REMEMBER TO REMEMBER!

You have now completed your basic course and should havelearnt no fewer than twenty different systems for rememberingdifferent items!After being given a rough historical context within which towork,you were givenaninitialmemorytestdesignedtoestablishthe limits of your memory at that time.The first chapters (in an attempt to overcome as rapidly aspossible the deficiencies laid bare by the test!) dealt with thebasic principles of remembering, giving you practice in therules of exaggeration, movement, substitution and absurdity.The principles learnt in these systems were then applied tothe new memory system of Heinz Norden, Skipnum, and tothe Major System.From the Major System you were able to branch out intothe remembering of numbers, anniversaries, birthdays andhistorical dates, including the year, month and day.Apart from this you learnt systems for remembering namesand faces, speeches, jokes, narratives, articles, languages, andplaying cards.With the information you now possess you are ready to useyour memory in a far more adequate and comprehensive way.Apart from your business and social life many of the systemsmay be used to give 'memory demonstrations' ranging fromreeling off lists ofitems to picking out the 'missing cards' froma deck.Building a good memory is much like growing up. Youdevelop a little day by day but seldom notice the changes untilyou suddenly look back at yourself, often through otherpeople's eyes, writing or photographs. You may not evennow be fully aware of the strides you have made during yourreading of Speed Memory.To see just how far you have come, go back and look at the'photograph' ofyour memory as recorded in the initial memorytest. Things which at that time appeared (and were!) difficultwill now seem like child's play.We have come to the end of the course, but in a sense it isonly a beginning. At the moment you are using abstractsystems to remember items that have given you difficulty inthe past. By continuing to use these systems and activelyconcerning yourself with remembering to remember, you willfind that the systems themselves will become unnecessary, andthat through the process of consciously working to improveyour memory with 'artificial aids', you will have helped it tobecome vigorous and independent.

REMEMBERING FOR EXAMINATIONS

Few people hear the word 'examination' without a slightfeeling of fear or distaste. In Speed Reading, I have dealtcomprehensively with methods for studying three to ten timesmore effectively. Here I'm going to discuss examinations inrelation to memory systems.Typically, the person taking an examination dashes to hisseat in order to use all the available time and reads his exam-ination paper so nervously, quickly and confusedly that hehas to read it over again to find out just what it is he is beingasked.At this stage he usually becomes flustered, desperately tryingto co-ordinate all the information which he thinks might relateto the question he is trying to answer, but which is buried inthe mire of all his other disorganised knowledge. How oftenhave you yourself, or have you seen someone else write anexamination, spending as much as 15 minutes of an hour'stime jotting down notes, scratching his head, resting his chin onhis hand, and frowning as he frantically tries to recall all thathe knows and yet at this moment does not know?Such students often possess more knowledge about thesubject than others. I remember at least three students in myundergraduate years who knew more about certain subjectsthan virtually everyone in the class and who used to giveprivate tuition and coaching to those who were struggling.Extraordinarily and regularly, these students would fail toexcel at examination time, invariably complaining that theyhad not had time in the examination room to gather togetherthe knowledge they had.Problems such as theirs can be overcome by preparing forexaminations using the Major and Skipnum Memory Systems,in conjunction with the link system.Let us assume that the subject to be examined is psycho-logy. Reviewing your notes, you realise that in the year's studyyou have covered four major areas, and that each area had fouror five main theories, four or five major figures, and a numberof experiments.Applying this information to the memory system, you linkthe name of the first major area with the first word of thesystem, list the main theories on the following numbers, themain figures on the next numbers and after that the experi-ments. For the next major area you repeat this process untilyou have covered the major key words and ideas for thecontent of the year's course. Should any of these items havesmaller items which you think might be significant, they canbe linked to the key psychology words.It may surprise you to learn that in circumstances wheremy students have applied these systems, their memory listfor any given subject in a yearly exam seldom exceeds 70 items!In the examination room they are immediately far ahead oftheir erstwhile "peers. When considering their answers toquestions, they simply survey their organised knowledge inless than a minute, selecting those items that are relevant. Inaddition, the items selected are already in an 'essay' form.In the example we are using, the answer to any questioncould take the following form 'in considering the problem ofblank and blank I wish to discuss three of the major areas ofpsychology, citing the theories of blank from the second, andthe theories ofblank and blank from the third area. In connec-tion with these areas and theories I will also consider theimportance ofthe following major figures in the history oftheseideas, and shall discuss in relation to the entire question thefollowing experiments: ...'Without having said anything our imaginary studentalready sounds well on the way to a 1st class! Indeed he maywell be, for as his initial fact getting-down task has been madeso much more easy, the amount oftime left to him for creativediscussion and comment on what he has written will begreater.To carry this last point a little further—it is advisable to pegon to your memory system creative or original ideas that flashinto your mind concerning the subject of examination. Theseoften make the difference between a 1st and 2nd class, yetnormally they tend either to get mixed up in a generally con-fused presentation of knowledge and ideas or lost in the heatof the moment.Smaller details, including the titles of books, articles anddates, can obviously be co-ordinated with the system explainedabove.Examinations are not all that difficult. Explaining what youknow in an organised and coherent fashion to an examiner canbe—use your memory systems to help you!

MEMORY SYSTEMS FOR LANGUAGES

When hearing the word 'language', some tend to think only offoreign languages. Seldom do they stop to think that the termincludes their own tongue! The title of this chapter conse-quently refers to English as well as to other languages!As I mentioned in my book Speed Reading vocabulary isconsidered to be the most important single factor not only inthe development of efficient reading but also in academic andbusiness success. This is not surprising when one realises thatthe size of one's vocabulary is usually an indication of thedepth of one's knowledge.Since vocabulary is the basic building block of language, itit desirable and necessary to develop methods of learning andremembering words more easily. One of the better ways ofaccomplishing this aim is to learn the prefixes (letters, syllablesor words recurring before root words) the suffixes (letters,syllables or words recurring at the end of root words) and theroots (words from which others are derived) that occur mostfrequently in the language you are attempting to learn. Acomprehensive list of these appears in the vocabulary chaptersof my book Speed Reading.Here are some more tips on how to improve your wordmemory:1. Browse through a good dictionary, studying the ways inwhich the prefixes, suffixes and roots of the language are used.Whenever possible, use association to strengthen your recall.2. Introduce a fixed number of new words into yourvocabulary everyday. New words are retained only if theprinciple of repetitions as explained earlier, is practised. Useyour new words in context and as many times as possible afteryou have initially learned them.3. Consciously look for new words in the language. Thisdirecting of your attention, known as 'mental set', leaves the'hooks' of your memory more open to catch new linguisticfish!These are general learning aids to assist your memory inacquiring knowledge of a language. They may be applied toEnglish, as a means for improving your present vocabulary, orto any foreign languages you are beginning to learn.Having established a general foundation for learning words,let us be more specific in the remembering ofparticular words.As with other memory systems the key word is association. Inthe context of language-learning it is well to associate sounds,images and similarities, using the fact that certain languagesare grouped in 'families' and have words that are related.To give you an idea of this linking method, I shall considera few words from English, French, Latin and German.In English we want to remember the word 'vertigo' whichmeans dizziness or giddiness, and in which a person feels as ifhe or surrounding objects are turning around. To imprint thisword on the memory we associate the sound of it with thephrase 'where to go?' which is the kind of question you wouldask ifyou felt that all surrounding objects were rotating aboutyou! Two words which many people confuse in the Englishlanguage are: 'acrophobia', which is a morbid fear of heights,and 'agoraphobia' which is a morbid fear of open spaces. Thedistinction can be firmly established if you associate the 'aero'in acrophobia with acrobat (a person who performs at greatheight!) and the 'agora' from agoraphobia with agriculture,bringing to mind images of large flat fields (though the Greekword actually means marketplace!).Foreign languages are more 'approachable' when onerealises that they form groups. Virtually all European lan-guages (with the exception of Finnish, Hungarian and Basque)are part of the Indo-European group, and consequentlycontain a number of words which are similar in both soundand meaning. For example the words for father: German'vater', Latin 'pater', French 'pere', Italian and Spanish'padre'.A knowledge of Latin is of enormous help in understandingall the Romance languages, in which many of the words aresimilar. The Latin word for 'love' is 'amor'. Related to 'love'in the English language is the word 'amorous' which meansinclined to love; in love; and of or pertaining to love—thelinks are obvious. Similarly we have the Latin word for 'god':'Deus'. In English the words Deity and Deify mean respect-ively 'divine status; a god; the Creator' and 'to make a god of.French was derived from the vulgar speech of the Romanlegionaries, who called a head 'testa', a crockery shard, hence'tete', and the shoulder 'spatular', a small spade, hence'epaule', etc. About fifty per cent ofordinary English speech isderived either directly from Latin (+ Greek) or by way ofNorman French, leading to many direct analogies betweenFrench and English.As well as language similarities based on language grouping,foreign words can be remembered in a manner similar to thatexplained for remembering English words. As we are discuss-ing French, the following two examples are appropriate: InFrench the word for 'book' is 'livre'. This can be rememberedmore readily if you think of the first four letters of the word'Library' which is a place where books are classified andstudied. The-French word for 'pen' is 'plume' which inEnglish refers td a bird's feather, especially a large one used forornament. This immediately brings to mind the quill penused widely before the invention ofthe steel nib, fountain penand biro. The link-chain 'plume—feather—quill—pen' willmake the remembering of the French word a simple task.Apart from the Latin, Greek, and French, the rest ofEnglish is largely Anglo-Saxon, going back to German, givingrise to countless words that are virtually the same in Germanand English—glass, grass, will, hand, arm, bank, halt, wolf, etc.while others are closely related, light (licht), night (nacht),book (buch), stick (stock) and follow (folgen).Learning languages, both our own and those of otherpeople's, need not be the frustrating and depressing experienceit so often is. It is simply a matter of organising the informa-tion you have to learn in such a way as to enable your memoryto 'hook on' to every available scrap of information!The methods outlined in this chapter should give you a solidbasis for becoming more proficient in the various languages,and for enjoying the process of becoming more efficient.

