Hearing may work better for some people, but for some, like me, reading works much better—and faster. Also: Humans Who Are Not Concentrating Are Not General Intelligences—if you just passively absorb audio, then it better be aligned with your values (corollary: Also applies to music).
This may sound critical, but it is intended in the spirit of the Rule of Equal and Opposite Advice. I upvoted this because there is a lot of good advice, and there are people who need to hear it.
Some thoughts on the related topic of video can be found in this thread.
The speed issue is the #1 factor stopping me from trying audiobooks. A book might take me 4-8 hours to read but the internet tells me audio is 2-3x slower. I have a lot of other prejudices against audiobooks (flipping / skimming less easy, less focus on the task etc) but that’s the main one.
I largely agree, but most apps will let you listen to things at faster speeds if you want to (my max speed is 1.25x − 1.5x depending on content dryness though).
Still makes sense if you listen when walking or driving when you couldn’t read a book anyway. I mostly listen to podcasts instead of audiobooks though, a book is a really long commitment compared to a podcast episode.
Couldnt agree more. I have no patience for audio and video. Too slow. Might watch instructional on video if I cant find decent manual. Not much into conferences either—just let me see the papers.
How can you read 2-3x faster than a person speaks (1x)? Do you mean that when you “read” you just skim most of the time and really read only the parts you are interested in?
As others mention, most readers allow you to increase the speed of the the audio. Up to 2x, for light content and with headphones is usually alright if you can concentrate on the audio. Faster than that, I find it really difficult to follow, so you are probably still faster.
How can you read 2-3x faster than a person speaks (1x)?
From Wikipedia:
Subvocalization readers (Mental readers) generally read at approximately 250 words per minute, auditory readers at approximately 450 words per minute and visual readers at approximately 700 words per minute. Proficient readers are able to read 280–350 wpm without compromising comprehension.
Conversational speech is generally 100 to 180wpm, so even subvocalizing readers already have a leg up. “Proficient” readers by Wikipedia’s definition are easily in the 2-3x range over this, and visual readers even more so.
Hearing may work better for some people, but for some, like me, reading works much better—and faster. Also: Humans Who Are Not Concentrating Are Not General Intelligences—if you just passively absorb audio, then it better be aligned with your values (corollary: Also applies to music).
This may sound critical, but it is intended in the spirit of the Rule of Equal and Opposite Advice. I upvoted this because there is a lot of good advice, and there are people who need to hear it.
Some thoughts on the related topic of video can be found in this thread.
The speed issue is the #1 factor stopping me from trying audiobooks. A book might take me 4-8 hours to read but the internet tells me audio is 2-3x slower. I have a lot of other prejudices against audiobooks (flipping / skimming less easy, less focus on the task etc) but that’s the main one.
I largely agree, but most apps will let you listen to things at faster speeds if you want to (my max speed is 1.25x − 1.5x depending on content dryness though).
Still makes sense if you listen when walking or driving when you couldn’t read a book anyway. I mostly listen to podcasts instead of audiobooks though, a book is a really long commitment compared to a podcast episode.
Couldnt agree more. I have no patience for audio and video. Too slow. Might watch instructional on video if I cant find decent manual. Not much into conferences either—just let me see the papers.
How can you read 2-3x faster than a person speaks (1x)? Do you mean that when you “read” you just skim most of the time and really read only the parts you are interested in?
As others mention, most readers allow you to increase the speed of the the audio. Up to 2x, for light content and with headphones is usually alright if you can concentrate on the audio. Faster than that, I find it really difficult to follow, so you are probably still faster.
From Wikipedia:
Conversational speech is generally 100 to 180wpm, so even subvocalizing readers already have a leg up. “Proficient” readers by Wikipedia’s definition are easily in the 2-3x range over this, and visual readers even more so.