BBB: Why we forget the things we learn

Do you have a good memory, Rob? Can you remember people's names, or where you left your car kes?

Well, I can remember people's faces, but I have a terrible memorey for names. And sometimes I'll be eagerly reading a book, but then a week later I can't remember a single thing about it!

Well, you're not alone. Many people find it hard to remember things they've read or learned while other, sometimes useless, information sticks with them. 

In this programme, we'll be finding out why we forget the things we've learned, whether that's someone's name, a word in English or where you put your wallet. 

But first let me ask you my quiz question, Rob, before I forget. You and I might struggle to remember someone's phone number but Chinese student, Chao Lu, has a record-breaking memory. In 2005,  she recited the numbers of pi, the mathematical equation describing the proportions of a circle- but how many digits did she manage to remember? Was it:

a) 48,000 b) 68,000  or c) 88,000 ? 

Wow! It sounds like Chao Lu has an incredible memory! I'll say she remembered b) 68,000 digits of pi. 

OK, Rob, let's remember to find out the answer at the end of the programme. 

OK, will do. Someone like Chao Lu might have a photographic memory- the ability to remember things in exact detail, like looking at a photograph. But for the rest of us, things are more complicated. 

Dr. Jared Horvath is an educational neuroscientist at the University of Melbourne. According to him, there are two rules which explain how we remember inforamtion. 

Listen to Dr. Horvath talking to BBC World Service programme, The Why Factor, and see if you can hear the two rules he mentions:

Rule number one is repetition is key. The odds of remembering something after a one-off are incredibly slim...unless you can immediately link it to something you already understand- so, my middle name is Curney... if I ever meet someone named Cuney I'll never forget  that cuz I have an immediate link... but if I meet someone named Joe...so a one-off, we all pretty much suck at it- unless we focus. So then rule two then becomes, we remember what we focus on. 

The first rule for remembering is repetition. The odds- meaning the probability, of remembering something are low if you learn it as a one-off- something that only happens once. 

Dr. Horvath's second rule is about focus: we remember what we focus on. This involves making links between new information and something you already understand. 

These are the most effective methods of remembering, and most of us suck at- or are bad at- other ways of remembering things. 

Now, of course, one group of people who need good memory is students. Do you remember cramming for school exams, Georgina?

Ah, yes, staying up late trying to revise everything the night before an exam. I remember dong that- but it didn't work!

Yes. Dr. Horvath's research found that students who cram for tests forget around 90% of what they studied within 72 hours. 

He thinks education shouldn't be about trying to cram students' headds with facts and figures. It should involve something more meaningful, as he explains to BBC Wordl Service's, The Why Factor:

The thing that I like about education is its really moving from a model of 'just memorize as much as you can' into what we now call deep learning which is, instead of giving you a hundred things and I just need to know that you can remember them, I'm going to give you ten things and instead of just being able to remember them, I want you to be able to describe it deeply and come up with new ways of looking at it. 

Traditionally, education involves memorizing- learning information exactly as it is so that you can repeat it later. 

But being able to repeat something like a parrot doesn't always mean you understand it. Dr. Horvath advocates a technique called deep learning- a complete way of learning something that means you fully understand and will not forget it. 

So, remember: repetition, focus and deep learning are the memory muscles we need. Maybe, that's how Chinese student, Chau Lu, developed her record- breaking memory. You do remember your quiz question, don't you, Georgina?

Yes, thank you, Rob- my memory isn't that bad! I aksedy you how many digits of the mathematical equation, pi, she could remember.

And I said b) 68,000 digits. 

Which was... the correct answer! Actually, the number was so long it took her over 24 hours without a break to recite it all. recite- 암송하다