How To Increase Your Memory Dramatically Using The Chunking Method.

At the Cambridge University, a basic study and experiment to research memorization skills was
conducted.
During what seemed a routine series of trials, one participant stumbled upon what would come to be a
breakthrough in the field. It came to revolutionize how short term and long term memory storage was
viewed by neuroscience and psychologist the world over.
Dr. Daniel Bor, the author of The Ravenous Brain, who oversaw the study, describes how an average
student, who had a passion for track and field, used his basic intelligence and memorization skills,
along with his love of running to improve his ability to memorize things.
The Study and The Birth of Chunking
Like any other experiment, it began with a very clinical and formulaic procedure. The test subject was
given a set of random numbers and his task was to repeat the numbers back to the scientists.
Whenever he got the numbers right he was given more numbers on the next test, and when he go them
wrong, he was given less. The testing went on for an hour each day, four days a week, for over two
years.
When he got up to the point of being able to recount seven figures at a time, the test subject began to
get noticeably bored with the experiment. He wanted to be challenged, and so took to trying as hard as
he could to improve his results.
At the end of the 20 months during the experiment, he was able to memorize up to 80 figure sequences.
To quote Dr. Bor when asked how the student was doing at the end of the experiment, If seven friends
in turn rapidly told him their phone numbers, he could calmly wait until the last digit was spoken and
then, from memory, key all seven friends' numbers into his phone's contact list without error.
What The Test Subject Had Discovered
What the test subject had discovered was that by linking new information with things he was already
familiar with and had memorized before, he could easily retain and recall great quantities of new
information.
In the case study, the subject loved track and field, and was especially familiar with running records.
What he would do was turn the new sequences of random numbers into track times inside his head.
In other words, he would take these small figures and create larger chunks of information by creating a
larger picture of information to go with them.
Instead of them being an obscure random number that could easily be forgotten, he now had the image
of a track record being set to them, something his brain could easily remember.
So, in a nut shell, the test subject discovered chunking- where you compress, or chunk, information

down into an easier to remember block of information.

It is often used with other memorization techniques like memory palaces, or visualization techniques,
to help remind yourself of things, versus trying to memorize large lists of things.
Ways You Can Use Chunking
As mentioned, chunking can actually be achieved by a variety of methods. It is a basic concept behind
many memorization techniques. The principle is that you use something familiar to help you remember
something new.
Your mind does not like to be bored, and random bits of information can easily be lost. However, when
you take random bits of information and combine them with things you already are familiar with, or
enjoy, or chunk them together, then it easier to remember them.
Chunk memorization is all about breaking up information and condensing large amounts into smaller
segments that are easier to keep in your shorter term memory, but that also link to information in your
long term memory.
It is important to keep in mind that your brain has different levels of memory storage. In short term, the
capacity is very limited, and anything not instantly recalled or classed as important is dumped.
With chunking, you are quickly compiling a lot of information, more than you normally store in short
term, and linking it to what you normally store in long term memory. In essence, with practice, you are
working to expand your short term capacity by regularly chunking short term items with long term.
Mnemonic Memorization
While it may have a peculiar sounding name, (pronounced knee-mon-ick), mnemonic memorization is
something many school children are taught about, especially in science class.
The most famous example is when learning to memorize the names and order of the planets and dwarf
planets in the solar system. Many kids are taught the saying; My Very Energetic Mother Just Served
Us Nine Pizzas.
Each of the first letters in the phrase stands for the first letter of a planet and the words also form the
correct order from the sun that each planet is found.
By making up fun phrases that are easy to memorize and using association, people can chunk together
much larger bits of information, while only needing to try and memorize smaller phrases.
Grouping and Patterns
Chunking also works when you sort information and memorize it in groups, or look for patterns. Some
people find it is easier to memorize information in lots of a certain number, such as pairs, or three at a
time.
For example, instead of trying to memorize ten facts at a time, it may be better to chunk them down

into five sets of two facts. Another way to chunk down the same list of ten facts would be to break
them into two sets, one with the list of odd numbered facts and one with the even numbers.
Other patterns can be any that you are able to form out of random information that you are given. One
example is the difference between trying to remember the random number 19871234324, or the same
number broken into chunks: 1-987-123-4324 and turned into an internal phone number.
When you can make something random into something you can relate to, you can more easily
remember it.
Create Meaningful Visualizations
Dr. Bor's work at Cambridge was only one small part of work that went into his book, The Ravenous
Brain. He goes on to elaborate that chunking is just a stepping stone towards unlocking your brain's
full potential.
By forming connections between things that are not obviously connected, you force your mind to use
its creative reasoning, which can not only foster a stronger sense of imagination, it can also inspire
intellectual growth as well.
A healthy mind is one that is always being prompted to grow, challenged and engaged.
By using chunking techniques to memorize new information on a regular basis, you are doing more
than expanding your short term memory, you are creating meaningful visualizations that are
stimulating areas of your brain that are vital to maintaining good neural health.