MEMORY SYSTEM FOR SPEECHES, JOKES,NARRATIVES, DRAMATIC PARTS AND POEMS, ARTICLES

The problems and embarrassments with the items listed in thetitle of this chapter are almost endless!The speech maker, terrified that he will make a blunder infront of his audience, usually reverts to reading word-for-word from a prepared text, the result of which is inevitably amonotonous and de-personalised presentation. The slightlymore courageous speech-maker will often commit his speechto memory, falling into the trap of scrambling through it asfast as possible in order to get to the end before he forgetssomething! In most cases he does forget something and themost awkward silences ensue as he gropes for the lostthread.Similar, although not so important, situations arise in thetelling of jokes. These are not so much embarrassing to thestory teller as annoying to the person to whom the joke is beingtold. How familiar is the situation in which, after ages ofbuildup, the story teller suddenly looks at you with a slack jaw andthe exclamation 'Damn! I've forgotten the punch line, butanyway it was a really funny story'.Dramatic parts present a different problem in that they areusually to be memorised by actors who have continual practisesessions with the same material. Their task is nevertheless stilldifficult, and each member of the group must make sure thathis familiarity with the material is at least on a par with that ofthe other members. In more lengthy and difficult works,soliloquies and poems are among the items that have to beremembered, and the task becomes even more difficult.Remembering articles is often necessary in an academic orbusiness situation, embarrassment usually arising during examtime when the student 'knowsthatheknows'but justcan'tgettheinformation off the tip of his tongue or his mind; and in thebusiness situation where one is asked to discuss a report thateveryone else has read, and either goes completely blank orcannot recall a major point.These are the problems. How can they be solved? Un-fortunately there is no simple system such as the Link and Pegsystems discussed previously, but there are methods andtechniques that make the remembering ofthis kind of materialmuch easier. As the techniques vary slightly in different cases,I shall consider each individually.SpeechesIfyou wish to make a good speech one of the cardinal rulesis never to memorise it word for word. Another is never to readit.1. Generally research the topic about which you are goingto speak, making recordings ofideas, quotations and referenceswhich you think" might prove relevant.2. Having completed your basic research sit down and planout the basic structure of your presentation. Do not start towrite your speech before you have completed your basicdesign. I have known people who have written the 'same'speech seven times before arriving at their final draft. If theyhad organised themselves a little more adequately to beginwith, weeks could have been saved!3. With your basic structure in front ofyou fill in the detailsin note form so that you complete an outline which needs onlygrammatical and sentence structure changes to become acoherent presentation.4. Practise making your speech from this completed out-line! You will find that, having completed the research andhaving thought about the structure of the material, you willalready have nearly memorised your speech! Initially, ofcourse, there will be points at which you hesitate, but with alittle practice you will find that not only do you know yourspeech, you also know what you are talking about !This point is especially important, for it means that whenyou finally do speak to your audience you need have no fear offorgetting the word-order or what you are presenting. Yousimply say what you have to say, using the appropriate voca-bulary and not a rigid succession of sentence structures. Inother words, you become a creative rather than a static speaker.This is Always preferably.5. As a precautionary step it is advisable to jot down on asmall card, or to remember on one of your smaller memorysystems, the key words in the basic outline ofyour speech. Thisgreatly reduces the possibility of forgetting.The only problem you may consider still unsolved is thatof not being able, immediately, to find the right word at theright time. Don't worry about this. When the audience sensesthat a speaker knows what he is talking about, an effectivepause makes it obvious that he is creating on the platform.This adds rather than subtracts from the enjoyment of listen-ing, for it makes the presentation less formal and morespontaneous.Jokes and NarrativesJokes and narratives are far easier to deal with than arespeeches, because most of the creative work has already beendone for you! The problem is nevertheless a two-fold one:first, you must remember the joke or narrative to begin with,and second, you must remember its details.The first ofthese problems is easily solved by using a sectionof the major system as a permanent library for the stories youwish to file. I need go into this point no further, as it is simplya matter ofselecting a key word and associating it with the keyword of the System.The second problem is slightly more difficult to overcome,and involves once again our use ofthe link system. Let us take,for example, the joke about the man who went to the puband bought a pint of beer. Having bought this beer, he sud-denly realised he had to make a telephone call, but knew thatsome of the 'characters' in the bar might well swipe his pintbefore he returned. In order to prevent this he wrote on hisglass 'I am the World's Karate Champion.' and went tomake his telephone call, securely thinking that his beer wassafe.When he returned he saw immediately that his glass wasempty and noticed more scribbling underneath his own. Itread 'I am the World's fastest runner—thanks!'To remember this joke we consciously select key words fromit, joining them into the basic narrative.All we need from this full paragraph of narration are thewords 'pint', 'phone', 'write', 'karate champion', and 'runner'.With these few words, which can be linked in whatever waywe please, the whole sequence and essence of the joke willreturn immediately, and those horrible silences as one runs outof steam in the middle of a story need never recur!ArticlesArticles may need to be remembered on a very short-termbasis or on a long-term basis, and the systems for rememberingeach are different.Ifyou have to attend a meeting or to make a briefresume ofan article you have only recently read, you can remember italmost totally, and at the same time can astound your listenersby remembering the pages you are referring to! The method issimple: take one,two or three ideas from each page ofthe articleand slot them on to one of your peg memory systems. Ifthere isonly ono idea per page, you will know that when you are downto memory word 5 in your basic system, you are referring tothe 5th page, whereas if there are two ideas per page and youare at memory word 5 you will know you are the top of page 3!When an article has to be remembered over a longer periodof time, we once again revert to the link system, taking keywords from the article and linking them in such a way as tomake them most memorable. This method of rememberingwill enable you not only to recall the sequence of the eventsand ideas but also to retain a more adequate general impressionofwhat the article was about. The act ofconsciously attemptingto remember is itselfa part oflearning.Dramatic Parts and PoemsThe last section of this chapter deals with those two itemsthat have been in the past, and are still unfortunately today,the bane of the schoolchild.The method usually employed (and recommended) is toread a line over and over again, 'get it'; read the next line,'get it'; join the two together; 'get them'; read the next lineand so on ad nausum until the first lines have been forgotten!A system recommended and used successfully by well-known actors and actresses is almost the reverse. In this systemthe material to be remembered is read and re-read quickly butwith understanding over a period offour days, approximately 5times a day. In this manner the reader becomes far morefamiliar with the material than he realises and at the end of his20th reading tries to recall, without looking at the text, thematerial to be remembered. Almost withoutfail the mind willhave absorbed 90% or more totally, and remembering willhave been a natural outgrowth of reading!As I have said, this system has been found far more success-ful than the line-by-line repeating system, but even it can beimproved considerably.Once again the link system and key words come into play.If the material to be remembered is poetry, a few major keywords will help the mind to 'fill in' the remaining words whichwill almost automatically fall into place between the key words.If the material to be remembered is part of a script, onceagain key words and linking images can prove essential. Thebasic content ofa long speech can be strung together with ease,and the cues from speaker to speaker can also be handled farmore effectively. It is these cues that often cause chaos on thestage because ofthe silences and breaks in continuity that mayoccur when one performer forgets his last word or anotherforgets his first. Ifthese last words (or even actions) are linkedin the way that we link objects in our memory system, breaksand confusion can be completely avoided.In summary, the remembering of speeches, narratives,jokes, articles, dramatic parts and poems involves a numberof slightly differing techniques. In all cases, however, the useof some form of link, key words, and repetition is necessary.

REMEMBERING BIRTHDAYS, ANNIVERSARIES AND DAYS AND MONTHS OF HISTORICAL DATES

This next system will be easy for you because it makes use ofsystems you have already learned. It is also easier than mostother systems suggested for remembering such items, becausethe two large memory systems you have learned—Skipnumand the Major System—may be used together as 'keys' for themonths and days (other systems usually require code namesthat have to be especially devised for the months).The system works as follows: months are assigned theappropriate key word from the Major System.
January— Tea
February— Noah
March— Ma
April— Ray
May— Law
June— Jaw
July— Key-
August— Poe
September — Pa
October— Toes
November — Tate
December — Tan
The days from 1 to 31 are assigned the appropriate word fromthe Skipnum system.To remember a birthday, anniversary or historical date, allthat is necessary is to form a linked image between the month-and day-words and the date you wish to remember.For example, your girl-friend's birthday falls on November1st. The key word from the Major System for November is'tate'; and the key word from Skipnum for 'one' is 'up'. Youimagine that your girl-friend is framed or hung up in the TateGallery.The anniversary you wish to remember is your parent'sWedding Anniversary which falls on February 25th. TheMajor System key word for February is 'Noah'; the Skipnumkey word for 25 is 'try'. Imagine Noah, who 'married' thepairs of animals, trying to marry your parents at the sametime.Historical dates are just as easy to remember. For examplethe date when the United Nations came into formal existencewas October 24th. The Major System key word for October is'toes', and the Skipnum key word for 24 is 'trot'. We imaginethe different shaped and coloured toes ofrepresentatives oftheworld's nations hurrying (trotting) to meet because of theurgency created by the end of the Second World War.There is one small danger in this system, and this is epitom-ised by those people who don't forget the date—they forget toremember it! This can be overcome by making a habit ofchecking through, on a regular basis, your memory links forthe coming one or two weeks.The memory system outlined in this chapter can be effect-ively linked with the previous system for rememberinghistorical dates by year. In this way you will have providedyourself with a complete date-remembering system.

MEMORY SYSTEM FOR IMPORTANTHISTORICAL DATES

The two systems you have just learnt enable you to rememberthe day for any date in this century. The next system willassist you in the memorisation of significant dates in history.In Chapter 1 the memory test included a list of 10 suchdates. They were:
1. 1666 — Fire of London.
2. 1770 — Beethoven's birthday.
3. 1215 — Signing of Magna Carta.
4. 1917 — Russian Revolution.
5. c.1454 — First Printing Press.
6. 1815 — Battle of Waterloo.
7. 1608 — Invention of the telescope.
8. 1905 — Einstein's theory of Relativity.
9. 1789 — French Revolution.
10. 1776 — Declaration of American Independence.
The method for remembering these or any other such datesis simple, and is similar to the method for remembering tele-phone numbers.All you have to do is to make a word or string ofwords fromthe letters which represent the numbers of the date. In mostcases there is no point in including the one representing thethousand, as you know the approximate date in any case. Letus try this system on the dates above.1. The Fire of London in 1666 virtually destroyed the cityleaving it a heap of ashes. Our memory phrase for the date1666 would thus be 'ashes, axAes, ashes!', or 'cAarred ashesgenerally'.2. Beethoven is famous for many musical accomplishments,but among his greatest and perhaps most controversial was the9th Symphony in which he included a choir. His style ofmusicmade full use of the percussion instruments. Knowing this,remembering his birthday in 1770 becomes easy: 'CrashingChoral Symphony'.3. The signing of the Magna Carta in 1215 marked a newage ofsense and reason. To remember this date we can use thephrase Wew Document—Liberalisation'.4. The Russian Revolution of 1917 was an uprising of thepeople against what they considered abnormal oppression.They demanded greater equality in the form of Communism.Our memory phrase: 'People Demand Communism'.5. Printing presses are often great rotating machines thatchurn out thousands ofpages a minute. We canimagine a smallversion of this as the first printing press, in approximately1454, which can be remembered by the word 'RoLleR'.6. The Battle of Waterloo in 1815 was triumphant forWellington but .can be considered fatal for Napoleon. Onceagain we use a memory word rather than a memory phrase toremember the date: 'FaTaL'.7. The invention of the telescope by Galileo in 1608changed the way in which man's eyes saw the sky. Ourmemory phrase: 'Changed Sky Focus'.8. In 1905 Einstein's theory of relativity shed new light onthe way in which matter and energy exist. His theory solved anumber of puzzles that had occupied man, but also gave riseto many more. Our key word 'PuZZLe'.9. In the French Revolution in 1789 the king was rangedagainst the people. Hence we remember the date by '.KingFights People'.10. The declaration of American Indepencence in 1776marked a new feeling of optimism and confidence in theAmerican way of life. This can be encapsulated in the oneword: 'CoCKSure'.As you can see, the system for remembering important datesin history is a simple one and should make a task which mostpeople find hard an enjoyable exercise in creative remembering.

MEMORY SYSTEM FOR DATES IN OUR CENTURY

When you have finished this chapter you will be able to givethe correct day ofthe week for any date between the years 1900to the present!Two systems may be used, the first of which is faster andsimpler and applies to only one given year while the secondspans many years and is a little harder. These systems owemuch to Harry Lorayne, a well-known North Americanmemory expert.Using the first of these systems, let us assume that we wishto know the day for any given date in the year 1971. In orderto accomplish what may sound like a rather considerable feat,all that is necessary is to remember (or jot down), the followingnumber:377426415375'Rubbish!' you might say, but when this system is explainedyou will see that it is in fact very clear and easy to operate. Theindividual digits of the 12-digit number represent the firstSunday for each month of the year 1971. The first Sunday inApril, for example falls on the 4th day of the month, the firstSunday in December falls on the 5th day of the month, andso on.Once you have remembered this number, and I recommendthat you remember it in the way that was explained in the LongNumber memory system chapter, you will rapidly be able tocalculate the day of the week for any date in the year.It is best to explain this concept with examples, so let usassume that your birthday fell on April 28th, and that youwished to know what day the date represented. Taking the 4thdigit from your memory number you would realise that thefirst Sunday fell on the 4th. By the process ofadding sevens tothis initial Sunday date you rapidly calculate that the secondSunday of the month fell on the nth (4 + 7 = 11); the thirdSunday of the month fell on the 18th (11 + 7 = 18) and thatthe last Sunday of the month fell on the 25th. Knowing thisyou recite the remaining dates and the days of the week untilyou arrive at the date in question: April 26th = Monday;April 27th = Tuesday; April 28th = Wednesday. In otherwords your birthday falls on a Wednesday in the year 1971!Suppose you wish to know the final day of the year. Theprocess is similar. Knowing that the 1st Sunday of the lastmonth falls on the 5th day you add the three sevens represent-ing the following Sundays to arrive at Sunday 26th. Recitingthe next few dates and days we get: 27th Monday; 28thTuesday; 29th Wednesday; 30th Thursday; 31st (the last dayof the year!) a Friday.As you can see this system can be applied to any year forwhich you may especially need to know days for dates. All youhave to do is to make up a memory number for the first Sunday,or for that matter the first Monday, Tuesday, etc. of eachmonth of the year, add sevens where appropriate to bring younear to the day in question, and recite to that day.An interesting and quick way to make use of the memorynumber of one year with relation to surrounding years is torealise that with each year the first date for-the days at thebeginning of the month goes down one, with the exception ofleap years when the extra day produces a jump of two for thefollowing year. In the years 1969, 1970, 1971 for instance thefirst Sunday for January in each ofthose years fell respectivelyon the 5th, 4th, and 3rd days of the month.The second of the two systems to be introduced in thischapter is for calculating the day for any date from 1900 to thepresent. It is necessary in this system to ascribe to each montha number which will always remain the same. The numbersfor the months are as follows:
January— 1
February— 4
March— 4
April— 0
May— 2
June— 5
July— 0
August— 3
September — 6
October— 1
November — 4
December — 6
Some people suggest that these be remembered using asso-ciations such as January is the first month, the fourth letter inFebruary is r which represents 4, and so on but I think that itis better to use the number:144025036146making the words drawer, snail, smash and tired. These canthen be linked by imagining a drawer on which a snail with avery hard shell is eventually smashed after an effort whichmade you tired. In this way the key numbers for the monthscan be remembered.In addition to the key numbers for the months the yearsthemselves have key numbers and I have listed them from1900 to 1984, after which date, according to George Orwell,memory will be 'taken care of!'.
0
1900
1906
1917
1923
1928
1934
1945
1951
1956
1962
1973
1979
1984

