Mnemonics
Mnemonics, from the Greek “mneme” for memory, are memory aids which make it easier to store information in your long term memory and recall it accurately on demand.
- Numbers (number acronyms)
- Lists of Facts / Names / Rules in Order (list acronyms)
- How to Spell Awkward and Long Words (spelling acronyms)
Pi (π) to seven decimal places:
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May I have a large container of coffee?
3.1415927 (the number of characters in each word gives the number) |
Order of math operations:
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Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally.
(Parentheses, Exponents, Multiply, Divide, Add and Subtract) |
Order of the planets from the Sun:
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My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nachos.
(Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune) |
Articles of the US Constitution:
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Large Elephants Jump Slowly And Sink Rapidly.(Legislative, Executive, Judicial, Supremacy, Amendment, Statehood and Ratification)
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How to spell mnemonics:
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Mnemonics Now Erase Man’s Oldest Nemesis, Insufficient Cerebral Storage
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While there are many traditional or well-established mnemonics for some fields of study one way to make a mnemonic relevant to you, the one doing the memorizing, is to make it significant to your own experience. Using your own interests, vocabulary, perspective, and outlook (humorous, serious, bizarre) makes it more likely you will remember it.