the last four events are held at a live event to determine the champion.
External memory is memory that uses cues from the environment to aid remembrance of ideas and sensations. When a person uses something beside one's own internal memory tricks, traits, or talents to help them remember certain events, facts, or even things to do, they are using an external memory aid. External memory aids are used every day. A large part of these aids come from technology; people use their smartphones to remind them when they have meetings and Facebook reminds people of their friends' birthdays. These aids also include taking notes in class, carrying a grocery list to the supermarket, or jotting down dates on a planner. Even people, or prompters, can be used as external memory aids.
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