I
1901
1907
1912
1918
1929
1935
1940
1946
1957
1963
1968
1974

2
1902
1913
1919
1924
1930
I94I
1947
1952
1958
I969
1975
I98O

3
1903
1908
1914
1925
1931
1936
1942
1953
1959
1964
1970
1976
1981

4
1909
1915
1920
1926
1937
1943
1948
1954
1965
1971
1982
5190
4191

0
1921
1927
1932
1938
1949
1955
i960
1966
1977
1983

6
1905
1911
1916
1922
1933
1939
1944
1950
1961
1967
1972
1978

How does this system work? Well, for once the answer isthat it is not completely easy although with a little practice itcan become almost second nature. The method is as follows,given the month, numerical date, and the year, you add thenumber represented by the month key to the number of thedate, and add this total to the key number representing theyear in question. From the total you subtract all the sevens,and the remaining number represents the day in the week,taking Sunday as day i.In order to check this system, we will take a couple ofexamples, one from a recent year, and one which if you havebought this book before the end of 1972, will be a day in thefuture.The day we will try to hunt down is the 19th March, 1969.Our key number for March is 4 which we must then add to thedate in question which is 19, 19 + 4 = 23. To this total wemust add the key number for the year 1969. Referring to thelist we find that this is 2. Adding 2 to our previous total wearrive at 23 + 2 = 25. Subtracting all the sevens from this(3 X 7 — 21) we arrive at 25 — 21 = 4. The day in questionis consequently the 4th day ofthe week which is a Wednesday!The date in the future we shall be concerned with is August23rd 1972. Our key number for August is 3 which we add to23 giving 26. The key number for the year 1972 is 6 whichadded to 26 gives us a total of 32. Subtracting all the sevens( 4 x 7 = 28) from 32 we arrive at 4. The 4th day of the weekis a Wednesday which is the day for August 23rd, 1972!The only exception to this rule occurs in leap years, andthen only in the months of January and February. Your cal-culations will be identical but for these two months only theday of the week will be one day earlier than the day you cal-culate.As with other systems the best way to gain confidence withthose discussed in this chapter is to practise them. I suggestthat you start with the easier of the two first, become skilledin it, and then graduate to the more advanced. Both of thesesystems are excellent for entertaining your friends and socialacquaintances.

MEMORY SYSTEM FOR SCHEDULES ANDAPPOINTMENTS.

As with telephone numbers, many people find appointmentsand schedules hard to remember. They employ similarsystems for coping with their problem, the most common, ofcourse, being the diary. Unfortunately many people don'talways keep their diaries with them!In this chapter I introduce two systems, the first of which isfor immediate daily use, the second for remembering schedulesand appointments for an entire week.The first involves your basic peg systems. Simply equate thenumber in your system with the hour of your appointment.Since there are 24 hours in a day, you can either join theshorter system together, with an appropriate total of 24, oruse the first 24 peg words in one of the larger systems.Let us assume you have the following appointments:7—Early morning training10—Dentist1—Luncheon6—Board meeting10—Late filmWe will assume that you are using the Skipnum system toremember these appointments. At the beginning of the day,which in this case will certainly be no earlier than 5.30 a.m.,you run through the list and check for words with associations.7 a.m., represented by the word egg, is the time for yourEarly Morning Group Athletic Practice. Imagine your wholeteam running on eggshells, or enjoying a breakfast of eggbefore or after.At 10 a.m. (toast) you have an appointment with the dentist.Imagine all your teeth sinking into a piece of toast whichcauses pain.Your next appointment, at 1 p.m. (13.00) is for lunch. Thekey word is 'tea'. Imagine the rather depressing prospect of alunch at which nothing but tea is served.At 6 p.m. you have a Board Meeting. The Skipnum memoryword for 18 (18.00 hours equals 6 p.m.) is 'tape'. The associa-tion here is not difficult—imagine the confidential matters ofyour Board Meeting being tape-recorded on an enormousmachine.Finally you have an appointment at 10 p.m. (2200 hours) tosee a late film. The Skipnum key word is 'troop'. Imagine theaudience of which you will be a part as a well organised militaryforce!The second system for remembering schedules and appoint-ments may be used for an entire week. As with the memorysystem for dates, take Sunday as day 1 of the week andascribe a number to each of the other days:
Sunday— 1
Monday— 2
Tuesday — 3
Wednesday— 4
Thursday — 5
Friday— 6
Saturday — 7
Having given a number to the day, we treat the hours as theyare treated in the small system discussed above, and as theyappear in railway, shipping and airline schedules. The day isconsidered to have 24 hours, from 2400 (midnight) through1 a.m. (0100), noon (1200), 1 p.m. (1300) and back to midnight(2400).Thus for any hour and day ofthe week a two- or three-digitnumber is formed—day first, hour second. All that is necessaryis to transfer the number into the word of the major systemlist. Having arrived at the word we link it with the appropriateappointment.Supposing you had an appointment to see a car you wantedto buy at 9.00 a.m. on Tuesday. Tuesday is represented by thenumber 3 which in the major system translates to the letter 'm'.The hour, 9, translates to the letter 'b,p'. Referring to the basiclist we see that the key word for Tuesday at 9.00 a.m. is 'map'.To remember this appointment you might imagine the car youare going to see either bursting through a giant map, wrappedin a giant map, or driving across a giant map.As another example, suppose you have an appointment fora guitar lesson at 5.00 p.m. (hour number 17) on a Thursday(day number 5). The number we derive from Thursday at5.00 p.m. is 517, the word for this being 'leading'. To remem-ber this, imagine yourself leading an entire orchestra withyour solo guitar!You may think this system a bit cumbersome, because itrequires a fairly thorough knowledge of the larger numbers inthe Major System, but this can be overcome by 'rotating' thehours of the day to suite those hours in which you have mostappointments. If, for example, your day does not usually startuntil 10.00 a.m., then 10.00 a.m. can be consideredtobenumber1 in your appointment memory system. In this manner themost important and often-used hours in your day will nearlyalways be represented by only 2-digit numbers, i.e. thenumbers from 10 to 100 in the Major System.

TELEPHONE NUMBER MEMORY SYSTEM

Most people 'just can't' remember telephone numbers! Inorder to overcome this disability they employ ail kinds ofelaborate systems (and some not so elaborate), ranging fromthe person who keeps card files ofthe numbers he needs to re-member and carries these around with him, to the one whojots down numbers on odd pieces of paper and is continuallyringing the wrong person!Remembering telephone numbers is actually not difficult atall as long as we remember the number-letter correspondencefrom the major system. All that is necessary is to substitute aletter for the number we wish to remember. Having done this,we make up association words that link the number to theperson.Let us try this with the ten people from the initial test:
Your local butcher
Your dentist
Your bank manager
Your doctor
Your local grocer
Your local chemist
Your tennis partner
Your plumber
Your local pub
Your garage
HSM-8737
NAH-9107
CAM-5323
HOB-3981
CEL-8801
BOT-9939
SER-4112
LEA-8519
PMB-1427
TRK-9340
In these examples we have letters as well as numbers to dealwith, but these will prove of little difficulty as you shall soonsee.The butcher's number—HSM-8737—starts with theletters 'HSM'. These letters can be remembered in a varietyof ways, but the ones which immediately spring to mind are:'He. Sells .Meat' and 'Ham, Sausages, .Mince'. The numberswe have to deal with are 8737 which can be converted to 'v orf 'k, c, g' 'm' and 'k,c,g'. Our task here is to make up eitherone word which contains these letters in order, two shortwords which also contain these letters in order or four words,the initial letter of which represents the number we are tryingto remember. In the case of the butcher the last of thesechoices is probably the best. We select v, g, m, and hard c togive us ' Very Good Meat Cuts'. We could of course, substi-tute 'Fairly' for 'Very' and 'Gory' for 'Good' etc.As practice on these items is always important, take a quicklook again at the people and their numbers, noting the letters.When you have practised them, consider the following sugges-tions for each one—I am sure that many ofyou will be able tocreate some most original methods!Your dentist—NAH-9107. The initial letters 'NAH' couldform the phrase Weedles Always Hurt' or Wasty AndHorrible!' The letters we have to choose from are (9107) 'p,b','t,d', 's,z, or soft c', and 'k,g. hard c etc.'. One two-word com-bination that we might use for this is 'Bad Suck' becausepeople with toothaches often tend to suck at the painful tooth.A four word suggestion ofa more positive nature is 'Pain DoesCertainly Go' (or 'Come' if you still feel none too kindlytoward your dentist!).Your bank manager—CAM-5923. The letters might beused in the phrases 'Cash And .Money' or, if he has justrefused you a loan, 'Crabby And Mean!' The numberstranslate to the letters 'l', 'm', 'n', 'm' which in view of thesecond phrase, might well be translated into 'Lent Me NoMoney!'Your doctor—HOB-3981. The initial letters could beremembered either by 'HOBble' or 'Heals Our Backs (or.Bones)'. The numbers translate to 'm', 'p,b', 'f,v' and 't,d,th'.An obvious linking phrase is 'Makes Pain Feel Better'.Your local grocer—CEL-8801. The letters fit neatly intothe word 'CELlery', or with a bit ofa stretch, into 'Cabbages,.Extra Leafy'. The numbers translate to the letters 'f,v', 'f,v','s, z soft c', and 't,d,th'. A phrase from this is 'Very FineCelery and Tomatoes'. The initial word could be changedto 'Fairly' or 'Few' and the second to 'Fowl!'.Your local chemist—BOT-9939. The initial letters could beremembered either as the first three of the word 'BOTtle' oras the first letters of'Bottles Of Toxins!' or 'Boxes Of Tissues'.The numbers translate to 'p,b', 'p,b' 'm', and 'p,b. A sug-gested four word phrase is 'Potions, Poisons, Medicines andPills'.Your tennis partner—SER-4112. The initial letters can beremembered as the first three letters ofthe word 'SERve'. Thenumbers translate to the letters 'r', 't,d,th', 't,d,th', and 'n'.Our memory phrase here might be '.Rarely Touches The Net'.Your plumber—LEA-8519. As with the grocer and tennispartner the first three letters fit conveniently into the word'LEAk!. The numbers translate to the letters 'f,v', 'l', 't,d,th',and 'p,b'. Our memory phrase could either be 'Fixes Leaks,Drips and Plumbing' or 'Faulty Lines, Taps and Pipes'.Your local pub—PMB 1427. The initial letters are difficultto make into a word, but can be used in such three letterphrases as 'Publicans Manage Beer'. The numbers translate to't,d,th', 'r', 'n', and 'k, g, hard c etc' In this case there is noneed to make up a phrase—we can contain it all in the oneword 'Drink'.Your garage—TRK 9340. As with the number section ofthe telephone number of your local pub this group of lettersneed not be made into separate words. The word 'TRuCK'perfectly conveys the first three letters. The number translatesto 'p,b' 'm', 'r', and 's,z, soft c'. This can be put into thephrase 'Broken Motor Repair Service'.The examples given above are ofcourse very particular, andit will now be up to you to apply the system outlined to thetelephone numbers which are important for you to remember.In some cases the telephone number may have no letters init at all, as may soon be the general case in Britain when theall-digit number system is completely introduced. This willpresent no extra difficulty, as you simply have three initialnumbers instead of three initial letters, and these threenumbers themselves will be translatable into letters.In some cases the combination of numbers may present agreater than usual difficulty, and 'appropriate' phrases orwords may be almost impossible to devise. In such cases thesolutions are still fairly simple.In the first case, you may make up inappropriate words outof the numbers you have to deal with, and then use the basicsystem, making absurd and exaggerated images which youlink with the person whose telephone number you are tryingto remember.For example, ifthe telephone number ofone ofyour friendswhose hobby is cricket is 411-4276 you would take the MajorSystem word for 41 which is 'rat', the Major word for 142which is 'drain', and the Major word for 76 which is 'cage'.Your image for remembering this number would be of yourfriend swatting a rat instead of a cricket ball and of the ratflying through the air landing in a drain, the iron grill ofwhichis similar to the bars of a cage!The telephone number memory system is easy and enjoy-able to practice, once you have mastered it. As with all othersystems, it requires practice, so before you proceed to thenext chapter make sure you have committed to memory at least10 numbers which are important to you.

