I sometimes (every few weeks) hear a pretty loud, high pitched sound. It eventually (within a minute) fades. No idea if that is normal or not, but it just occurred to me that it might not be.
I read at about 1100 WPM. I had no idea that people sounded out words in their heads until about two years ago, when I was speed reading an article about speed reading and realized I was speed reading. I am curious how much faster it is possible to go? Can anyone here go significantly faster? I want to know if it’s worth training further.
My memory of faces might be weird. The more familiar I am with a person, the less I can visualize what their face looks like. But, I CAN visually recall (pretty accurately) pictures of those same people. For example, I have no idea what my mom’s face looks like if I think of it in the abstract, but I have a screenshot that I took while we were talking on skype a few weeks ago, and I can visualize that quite well, including the glasses she was wearing, her hair, and the quality of the webcam image.
I have VERY few memories of my life before I was 11. Probably 30. And no memories of my time before I was 6. Consequently I am quite interested in life logging :)
Once I passed out while I was getting a small amount of blood drawn. When I woke up, it felt like literally ten thousand years had passed. I still feel as if there was a gap there (This is not related to the above however, I’ve always had about the same small number of memories of childhood). That happened when I was about 17, I am 27 now.
The older I get, the slower time seems to go. I think this is partly environmental and NOT mental in that it also corresponds to less structure (the older I’ve gotten, the less structured my life has become to the point where now I am completely self-directed all day every day)
Sounds like tinnitus. (I have this,
but less often than you, and I wouldn’t describe it as loud. A friend of mine
has it constantly since he went to a loud rock concert as a boy.)
I have VERY few memories of my life before I was 11.
Wow.
When I was 8 or so I thought it was strange that I didn’t have any memories
from before I was about 4. Based on that, my interest in science and space
travel, and my general weirdness, I decided that I was probably a space alien
changeling. (Note: I no longer think this.)
When I was 8 or so I thought it was strange that I didn’t have any memories from before I was about 4. Based on that, my interest in science and space travel, and my general weirdness, I decided that I was probably a space alien changeling. (Note: I no longer think this.)
I read at about 1100 WPM. I had no idea that people sounded out words in their heads until about two years ago, when I was speed reading an article about speed reading and realized I was speed reading. I am curious how much faster it is possible to go? Can anyone here go significantly faster? I want to know if it’s worth training further.
I talked to a person a few months ago who mentioned that her reading speed decreased noticeably from its very high starting point when she took speed reading lessons. It’s only one data point, but it may be worth keeping in mind if you’re thinking of training your ability.
How meaningful is it to assign a single number to your reading speed anyway? I would estimate that mine varies by at least a factor of ten or so depending on what I’m reading (I might top 1100 WPM at the high end, but only for very basic text.)
her reading speed decreased noticeably from its very high starting point when she took speed reading lessons
I experienced a visceral feeling of terror when reading this. I wasn’t aware that just training could hurt innate skills (I assumed it required some sort of crushing corporate environment).
It’s not that meaningful to assign a single number, true. I gave my speed for “normal” text—comments, blogs, newspaper articles, “light” books (business/best-sellers), fiction (if I have to/feel like reading it quickly). When I read scientific papers, the speed drops considerably until I am used to the terms used in the field.
Thanks a lot for that comment though, I have less incentive to try training it further now… I am pretty surprised that anything could decrease significantly from trying to train it though. I would suspect other effects at work (like now she is reading a different kind of text, or had previously never measured herself, or the training was nonsense, etc). Any idea what caused the decrease?
If you naturally develop a technique, you may not be consciously aware of it at all. But take some training, and all of a sudden your conscious brain is butting in going “this is the way to do it”.
And, well, your CPU is going to be less efficient than a well-optimised RPU (Reading Processing Unit)
I can only speculate, but I would guess that the techniques she was taught in the speed reading class were less efficient than whatever she was already doing without thinking about it, so she regressed towards the average speed for a person with speed reading training, which was lower than where she started. She said that her reading speed decreased noticeably while reading similar text in similar situations, although of course it’s possible that she was experiencing selective perception.
Time seems to go faster the older I get, and from what I’ve heard, that goes for most people. My father is 85, and he says the acceleration just continues. I’d hoped the pace would stabilize, but apparently it doesn’t. :(
For me, the acceleration continued up to maybe age 20-23 or so, after which things have gotten really slow. Still not as slow as in early elementary school, say. But yesterday feels like a long time ago, I hardly even remember last week, and events that I know happened a year ago feel more like 2-3 years away. Events 2-3 years ago feel like they are memories belonging to another person.
