Who ever heard of the "forgetting curve"? This is a more than century-old hypothesis on the exponential nature of forgetting. In one hour, it is possible to forget half of the information received, and that does not get better with time! Fortunately, there are a few techniques that can limit breakage.
The forgetting curve is a hypothesis about the decline of memory retention over time . In 1885, the German philosopher Hermann Ebbinghaus, father of experimental psychology, extrapolated the exponential nature of forgetting. This theory is also very well explained in a publication from the University of Waterloo (Canada).
Let's take an individual attending a one-hour conference. On day 1 before the conference, the latter has not yet acquired knowledge, so the curve starts at 0%. At the end of the conference, the information is fresh and the curve rises to 100%. Unfortunately, things go wrong very quickly. Between the hour following the conference and the next day, the individual loses between 50 and 70% (even 80%) of what he learned!
Over time, the individual continues inexorably to forget. On day 30, the latter will have finally retained between 2 and 3% conference content!
Fortunately, it is possible to make our learning last. On the other hand, it is absolutely necessary to be active in order to achieve this. Elizabeth Bjork, professor of cognitive psychology at the University of California at Los Angeles (United States), explained in 2008 that it was necessary to put into practice fairly quickly what had been learned. It can also be a question of re-reading chapters or passages misunderstood the first time. Indeed, the brain tends to eliminate everything that is not reused . The goal? Make room for new information.
So, in order to allow storage in memory for the long term, you just have to work :This is a process called "encoding". However, one of the most effective methods is none other than spaced repetition. It is a question of absorbing repeatedly and spaced out in time the elements that one tries to retain.
Besides, it seems that explaining a concept or phenomenon to someone else is also a good way to retain it. Other methods include watching hands-on demonstrations , such as instructional videos. Finally, sleeping well helps memorize, and even a short nap can help you better retain what you have just learned.