LONG NUMBER MEMORY SYSTEM

Give a long number such as 95862190377 to someone toremember and he will try: to repeat it as you present it to him,eventually getting bogged down in his own repetition; tosubdivide it into two-or-three number groups, eventuallylosing the order and content ofthese; to work out mathematicalrelations between the numbers as you present them, inevitablygetting confused; or to 'picture' the number as it is presented,the photograph in his mirid always becoming blurred!If you think back to the initial test in which you were askedto perform a feat like this, you will probably recall your ownapproach.Remembering long numbers is really quite simple if youapply the Major System. Instead of using this system as aword system to remember objects, it is possible to use thebasic words of the system itself to recall the numbers fromwhich they are made.Let us take the number at the top of the page. It is com-posed of: 95—ball86—fish21—net90—base37—mac7—keyIn order to remember this almost impossible number allthat we now have to do is to link the key words which relate tosub-sections of that number.The image-chain here could be of a large ball bouncing offthe head of a fish which has just broken out of a net and fallento the base level ofthe pier where it struckaman wearing a macwho was bending over to pick up his key.Recalling these words and transforming them to numberswe get:b-91-5f—8sh—6n—2t—1b-9s—om—3c—7k-795862190377!There is no need, of course, to remember these largenumbers by taking groups of two. It is just as easy, andsometimes more easy, to consider groups of three. Let us trythis with the number 851429730584. It is composed of:851—fault429—rainbow730—cameos584—leverIn order to remember this number, which is slightly longerthan the previous number, it is once again a matter of linkingour key words.We could imagine a force which caused a break or fault inrainbow coloured cameos which are so heavy they needed alever to move them.Recalling these words and transforming them we get:f—81-5
t—1r—4n—2b-9c—7m—3s—0l 5v—8r—4851429730584!A further system for remembering numbers such as this,especially if you have not committed the major system entirelyto memory, is to make up four-consonant words from thenumber you have to remember. Let us try this with a 16 digitnumber: 1582907191447620. From the digits we get 1582—telephone, 9071—basket, 9144—botherer, 7620—cushions. Ourimage chain can be of a telephone being thrown into a basketwhere an annoying person (a botherer!) has also been thrownwith some cushions. Recalling the number should by now be afamiliar process to you.To check on the amazing difference this method of numbermemorisation makes, go back to the original test-chapter andsee how easy those initial numbers were!

CARD MEMORY SYSTEM

Magicians and memory experts often amaze and amuseaudiences with their ability to remember complete packs ofcards in the order in which they were presented. Theysimilarly astound their audiences by being able to rattle off,without any difficulty, the six or seven cards not mentionedwhen an incomplete 'pack' is randomly presented. Extra-ordinary as these feats may seem, they are not all that difficultand are usually quite straightforward—even though manypeople accuse the performer of having hidden assistants in theaudience, marked cards, and a number of other tricks!The system for remembering a complete pack of cards issimilar in concept to the peg systems so far discussed. All thatis necessary is to know the first letter of the word for the suitand the number of the card in that suit.For example, all words for the club cards will begin withc, all words for the hearts with h, all words for the spades withs, and all the words for the diamonds with d. The secondconsonant for the card-word will be the consonant repre-sented by the letter from the Major Memory System.Taking as an example the 5 of spades we know that it mustbegin with V because it is a spade card, and that its lastconsonant must be 'l' because it is the 5, and 5 is representedby 'l'. Without much difficulty we arrive at the word 'sale'which represents the 5 of spades.Taking another example, we wish to devise a word for the3 of diamonds. The word must begin with 'd' because it is thediamond suit and its final consonant must be 'm' because 'm*is represented by the number 3 in the major system. Filling inwith the first vowel we arrive at the word 'dam' which is ourimage word for the 3 of diamonds.Following is a list of the cards (aces count as 'one') andtheir memory words. A few of the variations I will explainwhen you have had a chance to familiarise yourself with the
list.
clubs Diamonds
CA—Cat DA—Date
C2—Can D2—Dane
C3—Cam D3—Dam
C4—Car D4—Deer
C5—Call D5—Dale
C6—Cage D6—Dash
C7—Cake D7—Deck
C8—Cafe D8—Dive
C9—Cab D9—Dab
Cio—Case D10—Daze
CJ—Cadet DJ—Dead wood
CQ—Cotton DQ—Deaden
CK—Club DK—Diamond

Hearts- Spades
HA—Hat SA—Sot
H2—Hen S2—Son
H3—Ham S3—Sum
H4—Hair S4—Sore
H5—Hail S5—Sale
H6—Hash S6—Sash
H7—Hag S7—Sack
H8—Hoof S8—Sage
H9—Hub S9—Sap
Hio—Haze Sio—Seas
HJ—Headed SJ—Sated
HQ—Heathen SQ—Satan
HK—Heart HK—Spade
In this system the jacks and queens have been counted as thenumbers 11 and 12, and 10 as 's', and the king simply as thename of the suit in which he resides! The memory words forthe clubs are in many cases the same as those for the majorsystem words for the 70's, but this need not concern you, asthe two lists will never come into conflict.How does the memory expert dazzle his audience? Theanswer is quite simple—whenever a card is called out heimmediately associates that card with the appropriate numberon his major system (you will of course be able to use mosystems for this task, as the Skipnum system also containsenough pegs to hold a full pack of cards.).If for example the first card called out was the 7 of dia-monds you would associate the word 'deck' with the first wordon your major system which is 'tea'. You might imagine theentire deck of a boat being covered in tea, or perhaps even theBoston Tea Party! If the next card called were the ace ofhearts you would associate the word for this card—'hat'—with the second word on you memory system 'Noah' andwould link these two. You could imagine Noah on the arkwearing an enormous rain-hat in order to keep off the flood!If the next card called were the queen of spades you wouldassociate the word for that card —'satan'—with your thirdmajor system word 'Ma'. You could imagine your motherbashing satan over the head!From these few examples I hope you can see how easy it canbe to memorise an entire pack of cards in whatever order theyhappen to be presented to you. It is a most impressive feat tobe able to perform in front of your friends!Your facility in remembering cards can be taken a stepfurther. It is possible to have someone randomly read you thenames of all the cards in the deck, leaving out any six or sevenhe chooses. Without much hesitation you can tell him whichcards these were!There are two ways of doing this, the first being to use atechnique similar to that explained in Chapter 8.Whenever a card is called out you associate the image wordfor that card within a larger concept such as the block of icepreviously mentioned. In different situations you can use acoal-cellar or a boat etc. as that in which you contain your cardmemory word. When all the cards have been presented yousimply run down the list of card memory words noting thosewords which are not connected with the larger memoryconcept.If the 4 of clubs had been called you might have pictured acar slithering across the huge cube of ice, or being trappedwithin it. You could hardly forget this image but if the card4 of clubs had not been called you would immediately remem-ber that you had nothing to remember!The other system for this type offeat is to mutate or changein some way the card memory word if that card is called. Forexample if the king of clubs were called and your image forthis was a cave-man like club you would imagine it beingbroken in half. Or if the card called were the 2 of hearts andyour normal image for this was a simple farm hen you mightimagine it with an extraordinarily large tail or with its head cutoff!The systems described in this chapter are basic to theremembering ofcards, but it does not take much to see that inthe actual playing ofcard games, a memory system such as thiscan be of enormous help. You have probably watched peoplerepeating over and over to themselves the cards which theyknow have been put down or which are in other players' hands,and you have probably seen them sigh with exasperation attheir inability to remember accurately!With your new memory system such tasks will become onlytoo simple!