I have VERY few memories of my life before I was 11. Probably 30. And no memories of my time before I was 6. Consequently I am quite interested in life logging :)
I’m unusual in that I really think I remember very early moments. My earliest memories aren’t of me being a kid, but of just, out of the blue, seeing grainy black/white static.
I sometimes (every few weeks) hear a pretty loud, high pitched sound. It eventually (within a minute) fades. No idea if that is normal or not, but it just occurred to me that it might not be.
I read at about 1100 WPM. I had no idea that people sounded out words in their heads until about two years ago, when I was speed reading an article about speed reading and realized I was speed reading. I am curious how much faster it is possible to go? Can anyone here go significantly faster? I want to know if it’s worth training further.
My memory of faces might be weird. The more familiar I am with a person, the less I can visualize what their face looks like. But, I CAN visually recall (pretty accurately) pictures of those same people. For example, I have no idea what my mom’s face looks like if I think of it in the abstract, but I have a screenshot that I took while we were talking on skype a few weeks ago, and I can visualize that quite well, including the glasses she was wearing, her hair, and the quality of the webcam image.
I have VERY few memories of my life before I was 11. Probably 30. And no memories of my time before I was 6. Consequently I am quite interested in life logging :)
Once I passed out while I was getting a small amount of blood drawn. When I woke up, it felt like literally ten thousand years had passed. I still feel as if there was a gap there (This is not related to the above however, I’ve always had about the same small number of memories of childhood). That happened when I was about 17, I am 27 now.
The older I get, the slower time seems to go. I think this is partly environmental and NOT mental in that it also corresponds to less structure (the older I’ve gotten, the less structured my life has become to the point where now I am completely self-directed all day every day)
Sounds like tinnitus. (I have this, but less often than you, and I wouldn’t describe it as loud. A friend of mine has it constantly since he went to a loud rock concert as a boy.)
Wow.
When I was 8 or so I thought it was strange that I didn’t have any memories from before I was about 4. Based on that, my interest in science and space travel, and my general weirdness, I decided that I was probably a space alien changeling. (Note: I no longer think this.)
I have upvoted you for being cute.
(^_^)
.
Yup, definitely tinnitus, thanks! My hearing isn’t that great, so this is probably related.
I talked to a person a few months ago who mentioned that her reading speed decreased noticeably from its very high starting point when she took speed reading lessons. It’s only one data point, but it may be worth keeping in mind if you’re thinking of training your ability.
How meaningful is it to assign a single number to your reading speed anyway? I would estimate that mine varies by at least a factor of ten or so depending on what I’m reading (I might top 1100 WPM at the high end, but only for very basic text.)
I experienced a visceral feeling of terror when reading this. I wasn’t aware that just training could hurt innate skills (I assumed it required some sort of crushing corporate environment).
It’s not that meaningful to assign a single number, true. I gave my speed for “normal” text—comments, blogs, newspaper articles, “light” books (business/best-sellers), fiction (if I have to/feel like reading it quickly). When I read scientific papers, the speed drops considerably until I am used to the terms used in the field.
Thanks a lot for that comment though, I have less incentive to try training it further now… I am pretty surprised that anything could decrease significantly from trying to train it though. I would suspect other effects at work (like now she is reading a different kind of text, or had previously never measured herself, or the training was nonsense, etc). Any idea what caused the decrease?
One possible explanation is simply awareness.
If you naturally develop a technique, you may not be consciously aware of it at all. But take some training, and all of a sudden your conscious brain is butting in going “this is the way to do it”.
And, well, your CPU is going to be less efficient than a well-optimised RPU (Reading Processing Unit)
I can only speculate, but I would guess that the techniques she was taught in the speed reading class were less efficient than whatever she was already doing without thinking about it, so she regressed towards the average speed for a person with speed reading training, which was lower than where she started. She said that her reading speed decreased noticeably while reading similar text in similar situations, although of course it’s possible that she was experiencing selective perception.
.
Time seems to go faster the older I get, and from what I’ve heard, that goes for most people. My father is 85, and he says the acceleration just continues. I’d hoped the pace would stabilize, but apparently it doesn’t. :(
For me, the acceleration continued up to maybe age 20-23 or so, after which things have gotten really slow. Still not as slow as in early elementary school, say. But yesterday feels like a long time ago, I hardly even remember last week, and events that I know happened a year ago feel more like 2-3 years away. Events 2-3 years ago feel like they are memories belonging to another person.
I’m unusual in that I really think I remember very early moments. My earliest memories aren’t of me being a kid, but of just, out of the blue, seeing grainy black/white static.