THE MAJOR SYSTEM

The Major system is the ultimate in the development of thepeg systems discussed earlier. It is a system which has been inuse for over 400 years, although it has been continuallyimproved since the middle of the 17th century, when it wasintroduced by Stanislaus Mink von Wesnnsshein. VonWennsshein's basic construction was modified in the early18th century by Doctor Richard Grey, an Englishman.The system makes use of a different consonant or consonantsound for each number from zero to ten as follows:
1 = t, d, th2 = n3 = m4 = r6 = j, sh, ch, dg, soft g7 = k, ch, hard c, hard g, ng, q8 = f,v9 = p,bo = s, z, soft cTo save you the trouble ofremembering these by rote, thereare simple little remembering devices:1. The letters t and d have one down stroke.2. The letter n has two down strokes.-3. The letter m has three down strokes.4. The letter r is the last letter in the wordfour.5. The letter 1 can bethought ofas eithertheromannumeralfor 50 or the shape of a spread hand which has five spreadfingers.6. The letter L is the mirror image of 6.7. The letter k, when seen as a capital, contains two numbersevens!
8. The letter f, when written, has two loops; similar to thenumber 8.9. The letter p is the mirror image of9.10. s or z is the first sound of the word zero; 'o' is the lastletter.As with the Number-Sound and Number-Shape systems,our task is to create a visual image that can immediately andpermanently be linked with the number it represents.Let us take for example the number 1. In order to assign toit a memory word we have to think of a word that is a goodvisual image and that contains only 't', 'd' or 'th' and a vowelsound. Examples include 'toe', 'doe', tea', 'the' and manyothers. When recalling the word we had chosen for number 1,let us say 'tea', we would know that it could represent only thenumber 1 because the consonant letters in the word representno other number, and vowels do not count as numbers in oursystem.Let us try another example: the number 34. In this case wehave first the number three which is represented by the letter'm' and then 4 which is represented by the letter 'r'. Examplescan include 'more', 'moor', 'mire' and 'mare'. In selecting the'best' word for this number you once again make use of thealphabetic dictionary-order to assist both in choice of wordand in recall.The letters we have to choose are 'm' and 'r', so we simplymentally run through the vowels 'a-e-i-o-u' order using thefirst vowel that enables us to make an adequate memory word.The case in question is easily solved, as 'a' fits in between 'm'and V to direct us towards the word 'mare"The advantage of using this alphabet-order system is thatshould a word in the major system ever be forgotten it canliterally be 'worked out' from the basic information. All youhave to do is to place the letters ofthe number in their correctorder and then 'slot in' the vowels. As soon as you touch thecorrect combination your memory-word will immediatelycome to mind.Before going on, jot down the numbers from 10 to 19, lettingthe letter t represent in each case the '1' of the number. Nexttry to complete the words, using the alphabet-order system forthese numbers.Don't worry if this exercise proves a little difficult, as justover the page you will find a complete list ofmemory words forthe numbers 1 to 100. Don't simply accept them—check eachone carefully, changing any that you find difficult to visualiseor for which you have a better substitute.You now possess a peg memory system for the numbersfrom 1 to 100—a system which contains within itself thepattern for its own memorisation! As you will have seen, thissystem is basically limitless. In other words, now that we haveletters for the numbers 0-9, it should be possible for us todevise memory words for the numbers not only for 1 to 100 butalso for the numbers from 100 to 1,000! This system could ofcourse go on for ever but I doubt that anyone would needmore than 1,000 peg words.On the pages that follow I have devised a list ofkey memorypeg words for the numbers 100 to 1,000. After certain of themore 'difficult' words I have included either:1. A suggestion for a way in which an image might beformed from the word.2. A dictionary definition ofthe word, the definition includ-ing words or ideas that should help you to form your image.3. 'New' definitions for words which place them in ahumourous, or different, but certainly more memorisableform.The remaining words have blank spaces following them. Inthe space provided you should write in your own key words for,or ideas about, the image you will be using.In some cases, where the combination of letters makes theuse of single words impossible, double words have been usedsuch as Wo Cash' for the number 276, (n, hard c, sh).In other cases it is necessary to include vowels (which haveno numerical meaning) at the beginning of the word. Forexample the number 394 (m, p, r) is represented by the word'empire'.In still further cases words have been used, the first threeletters only of which pertain to the number. For example thenumber 359 (m, 1, b) is represented by the word 'mailbag'. Thefinal 'g' has no significance or importance.Your next task should be to check carefully this MajorSystem list. It would obviously be too much to ask you to dothis at one sitting, so I suggest the more modest goal ofchecking, making images for, and remembering, a hundredwords each day. As you go through the list make every effort tomake your images of the words as solid as you possibly can.1. TEA 2. NOAH3. MA 4. RAY5. LAW 6. JAW7. KEY 8. FOE9. PA 10. TOES11. TATE (the Art Gallery) 12. TAN13. TAM 14. TAR15. TAIL 16. TAJ (Mahal)17. TACK 18. TOFFEE19. TAP 20. NOSE21. NET 22. NAN23. NAME 24. NERO25. NAIL 26. NICHE27. NECK 28. NAVE29. NAP 30. MACE31. MAT 32. MAN33. MAMA 34. MARE35. MALE 36. MASH37. MAC 38. MAFIA39. MAP 40. RACE41. RAT 42. RAIN43. RAM 44. REAR45. RAIL 46. RASH47. RACK 48. RAVE49. RAPE 50. LACE
51. LAD 52. LANE53. LAMB 54. LAIR55. LILY 56. LASH57. LAKE 58. LAUGH59. LAP 60. CHASE61. CHAT 62. CHAIN63. CHIME 64. CHAIR65. CHILL 66. JUDGE67. CHECK 68. CHAFF69. CHAP 70. CASE71. CAT 72. CAN73. CAM (Shaft) 74. CAR75. CALL 76. CAGE77. CAKE 78. CAFE79. CAB 80. FACE81. FAT 82. FAN83. FOAM 84. FAIR85. FALL 86. FISH87. FAKE 88. FIFE89. FOB 90. BASE91. BAT 92. BAN93. BEAM 94. BAR95. BALL 96. BASH97. BACK 98. BEEF99. BABE 100. DISEASEEven when words refer to ideas or concepts, bring them downtoamore immediatelyimaginistic level For examplethenumber368, represented by the memory words 'much force' should, not be pictured as some vague power or energy in space, butshould be solidified into an image in which much force is usedto, accomplish or destroy, etc. In other words in each of thesecases you will be attempting to make the memory word asvisual and as memorable as possible. Remember the four rulesin the early chapter: Exaggerate; Move; Substitute; beAbsurd.In cases where words are similar in concept to previouswords, it is most important to make your images as differentas possible. The same caution applies to words which arepluralised because ofthe addition of V. In these cases imaginean enormous number of the items as opposed to a singleenormous item.You will find your consolidation of the words in the majorsystem useful not only because it will enable you to rememberthe astounding number of 1,000 items in order or randomly,but also because it will exercise your creative Unking abilitywhich is so necessary for remembering anything.In addition, a number of the words used as mnemonics inthisMajor System are interesting in their own right. As youcheck through and memorise each list of 100, have a dictionaryby your side—it will serve as a means ofsolidifying the imagesfor you, will enable you to select the best possible images orwords and will be ofvalue in the improvement ofyour generalvocabulary ! If you are also reading my book Speed Reading,combine where feasible the vocabulary exercises included in itwith your exercises on the Major System.100. Dust.101. Design.102. Disease.103. Dismay.104.Desert.______________________________________105. Dazzle.106. Discharge.107. Disc.108. Deceive.•109. Despair.110. Dates.Succulent, sticky fruit, often eaten atChristmas.111. Deadwood.Decayed, often twisted remains oftrees.112. Deaden.113. Diadem.A crown; a wreath ofleaves or flowersworn around the head.114. Daughter.115. Detail.116. Detach.117. Toothache.118. Dative.Nouns which express giving.119. Deathbed.120. Tennis.121. Dent.122. Denun.To take a nun or nuns away from aplace or situation.123. Denim.A very tough fabric used for makingworking clothes.124. Dinner.125. Downhill.126. Danish.A native of Denmark; like the GreatDane dog.127. Dank.Unpleasantly soaked or damp; marshyor swampy.128. Downfall.129. Danube.The river (or picture waltzing to theBlue Danube).130. Demise.The death of a sovereign.131. Domed.Having a large, rounded summit, as ahead or a church.132. Demon.133. Demi-monde. The fringe of Society.134. Demure.'135. Dimly.-136. Damage.137. Democracy.138. Dam full.139. Damp.140. Dress.(It may be helpful here to imagine thegarment on a man.)141. Dart.142. Drain.143. Dram.144. Drawer.145. Drill.146. Dredge.Apparatus for bringing up mud (oroysters) from the sea or river bottom.147- Drag.148. Drive.149. Drip.150. Deluxe.151. Daylight.152. Delinquent.153. Dilemma.A position leaving a choice which isusually between two evils.154. Dealer.155. Delilah.Temptress; false and wily woman(Samson).156. Deluge. Agreatflood;Noah'sflood.157. Delicacy.158. Delphi.The Greek town in which was thesanctuary of the oracle.159. Tulip.•160. Duchess.161. Dashed.162. Dudgeon.Strong anger, resentment or feeling ofoffence.163. Dutchman.164. Dodger.A wily, tricky, elusive person.165. Dash light:(Imagine the dash light in your car.)166. Dishwash.Abbreviation for dishwashing machine.167. De choke.(Reverse the image of choke, either inrelation to a car or to stranglingsomeone!)168. Dishevel.To make the hair or clothes loose, dis-ordered, 'flung about'.169. Dish-up.To serve food—usually applied to aslap-dash manner.170. Decks.171. Decade.172. Token.173. Decamp.(Imagine confusion in the dismantlingof tents, etc.)174. Decree.An order made by an authoritydemanding some kind of action.175.Ducal.(Imagine anything similar to or lookinglike a Duke.)176. Puckish.177. Decaying.178. Take-off.179. Decapitate.180. Deface.181. Defeat.182. Divan.183. Defame.To speak evil of; to slander.184. Diver.185. Defile.186. Devotion.187. Defeat.188. Two Frisky Fillies. (Imagine them in a field ormemorable enclosure.)189. Two Frightened Boys. (Perhaps being chased by188!)190. Debase.To lower in character, quality, or value.191. Debate.192. Debone.To pick the bones out of—usually from193. Whitebeam.A tree with long, silvery underleaves.194. Dipper.(Imagine the Big Dipper starconstellation.)195. Dabble.196. Debauch.To corrupt or lead astray, fromtemperance or chastity.197. Dipping.(Imagine someone being dipped forciblyinto water, as the medieval torture.)198. Dab off.(Imagine a stain or blood being'dabbed off' with cotton wool.)199. Depip.To take the pips out of (imagine apomegranate!).200. Nieces.201. Nosed.Sniffed or smelled out—often appliedto hunting animals.202. Insane.203. Noisome.Harmful, noxious, ill-smelling.204. Noser.A very strong headwind.205. Nestle.206. Incision.A clean cutting ofsomething, as with adoctor's scalpel.207. Nosegay.Abunchofsweet-scentedflowers.208. Unsafe.209. Newsboy.210. Notice.211. Needed.212. Indian.213. Anatomy.214. Nadir.The lowest point; place or time ofgreat depression.215. Needle.216. Night-watch.217. Antique.218. Native.219. Nit-boy.A boy who is always doing addle-headed things.220. Ninnies.A group of people with weak minds;Simpletons.221. Ninth.(Imagine the ninth hole of a golfcourse.)222. Ninon.A light-weight dress fabric made ofsilk.223. Noname.(Imagine a person who has forgottenhis name.)224. Nunnery.225. Union-hall.226. Nunish.Pertaining to, or like a nun.227. Non-aqua.Having nothing at all to do with water.228. Nineveh.229. Ninepin.One ofnine upright pieces of wood tobe knocked down in the game ofninepins.__230. Names.231. Nomad.232. Nominee.A person nominated for a position or•office.233. No Ma'am.234. Enamour.To bring to life, to animate with love.235. Animal.236. No mash.(Imagine a saucepan which has justbeen emptied ofmashed potatoes.)237. Unmake238. Nymph.A beautiful, mythological maiden,always young.239. Numb.240. Nurse.241. Narrate.242. No run.243. Norm.A standard; a set pattern to bemaintained.244. Narrower.245. Nearly.246. Nourish.247. New York.248. Nerve.249. Nearby.250. Nails.'251. Nailed..252. Nylon.253. New Loam.Freshly-turned rich and fertile soil.254. Kneeler.255. Nail-hole.256. Knowledge.257. Nailing258. Nullify.To cancel, to neutralize, to quash.259. Unlab.To dismantle a scientific laboratory.260. Niches.Vertical recesses in a wall to containa statue.261. Unshod.262. Nation.263. Unjam.264. Injure.265. Unshell.To extract a living organism from itsshell266. Nosh shop.(Imagine the school tuck-shop orsomething similar.)267. NoJoke.A 'joke' thatfalls flat.268. Unshaved.269. Unship.(Imagine a great crowd of people beingordered off a ship.)270. Necks.271. Naked.272. Noggin.A small mug and/or its contents.273. Income.________________274. Anchor.275. Nickel.A grey metal related to cobalt; anAmerican coin worth about21/2n.p.276. No Cash.(Imagine someone fumbling in hispockets in order to pay a restaurantbill)277. Knocking.278. Encave.To confine to a dark place; to keep in acave.279. Uncap.(Imagine schoolboys stealing eachothers caps.)280. Nephews.281. Nevada.282. Uneven.283. Unfirm.284. Never.285. Navel.286. Knavish.Having the characteristics of a roguishtrickster; a deceitful and dishonest man.287. Invoke.To address in prayer; to imploreassistance or protection.288. Unfavourable.289. Enfeeble.To make extremely weak and unable tofunction.290. Nibs.291. Unpod.To take from the pod, as peas.292. New Pan.(Imagine a brilliantly shiny frying pan.)293. New Beam.(Imagine the first beam ever from thesun.)294. Neighbour.295. Nibble.,296. Nippish.297. Unpack.•,298. Unpaved.299. Nabob.A wealthy, luxurious person, especiallyone returned from India with a fortune.300. Moses.301. Mast302. Mason.One who cuts, builds, and prepareswith stone.303. Museum.304. Miser.305. Missile.306. Massage.307. Mask.308. Massive.309. Mishap.310. Midas.The king who craved for gold.311. Mid-day.312. Maiden.313. Madam.314. Motor.315. Medal.-316. Modish.In the style ofthe current fashion.317. Medic.318. Midwife.319. Mudpie.320. Manse.The home of a Presbyterian minister.321. Mend.322. Minion.Favourite child, servant or animal;slave.323. Minim.A creature ofthe smallest size orimportance; a musical note.324. Manner.325. Manila.326. Manage.327. Maniac.328. Manful.Brave, resolute, bold; with man's bestqualities.329. Monopoly.The sole power of trading; exclusivepossession; a popular board-game.330. Maims.331. Mammouth.332. Mammon.The Syrian God of riches; wordlywealth.333. My Mum.'334. Memory.335. Mammal.336. My match.337. Mimic.338. Mummify.To preserve the body by embalming.339. Mump.340. Mars.341. Maraud.To make a plunderous raid; to go aboutpilfering.342. Marine.343. Miriam.344. Mirror.345. Moral.346. March.347. Mark.348. Morphia.The narcotic principle of opium.349. Marble.350. Males.351. Malt.352. Melon.353. Mile Man.354. Miller355. Molehill.356. Mulish.(Imagine anything that is characteristicof a mule.)357. Milk.358. Mollify.To soften, assuage, appease.359. Mail-bag.360. Matches.361. Mashed.362. Machine.363. Mishmash.A jumble; a hodge podge; a medley.364. Major.365. Mesh Lock.(Imagine something like a gear cogmeshing and locking, or a lock thatoperates by an intricate mesh.)366. Magician.367. Magic.368. Much Force.369. Much bent.__370. Mikes.371. Mocked.372. Mohican..373. Make Muck.374. Maker.375. Meekly.376. My cash.377. Making.378. Make Off.To hurry away, as a thieffrom thescene.379- Magpie.380. Movies.381. Mufti.An expounder of Mohammedan law;civilian dress as opposed to uniform.382. Muffin.383. Movement.384. Mayfair.385. Muffle.386. My Fish.387. Maffick.To celebrate uproariously.-388. Mauve Feet.389. Movable._____390. Mopes.Sulks; being dull or out of spirits.391. Moped.Having completed 390!392. Embank.To throw up a bank; protect by a bank.393. Wampum.Name for money-beads and shellsused by North American Indians.394. Empire.395. Maple.396. Ambush.397. Impact.398. Impavid.Fearless; bold; intrepid..399. Imbibe.To drink in; absorb (often used ofliquor).'400. Recess.401. Recite.402. Raisin.403. Resume*.A summing up; a condensed statement;a summary.404. Racer.405. Wrestle.406. Rose-show.407. Risk.408.Receive._409. Rasp.To rub with a coarse file; to utter in a'grating way.410. Raids.411. Radiate.412. Rattan.Indian climbing palm with long, thin,many-jointed pliable stem.413. Redeem.414. Radar.(Imagine 'beaming in' on some objectin the sky.)415. Rattle.416. Radish.417. Reading.418. Ratify.To settle, confirm, approve, establish.419. Rat Bait.420. Reigns.421. Rained.422. Reunion.423. Uranium.A radio-active white metallic element.424. Runner.425. Runnel.A rivulet or gutter.426. Ranch.427. Rank.428. Run Off.A deciding, final contest; a gutter orspillway.429. Rainbow.430. Remus.One oftwo brothers suckled by a wolf—-one of the founders of Rome.431. Rammed.432. Roman.433. Remember.434. Rammer.An armoured point on the prow ofaship.435. Rommel. -Notorious German war leader.436. Rummage.437. Remake.438. Ramify.To form branches or subdivisions oroffshots.t439. Ramp.440. Roars.441. Reared.442. Rareness.443. Rearman.The last man in a column or file.444. Rarer.445- Rarely._446. Rare Show447. Rearing.448. Rarefy.To lessen the density or solidity of,especially air.449. Rarebit.A dainty morsel; often applied toWelsh Rarebit—grilled cheese on toast450. Release.451. Railed.452. Re-loan.453. Realm.454. Roller.455. Reel Line.(Imagine a fishing line tangled on itsreel.)456. Relish.457. Relic.458. Relief.459. Relapse.460. Riches.461. Reached.462. Region.463. Regime.Mode, style, diet; form of government464. Rasher.465. Rachel.466. Rejudge.467. Raging.468. Arch Foe.(Imagine yourselfas a knight with onegiant foe among a number of others.)469. Reach up.470. Racks.471. Racket.472. Reckon.473. Requiem.A service spoken or sung for the peaceof the soul of a dead person.474. Raker.(Imagine a man who does nothing butrake gardens.)475. Recall.476. Roguish.477. Rococo.A highly ornamented and florid style indesign.478. Recover.479. Raek up.Colloquialism meaning to injureseriously in sport.480. Refuse.Rubbish; garbage.481. Raft;482. Raven.483. Reform.484. Reefer.A short jacket worn by sailors; amarijuana cigarette.485. Raffle._ _486. Ravage.487. Revoke.A card player's failure to follow suitthough he could.488. Revive.489. Roofable..490. Rabies.491. Rabid.Furious, violent, unreasoning, mad.492. Ribbon.493. Ripe Melon.494. Raper.495. Rabble.49& Rubbish.497. Rebuke.498. Rebuff.499. Republic.A society ofpersons or animals withequality between members.500. Lasses.501. Last.502. Lesson.503. Lyceum.A place for instruction and lectures; Aplace in Athens where Aristotle taught.504. Laser.A super-concentrated beam of light- coming from a substance which isvibrated.505. Lazily.506. Alsatian.507. Lacing.508. Lucifer.509. Lisp.510. Ladies.511. Lighted.512. Latin.513. Late Meal.514. Ladder.515. Ladle.516. Old-Age.517. Leading.518. Old Foe.519. Lead Pipe.520. Lance.521. Land.,_____522. linen.523. Liniment.524. Linear.525. Lineal.Relating to a line or lines; in direct line.526. Launch.527. Lank.528. Luna Flight.529. Line-up.530. Looms.531. Limit..532. Layman.533. Lame Mare.534. Lamarck.Famous French Zoologist and botanist535. Lamella.A thin plate, especially oftissue or bone.536. Lime Juice.537. Looming.538. Lymph.Virus-laden matter obtained from adiseased body.539- Lamp.540. Layers.,541. Lard.542. Learn.543. Alarm.544. Leerer.545. Laurel.546. Large.547. Lark.548. Larva.549. Larrup.Colloquial for 'to thrash'.550. Lilies.551. lilt;552. Lowland.553. Lielow Mattress. A camping mattress which servesas a bed.554. Lowlier.555. Lily-livered.556. Liliaceous.Relating to the lily family; like a lily.557. Lilac. " .558. Low life.559. Lullaby.560. Lashes.^561. Legit.Colloquial for that which is honest or'above board'.562. Legion.563. Lush Meadow.564. Lecher.565. Lushly.566. All-Jewish.567- Logic-568. Low shot.:569. Lush Pea.570. Lakes.571. Licked.572. Lagoon.573. Locum.Colloquial for a deputy in any office,especially a doctor.574« Lacquer..___575. Local.'576- Luggage.577. licking.578. Liquefy.To bring a solid or a gas into a liquidcondition.579. Lock-up.580. Leaves.581. Livid.582. Elfin.Like, or relating to, a fairy or an elf.583. Alluvium.Soil deposited or washed down by theaction ofwater584. Lever.585. Level.586. Lavish.587. Leaving.588. Leave Off!589. Life-boat.590. Lips.591. Leaped.592. Lib Now!(Imagine this phrase as a Woman's_ _Liberation placard.)593.Labium.The floor ofthe mouth of insects andcrustaceans etc.594. Labour.595. Label.596. Lipchap.A cold sore on the lip.597. Law-book.598. Leap-frog.599- Lap-up.600. Chases.601. Chaste.602. Jason.And the Golden Fleece!603. Chessman.604. Chaser.605. Chisel.606. Cheese-Show.607. Chasing.608. Joseph.609. Jasper. "An opaque variety ofquartz, usuallyred, yellow or brown.610. Shades.611. Shaded.612. Jetton.An engraved disc or counter.613. Chatham.Naval town in Kent.614. Chatter.615. Chattel.A movable possession; property which_is not freehold.616. Chit-chat.617. Cheating.618. Shadoof.A water raiser consisting of a long polehung from a post, and a bucket orbottle.619. Chat-up.To talk to a person ofthe opposite sexwith further contact in mind.620. Chains.621. Chant.622. Genuine.623. Chinaman624. Joiner.625. Channel.626. Change.627. Chink.628. Geneva.Headquarters for certain UnitedNations organisations; Major city ofSwitzerland.629. Shin-bone.630. Chums.631. Ashamed.632. Showman.633. Jemima.Boot with elastic sides, having no lacesor clasps to fasten.634. Chimera.A fire-breathing monster with a lion'shead, a goat's body, and a dragon'stail.635. Shameless.636. Jimjams.Nervous fears; delirium tremens.637. Jamaica.-'638. Shameful.639. Champ.640. Cheers.641. Chart.642. Shrine.643. Chairman.644. Juror.645. Churl.A surly, ill-bred man.646. Charge.647. Cherokee.North American Indian.648. Giraffe.649. Chirp.650. Jealous.651. Child.652. Chilean.653. Show-loom.(Imagine an exquisite antique weaving•machine put on special display.)654. Jailer.655. Shallowly.In a manner not intellectual, or lacking,"..in depth.656. Geology.657. Challenge.658. Shelf.659. Julep.A sweet preparation serving as a vehiclefor nauseous medicines.660. Judges.661. Judged.662. Jejune.Bare, meagre, empty, attenuated; voidof interest.663. Judgement.664. Judger.665. Jewishly.666. Choo-choo-choo. An especially puffy steam engine1667. Joshing.Good-natured leg-pulling or joking.668. Jehoshaphat. A king of Israel.669. Shoe Shop.670. Checks.671. Checked.672. Chicken.673. Checkmate.A position in the game chess in whichopponent's king is trapped. The end ofthe game.674. Checker.675. Chuckle.676. Jokish.677. Checking.678. Chekhov.Famous Russian Author of shortstories and plays.679. Jacob.680. Chafes.Excites or heats by friction; wears byrubbing.__ _681. Shaft.682. Shaven.683. Chief Mao.684. Shaver.685. Joyful.686. Chiff Chaff.One of the British warbling birds.687. Chafing.688. Shove Off!689. Shaveable.690. Chaps.691. Chapter.692. Japan.693. Chapman.694. Chopper.695. Chapel.696. Sheepish.697. Chipping.698. Sheepfold._____699. Shopboy.700. Kisses.701. Cast.702. Casino.703. Chasm.704. Kisser.705. Gazelle.•766. Kiss Owch!707. Cash.708. Cohesive.With the quality of sticking together,said especially of 'sticky tape' andmolecules.709. Cusp.The point at which two branches of acurve meet and stop; the pointed end,especially ofa leaf.710. Cats.711. Cadet.712. Cotton.713. Gotham.A typical foolish town; New York City.714. Catarrh.A discharge from the mucousmembrane caused by a cold in the head;the condition resulting from this.715. Cattle.716. Cottage.717. Coating.718. Cadaver.A corpse.719. Cut-up.Colloquial for 'knife fight' in which oneor both antagonists are injured.720. Cans.721. Cant.Affected, insincere speech; the fashionof speech of a sea; to speak withwhining insincerity.722. Cannon.723. Economy.724. Coiner.725. Kennel.726. Conjure.727. Conk.Colloquial for 'to bang on the head*.728. Convey.729. Canopy.A covering over a bed or a throne.730. Cameos.Pieces of relief carving in stone andagate, etc. with colour-layers utilized togive background.731. Comet.732. Common.733. Commemorate.734. Camera.735. Camel.,736. Garnish.In a plucky or rumbustious mood; ofthe quality of birds of game.737. Comic.738. Comfy.739. Camp.740. Caress.741. Card.742. Corn.743. Cram.744. Career.745. Carol.746. Crash.• .747. Crack.748. Carafe.A glass water or wine bottle for theeating table.749. Carp.To catch at small faults; a freshwaterfish usually bred in ponds.750. Class.751. Clod.752. Clan.753. Clam. -754. Clear.755. Galilee.The porch or chapel at the entrance ofa church.756. Gash.757. Clack.758. Cliff.759.Clip.760. Cages.761. Caged.762. Cushion.763. Cashmere.A rich shawl, originally made atCashmere in India.764. Cashier.765. Cajole.To persuade or soothe by flattery,deceit, etc.766. Co-Judge.767. Catching.768. Cageful.769. Ketchup.Tomato sauce.770. Cakes...771. Cooked.772. Cocoon.773. Cucumber.774. Cooker.775. Cackle.776. Quackish.Like the call ofthe duck; characteristicof a charlatan, imposter or pretender.777. Cooking.778. Quickfire.779. Cockup.Colloquial for that which has beenmade a mess of; improperly arranged.780. Cafes.781. Craved.-782. Coffin.783. Caveman.784. Caviar.A food delicacy; the prepared roe ofthe sturgeon.785. Cavil.To find objection or needless fault with.786. Gaffish.Similar to a barbed fishing spear.787. Caving.788. Cavafy.The 'old poet' of Alexandria.789. Coffee Bar.790. Cabs.791. Cupid.792. Cabin.793. Cabman.794. Caper.To frolic, skip or leap lightly, as alamb; a small berry used for makingpickles and condiments.795- Cable.796. Cabbage.797- Coping.„798. Keep Off.799. Cobweb.-800. Faces.801. Fast.802. Pheasant.803. Face Mole.804. Visor.805. Facile.'806. Visage.807. Facing.808. Phosphor.Related to that which glows orphosphoresces.809. Face Up.Colloquial for 'meet the brunt'; acceptthe challenge or consequences.810. Fates.The three Greek godesses of Destiny.811. Faded.812. Fatten.813. Fathom.814. Fetter.815. Fatal.816. Fattish.817. Fading.818. Fateful..819. Football.820. Fans.821. Faint.822. Finance.823. Venom.•824. Fawner.An obsequious or sycophantic person;one who insincerely praises forreward.825. Final.826. Finish.827. Fawning.A deer giving birth.828. Fanfare.829. Vain Boy.830. Famous.831. Vomit.832. Famine.833. Fame-Mad.834. Femur.The thigh bone.835. Female.836. Famish.837. Foaming.838. Fumeful.839. Vamp.Adventuress; woman who exploitsmen; unscrupulous flirt.840. Farce.841. Fort.842. Fern.843. Farm., 844. Farrier.A man who shoes horses or treats themfor disease.845. Frail.^___846. Fresh.847. Frock,•848. Verify.Establish the truth of, bear out, makegood.849. Verb.(Imagine a word in action itself!)850. False.851. Fault.852. Flan.Pastry spread with jam or conserves.853. Flame.854. Flare.__855. Flail.Wooden staff at the end of which ashort heavy stick hangs swinging—for- threshing.856. Flash.857. Flake.858. Fluff.859. Flab.860. Fishes.861. Fished.862. Fashion.863. Fishman.864. Fisher.865. Facial.866. Fish-shop.867. Fishing.868. Fishfood.869. Fishbait.870. Focus.__871. Faked.__872. Fecund.Prolific; fertile.873. Vacuum,874. Fakir.A Mohammedan or Hindu religiousdevotee.875. Fickle.876. Fake China.877. Faking.878. Havocful.Tilled' with devastation and destruction,879. Vagabond.880. Fifes.881. Vivid.882. Vivien.883. Fife-man.884. Fever.885. Favillous.Consisting of, or pertaining to, ashes.886. Fifish.Resembling, or having thecharacteristicsofafife.887. Fifing.888. Vivify.Give life to; enliven; animate.889. Viviparous.Bringing forth young alive rather than•as eggs.890. Fibs.891. Fibbed.892. Fabian.Employing cautious strategy to wearout an enemy.893. Fob-maker.894. Fibre895. Fable.896. Foppish.897. Fee back.(Imagine yourselfreceiving money youhad paid for a product that was un-satisfactory.)98. Fob File.899. Fab Boy.Colloquialism for a young boyconsidered very attractive by girls.900. Basis.901. Bast.The inner bark of lime; other flexiblefibrousbarks.902. Basin.903. Bosom.904. Bazaar.905. Puzzle.,906. Beseech:',To ask earnestly for; to entreat,•' supplicate or implore.907. Basic.908. Passive.909. Baseball.910. Beads.911. Bedded.912. Button.913. Bottom.___914. Batter.915. Battle.-916. Badge.__.917. Bedding.918. Beatify.To make happy or blessed; to declarethat a person is blessed with eternalhappiness.919. Bad Boy.920. Bans.Curses; interdicts; prohibitions;sentence of outlawry.921. Band.922. Banana.923. Benumb.To make numb or torpid, insensible orpowerless.924. Banner.925. Banal.Trivial, trite, stale, commonplace.926. Bannish,927. Bank.928. Banf.A mountainous area in western Canadain the Rocky Mountains famous for itsbeauty and excellent skiing slopes.929. Pinup.930. Beams.931. Pomade.A scented ointment, originating fromapples, for the hair and skin of thehead.932. Bemoan.Weep or express sorrow for or over; tolament or bewail.933. Beam Maker.934. Bemire.To get stuck in wet mud.935. Pommel.A rounded knob, especially at the endof a swordhilt; to beat with thefists.936. Bombshell.937. Beaming.938. Bumf.Odds and ends; disorganised stuff;waste; rubbish._939. Bump.940. Brass.941. Bread.942. Barn.943. Brim.944. Barrier.945. Barrel.946. Barge..947. Bark.948. Brief.949. Bribe.950. Blaze.951. Bald.952. Balloon.953. Blame. -954. Boiler.955. Balliol.One of the famous Colleges at Oxford.956. Blush.957. Black.958. Bailiff.A king's representative in a district;agent or lord of a manor; officer undera sheriff.959. Bulb.960. Beaches.961. Budget.962. Passion.963. Pyjamas.964. Poacher.One who tresspasses to steal game orfish; a vessel for poaching eggs.965. Bushel.An 8-gallon measure for grain andfruit.966. Push Chair.967. Bushwack.Dweller in the backwoods; guerrilla or-bandit.__968. Bashful.969. Bishop..970. Bacchus.The Greek God of wine.971. Bucket.972. Bacon.973. Becalm.To still; to make quiet; delay throughlack of wind, as a yacht.974. Baker.975. Buckle.976. Baggage.977. Backing.Support, moral or physical; a web ofstrong material at the back of somewoven fabric.978. Back Off.979. Back Up.980. Beehives.981. Buffet.982. Buffoon.A wag, jester, mocker, a droll clown.983. Pavement.984. Beaver.985. Baffle.986. Beefish.987. Bivouac.A temporary encampment withouttents.988. Push Off.989. Puff Up.,990. Babies.991. Puppet.992. Baboon.993. Pipe Major.994- Paper.995. Babble.996. Baby Show.997- Popgun-998. Pipeful.999. Pop Up.An automatic toaster; a toy consistingof a lidded box with sprung puppet.1000. Diseases.This has been a giant chapter, but its importance is beyondquestion. The. major system can be used, like the smallersystems, to remember' short lists. Its advantage of course isthat it is limitless.It can therefore be used to store information. For example ifyou wish to remember a certain list of facts to which youwould have to refer continually over a period of years youcould memorise that list using the key words from, for example,400 to 430. In this way you can build up a permanent library ofimportant or interesting facts which you will never forget!The major system is not only a peg system. It is also thebasis for remembering numbers, dates and telephone numbers,etc., and to these we shall shortly turn.

MEMORY SYSTEM FOR NAMES AND FACES

Remembering names and faces is one of the most importantaspects in our lives, and one of the most difficult!In every walk of life, every level of occupation, and everysocial situation, there are literally millions of people who saythey 'just can't remember' the people they meet.In business and the professions this can be most embarrass-ing. Ifyou are at a conference, attending a course, or involvedin any situation in which you are meeting new people, it is notonly embarrassing to be unable to remember the names andfaces ofthose who are with you, it can also be a serious handi-cap when you meet them again. Even should you not haveoccasion to meet them again, the ability to remember namesand faces without seeing them may be useful when you are'mentally thumbing through' people who might be of assist-ance to you.In a social setting, the inability to remember the names andfaces of people you meet is a discomforting and unpleasantexperience. Many people devise little tricks and methods forevading the issue!One of the favourites is to ask for the person's name, andwhen he replies with his Christian name to say 'Oh, I knewthat! it was your surname I had difficulty remembering', andofcourse ifhe replies with his surname 'Oh I knew that! it wasyour Christian name I had difficulty remembering'! Thedisadvantages of this little technique are two-fold: Even if itworks you have had to admit that at least in part you hadforgotten his name; and secondly, many people reply immed-iately with both their Christian and surnames!Another device commonly used by people who have forgot-ten a name is to say something like 'Oh, I am sorry, but howwas it that you spelled your name?' This ofcourse can work insituations where a person has a name like Pattlesserie Zhytni-ewski! But when theretort is a sarcastic 'J-O-H-N S-M-I-T-H'you can be made to look a little silly!These tricks are nothing more than tricks, and apart fromthe obvious pitfalls I have mentioned they inevitably leave theperson who is using them in an insecure and uncomfortableposition. Aware of his inadequacy, he tends to be afraid thathis tricks won't work or that he will be placed in a situationwhere they will be inappropriate and his poor memory will beon full view! Tricks, then, are not enough.At the other end ofthe scale from the person who 'just can'tremember' names and faces, is that well-known person whoalways does remember. At school it might have been a particu-lar teacher (or the headmaster!); at university a well-knownprofessor, and in business a successful manager. Whatever thesituation I am sure you will confirm the fact that the personwas socially confident, generally successful, and almostcertainly well-known.I remember well the first class I ever attended at university.It was an eight-in-the-morning English lecture, and theexcitement of the first day and the first class had not quitemanaged to shake off the sleepiness from most of the students.Our professor had! He strode into the room with no brief-case and no books, stood in front of the class, announced hisname, and then said he would call the attendance. He startedalphabetically, listing off names such as Abrahamson, Adams,Ardlett, and Bush, in response to which he got the usualmumbled 'Yes, sir' and 'Here, sir'. When he came to Cartland,however, there was no reply. He paused for a moment andthen said 'Mr. John Cartland'. To which there was still noreply. Without change of expression he then said 'Mr. JohnW. P. Cartland?' and proceeded to list the boy's birthday,address, and telephone number! There was still no reply soour professor (who by this time had thoroughly awakened theclass!) carried on with the remaining names. Each time hearrived at the name of a person who was absent he called outthat persons initials, birthday, address and telephone number!When he had completed the roster and everyone sat withjaws hanging open, he repeated very rapidly the names of allthe students who were absent and said, with a wry smile on hisface, 'I'll make a note of them some time!'He never forgot one of us, either!From that day on he became a legend, for none ofus couldimagine or hope to compete with the brilliance of a mind thatcould so completely and perfectly remember names and dates.We were, of course, mistaken. Using the proper memorysystem, the kind of performance that our professor gave is byno means an impossibility, and is in fact quite simple.In this chapter I shall introduce you to the systems andtechniques that make remembering of names, faces andrelated facts a relatively simple and certainly a rewarding task.Before getting down to the specific methodology, there area few rules that should be observed, even when one is notusing special memory systems. These rules or pointers applymostly to situations in which you are meeting new people. Thepointers rely on one ofthe most important factors in memory:Repetition.When you are introduced to somebody first make sure youlisten. Many people actually 'turn off' when they are intro-duced to people and haven't the faintest idea what the name ofthe person is to whom they have just been introduced!Second, request that the name be repeated even if you haveheard it. Most people tend to mumble introductions and evenif an introduction is clear no one will be disturbed if you askfor a repetition.Third, repeat the name when you have been given it thesecond time. Rather than saying simply 'how do you do?' addthe name to the end of your greeting: 'how do you do, Mr.Rosenthal'.Fourth, if the name is at all difficult, politely ask for thespelling.Fifth, if the situation seems to warrant it ask the personsomething about the background and history of his name.Contrary to what you might expect most people will beflattered by your interest, and pleased that you have taken thetrouble to enquire about their name and remember it.Carrying the principles of repetition and involvementfurther, make sure that during conversations with people younewly meet you repeat the name wherever possible. Thisrepetition helps to implant the name more firmly in yourmemory, and is also socially more rewarding, for it involves theother person more intimately in the conversation. It is farmore satisfying to hear you say 'yes, as Mr. Jones has just said...' than to hear you say 'yes, as this chap over here as justsaid...'!And finally ofcourse when you are taking leave ofthose youhave met make sure you say, rather than just an impersonalfarewell, 'good evening, Mr. Jones'.These aids to memory are, as I mentioned, useful to theperson who is not using memory systems as well as one who is,although they are naturally far more beneficial to the latter,because he has additional 'artillery' which he can use to backhimself up. Without further ado, let us learn the system forremembering faces and names.To begin with, we must become far more observant of thefaces we wish to remember! Many people, especially those whohave a poor memory for names and faces, have great difficultyin remembering how one face differs from another, and find italmost impossible to describe the individual characteristics offaces. Our first task then is to become more observant.To aid you in this the next few pages will give you a 'guidedtour' from the top of the head to the tip of the chin, enumer-ating the various characteristics and the ways in which theycan be classified and typified. You may well be surprised atjust how varied faces can be!HEAD AND FACIAL CHARACTERISTICS1. The HeadUsually you willfirst-meet a person face-on, so before deal-ing with the run-down of separate characteristics we willconsider the head as a whole. Look for the general shape oftheentire bone structure. You will find that this can be:a. Largeb. Mediumc. SmallAnd that within these three categories the following shapescan be found:a. squareb. rectangularc. roundd. ovale. triangular, with the base at the chin andthe point at the scalpf. triangular with the base and the scalp andthe point at the ching. broadh. narrowi. big-bonedj.fine-bonedYou may, fairly early in your meeting, see the head from theside and will be surprised at how many different shapes headsseen from this view can take:a. squareb. rectangularc. ovald. broade. narrowf. roundg. flat at the fronth. flat on topi. flat at the backj. domed at the backk. face angled with jutting chin and slantedforehead1. face angled with receding chin and prominentforehead2. The HairIn earlier days, when hairstyles used to be more consistentand lasting, hair served as a better memory hook than it doesnow. The advent of dyes, sprays, wigs, and almost infinitelyvaried styles makes identification by this feature a somewhattricky business! Some of the more basic characteristics,however, can be listed as follows:Mena. thickb. finec. wavyd. straighte. partedf. recedingg. baldh. croppedi. mediumj. longk. frizzy1. colour (only in notable cases)Womena. thickb. thinc. fineBecause of the variability in women's hairstyles it is notadvisable to try to remember them from this characteristic!3. ForeheadForeheads can be generally divided into the followingcategories:a. highb. widec. narrow between hairline and eyebrowsd. narrow between temple and templee. smoothf. lined horizontallyg. lined vertically4.Eyebrowsa. thickb. thinc. longd. shorte. meeting at the middlef. spaced apartg. flath. archedi. wingedj. tapered5. Eyelashesa. thickb. thinc. longd. shorte. curledf. straight6. Eyesa. largeb. smallc. protrudingd. deep-seatede. close togetherf. spaced apartg. slanted outwardsh. slanted inwardsi. colouredj. iris—entire circle seenk. iris—circle covered partly by upper and/orlower lidAttention may also be paid in some cases to the lid aboveand the bag below the eye, both ofwhich can be large or small,smooth or wrinkled, and puffy or firm.7. The NoseWhen seen from the front:a. largeb. smallc. narrowd. mediume. wideWhen seen from the side:a. straightb. flatc. pointedd. blunte. snub or upturnedf. Roman or aquilineg. Greek, forming straight line with foreheadh. concave (caved in)The base of the nose can also vary considerably in relationto the nostrils:a. lowerb. levelc. a little higherThe nostrils themselves can also vary:a. straightb. curved downc. flaringd. widee. narrowf. hairy8. CheekbonesCheekbones are often linked very closely with the character-istics of the face when seen front-on, but the following threecharacteristics may often be worth noting:a. highb. prominentc. obscured9. EarsEars are a part of the face that few people pay attention to,and yet their individuality can be greater than any otherfeature. They may be:a. largeb. smallc. gnarledd. smoothe. roundf. oblongg. triangularh. flat against the headi. protrudingj. hairyk. large lobed1. no lobeThis feature is of course more appropriate as a memoryhook with men than with women, because the latter usuallycover their ears with hair.10. Lipsa. Long upper lipb. short upper lipc. smalld. thick (bee-stung)e. widef. thing. upturnedh. downturnedi. Cupid's bow (U Thant)j. well-shapedk. ill-defined11.ChinWhen seen straight on the chin may be:a. longb. shortc. pointedd. squaree. roundf. double (or multiple)g. cleft,h. dimpledWhen seen from the side it will be either:a. juttingb. straightc. receding12. SkinFinally the skin should be observed. It may be:a. smoothb. roughc. darkd. faire. blemished or marked in some wayf. oilyg. dryh. blotchyi. doughyj. wrinkledk. furrowedOther characteristics of faces, specially men's, include thevarious and varied growth of facial hair ranging from shortsideburns to the full-blooded and face-concealing beard withmoustache. There is no point in listing all the variations. Itshould suffice to note that these hirsute phenomena do exist,but that they, like hairstyles and colours, can change dramatic-ally overnight!Having acquired all this information about the face, how dowe make use of it? You may be surprised to learn that theanswer is contained in the earlier chapters ofthe book! To putit briefly all that we have to do is the following:1. Make a definite note of the name of the person.2. Examine his face very carefully noting the characteristicsthat have been enumerated in the preceding pages.3. Look for characteristics which are unusual, extra-ordinary, or unique.4. Mentally reconstruct the person's face, exaggerating inthe way that a caricaturist does these noteworthy features.5. Link, using exaggeration and movement etc, where possi-ble, these outstanding features to the name of the person.The best way for you to learn the application of thesemethods is to practise them, so following I have doubled thenumber of faces and names you were asked to remember inyour original test, have given suggestions for linking them,and then have rearranged the faces without names for you totest your new skills.'An impossible task!' you might say. But before you actuallytest yourself on these names let's look at each person separ-ately to see what kind ofassociations we can make between theface and the name.Mrs. Ruff. Mrs. Ruffhas a fairly distinct hairstyle which it isunlikely that a woman such as she would change. It doesn'ttake much imagination to change her hair into an Elizabethanruff—the frilled neck collar common to that age.Mr. Hind has enormous jowls! As a matter offact they looka little bit like a person's posterior! BeHind!Mr. Pickett. The outstanding feature of Mr. Pickett's faceis it's overall rectangular quality and its straight neck. Animage can conveniently be made using the type of placardthat people on strike who are picketing their employers carry.To make the image more complete, you might even imaginethe word 'picket' being written on the placard.Mr. Rolls is perhaps one of the easiest. His triple chinbulging in rolls beneath his face makes no other image neces-sary.Miss Shute. Attractive though she may be, Miss Shute hasone of those characteristically in-curved noses, a little similarMrs. Ruff Mr. HindMr. Pickett Mr. Rolls Miss Shute Mr SawyerMrs. Knapp Mr. CallisMr. Marshall Miss HammantMr. Dockerill Mrs. NashMr. Swallow Mrs. CirkellMr. Lynch Mrs. PaukowskiMr. Fieldwick Mr. RayMiss Sherriton Mr. NewellMrs. Carstair Mr. DombrowerMrs. Heyburn Miss Jazcoltto a certain famous comedian. We can exaggerate this variouslyimagining a giant coal-chute, or a fairground shoot-the-chute.Mr. Sawyer. The outstanding characteristic on this man'sface is his large, straight and shaggy eyebrow. With a quickmental twist we convert this into a large saw, the shaggysections of the eyebrow representing the teeth of the saw.Mrs. Knapp. Mrs. Knapp is noticeable for the fairly largebags beneath her eyes. Concentrate on this aspect and imaginethat these were caused by a lack of sleep. In other words theymight go away if she were more often able to take a nap.Mr. Marshall. Fairly obviously Mr. Marshall would benoticed for his large protruding ears. To link them with hisname is not as difficult as it might appear: Imagine that eachear is a gun holster!Mr. Callis. A number of features might be picked for Mr.Callis, but probably the best is his rough pock-marked skin.Our link here is the word 'callous', which refers to a hardenedor rough area on the body's surface.Miss Hammant. Two features should immediately strike youabout Miss Hammant. First her beefy, strong face, and secondher rather small nose. The caricature is easy: make the beefinto a large ham; make the small nose into an ant crawling overthe ham.Mr. Dockerill. Mr Dockerill is slightly more difficult thanMiss Hammant, but he is not impossible! To begin with he isa large man, which fits in with the general impression of adocker. Add to this his large eyes (like harbours !) and the firstpart of his name—Docker—is easily remembered. Furthermore he does look a little run down, many of his featurestending to either droop or sag. We thus arrive at 'ill' and thecomplete Dockerill.Mrs. Nash. One ofthe most noticeable characteristics ofMrs.Nash is her upper lip which is drawn back, leaving her upperfront teeth slightly uncovered. To remember her name weconcentrate on the teeth rather than on the lip, thinking ofthegnashing ofteeth.Mr. Swallow. Mr. Swallow is an ideal subject! For thosepeople to whom the word swallow immediately brings to mindimages ofeating or drinking he has a prominent adam's applewhich can be exaggerated with ease. For those who are moreinclined to ornithology his fine arched eyebrows look verymuch like a swallow in flight!Mrs. Cirkell. Again an easy one! With this face we need notbe concerned with particular characteristics—simply theoverall shape which is circular circle—Cirkell.Mr. Lynch. In remembering Mr. Lynch let us try a differentapproach. We will think first of a lynching, realising that itconcentrates on the neck! Next we will link this image with ourman. Mr. Lynch has a particularly thick neck so we imagine anespecially strong rope being needed to complete the job!Mrs. Paukowski. Of Mrs. Paukowski's major features, oneof the most outstanding is her large, sloping forehead. Toremember her name we convert this into an enormous ski-slope, and imagine (here we have to get really ridiculous, whichis good!) a poverty striken cow skiing or attempting to skidown the slope: poor-cow-ski!Mr. Fieldwick. Another person whose memory-feature isto be the forehead. Mr. Fieldwick's forehead is noticeable notfor its size or shape, but for the wrinkles and creases uponit. Imagine it therefore as a ploughed field. His tufty haircan be likened to a candle-wick. Afieldabove which there is awick.Mr. Ray. This young man is noticeable not so much for anyparticular feature, but for the general quality that emanatesfrom his face. It seems almost to glow. A quick mental triptakes us from 'glow' to 'gleam' to 'ray'.Miss Sheriton. Miss Sheriton is made even more attractivethan she would otherwise be by the large dimple in her chin.Think ofthe dimple as a large cherry, so large that it weighs aton. A slight slurring of the 'ch' gives us 'sh' Sheriton.Mr. Newell. As with Mrs. Paukowski Mr. Newell's memory-feature is his nose, although in his case we are interested in thefact that it is slightly shiny and flared at the nostril. The shinyquality can easily be interpreted as newness, and the flarednostril can be likened to a well.Mrs. Carstairs. Rather than attempting to combine twoimages here we will concentrate on Mrs. Carstairs eyes whichare noticeably round. The image is of a car's headlights. Weneed not imagine stairs, as the round eyes themselves stare. Inother words we imagine: car stares!Mr. Dombrower. This intelligent looking gentleman ischaracteristic ofthe 'intellectual' or 'highbrow' look because ofhis large, domed forehead or brow. The link is easy: dome-brow.Mrs. Heyburn. Mrs. Heyburn has lank, straight hair.Imagine it as cut hay, and then set the lot on fire!MissJazcolt. Miss Jazcolt has pouting lips which can quiteeasily be imagined playing an instrument such as the trumpet—jazz! She is also 'frisky' in appearance. just like a colt. MissJazzcolt.That completes our list of 24 names. Before proceeding tothe following pages in which you will be testing your memoryof these names, quickly run back over the list and the associa-tions, fixing them firmly in your mind.You should by now be quite an expert at rememberingnames and faces! Before this chapter comes to an end, how-ever, we shall quickly cover the memorisation of facts relatedto the names and faces we wish to remember.Now that you have basically grasped the link system andthe remembering of names and faces, this next step will bequite simple. All you have to do is to add another link to theface-name picture you already have.For example, if Mrs. Ruff were a typist, you would imagineeither: a typewriter within the Elizabethan ruff; typing on anElizabethan ruff; or a typewriter sitting on Mrs. Ruff's head!If Mr. Sawyer were a college professor you could imaginehim standing in front of his class sawing his desk or lecturn intwo!If Mr. Swallow were an apprentice plumber you couldimagine him swallowing his employer's tools, and so on!One other point about remembering people is the following:ifyou are certain that you will be meeting this person only onceand that you are not concerned with long-term memory, it isoften useful to use an outstanding item of clothing that theperson might be wearing. This method of course is no goodfor long-term memory, as the person may not be wearing thesame clothes next time.Another general pointer concerns names that are common,such as Smith and Jones. To remember people with nameslike these, establish a 'Smith-chain' and a 'Jones-chain' etc. Todo this pick a 'basic Smith' or Jones and use that person'sface as a link with any other person having the same name. Youwill find that the more people you have on the chain, theeasier remembering becomes.And finally, how did my professor perform his amazing feat?By now the answer should be fairly apparent: firstly he usedone of the basic list systems to remember the names in theproper order, obviously making extravagant associations withthe memory word and the name to be remembered. Thenumbers and addresses he remembered by a system withwhich I will be dealing in a later chapter. Once he had calledour names and we had identified ourselves, the rest was easy.He linked the names with the very motley collection offaces inthe class!