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Never drink coffee after 4pm unless you routinely stay up into the wee hours of the morning. Assuming a bedtime of 10-11pm and 8 hours of sleep this is the latest you can drink it and maintain a normal sleep pattern. You sound like you could benefit from reading this article on sleep. It's rather lengthy but contains a lot of good advice.

tech has been screwing up education ever since reading and writing took the place of memorization.

It's a good thing, then, that tech can fix that again.

It was a Russian Inwention. (:-)
http://www.supermemo.com/articles/power.htm
Dr. Piotr A. Wozniak (Actually he's Polish)

The lack of a spaced repetition-algorithm in Moodle--or any other course management system, such as Blackboard or Sakai--is a such a glaring omission that I wonder why no one has done it. SuperMemo, a Windows program written in Delphi, remains the best spaced repetition system for memorization despite an idiosyncratic user interface. Piotr Wozniak, the developer of SuperMemo, used it to learn English; an article in Wired mentions that Wozniak speaks perfect English despite never having set foot in an English-speaking country. In addition to SuperMemo, there are two open source spaced-repetition systems: Anki and Mnemosyne. But the algorithms have yet to be incorporated into online learning systems.

An extensive literature attests to the efficacy of spaced repetition algorithms, especially for learning language. I've used SuperMemo to make quick work of memorizing the FCC question pools for the General and Extra class amateur radio examinations. In fact, the program was so efficient that I was left with hardly any sense of accomplishment having used it to pass the exams.

The need for memorization algorithms is so obvious (I repeat myself) that I'm tempted to write a spaced-repetition plugin for Moodle myself.

Ah, the life of a night owl.

I know it sounds weird, but you might try keeping a sleep journal. It could help you collect data and maybe see what's going on. I just started using a program called SleepChart. Seems like it will take a long time to gather enough data, but maybe it will be helpful.

IANAD or anything, though. Just someone else who isn't a morning person.

Hey everybody,

thank you very much for your contributions. I really appreciate the time you spend to discuss that question.
Some clarification:

• My kids are 10 and go to the Catholic High Primary School in Singapore, Primary 4 level.
• They speak Chinese to their grand parents who don't speak English.
• What they are learning is "higher Chinese" (AFAIK a term not used outside the Singaporean educational system) that is supposed to put them on equal footing with native speakers on university level at end of Secondary 4.
• They learn Chinese since Kindergarten.

So we are beyond the stage of the first 500 chars -- and it is still a chore. Therefor I was asking.
Summing up responses so far (in no particular order):

• Flash cards (the physical thing)
• Rosetta Stone
• Anki
• Nciku
• Buzan
• Dating Chinese girls (I like that one)
• Mnemosyne
• Zon (the MMO to learn Chinese while playing) read a review
• Found some nice books: Fun with Chinese Characters
• iFlash for Mac (I wonder is there a Linux or OLPC version too)
• PinYin Info
• ByKi
• Zhong Wen (for unaware readers: that means Chinese in PinYin notation)
• WenLin Software
• SuperMemo (with a comparison to Anki and a store to buy Chinese content
• VeryPracticalChinese (found via this blog
• Skritter
• I found ChinesePod. Not sure what to make of it
• Lao Shi (Chinese for "Teacher") - OpenSource

Again, thx a lot! (and sorry for the caveman English -- don't get it? Read the comments)

I'm amazed no one has mentioned SuperMemo. It's based on an actual scientific theory of how to optimize the value of memorization effort. There's a Chinese character library for it already.

Mnemosyne, Anki, and SuperMemo are great learning systems. Although they are frequently used for learning a language, they can be used to memorize almost anything. Mnemosyne is simple, free, and opensource. SuperMemo is complex. I have not used Anki.

There is a great children's book, "The Chinese word for Horse and other stories" by John Lewis ( http://www.librarything.com/work/1564984 )which shows the structure of some (very few) Chinese characters. (Charles E. Tuttle co. published a small paperback that illustrated some basic Kanji in the same way, but I can't find my copy and I can't remember the name.) Look for a Chinese calligraphy guide that describes the meaning of the radicals as derived from pictures and you will be well on your way to binding the character with the meaning.

It can take as much as 15 years for something to go from short-term memory to long-term memory. (See "Brain Rules" by John Medina http://brainrules.net/ ) A program that helps bridge the gap between initial learning and structured recall is SuperMemo http://www.supermemo.com/ . Ignore the cruddy website and look at the idea behind it and the history.

Flashcards are good, too.

Major practice for writing Chinese is provided in "copy sheets" which can be found at Chinese shops that sell calligraphy supplies and school supplies. They have blocks with faint outlines of Chinese characters and you practice your calligraphy by tracing the character with your brush tip.

You might find "A practical English-Chinese Pronouncing Dictionary" by Janey Chen http://www.amazon.com/Practical-English-Chinese-Pronouncing-Dictionary-Language/dp/0804818770 . This book give an International Phonetics pronunciation (both Mandarin and Cantonese) next to the Chinese words. This is VERY important: One slight change in sound utterance and you've said something different from what you intended!

When learning Chinese, learn some patterns. I suggest "Chiang's Practical Chinese Language Patterns" http://www.amazon.com/Chiangs-Practical-Language-Patterns-Self-Learners/dp/9579727236 , "Practical Chinese Reader" (and the associated workbooks) http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0887271871/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_2?pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=9579727236&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=14FXWRGNRW203JQ3QYZC , and an advanced monograph: http://www.eric.ed.gov/ERICWebPortal/custom/portlets/recordDetails/detailmini.jsp?_nfpb=true&_&ERICExtSearch_SearchValue_0=ED280308&ERICExtSearch_SearchType_0=no&accno=ED280308 .

Another resource, associating the sound with the character by typing it, can be found here: http://vpc-mandarin.blogspot.com/2009/04/how-and-why-to-write-chinese-by-typing.html

My ex-girlfriend and I used to watch a lot of Chinese movies together with the captioning on. The right channel would be Cantonese and the left channel would be Mandarin and the characters would change color as the actors pronounced them. You can find a switch to change the audio channel in most Chinese video stores. This is a good way to associate the sound visually with the language. Cartoons are great for kids and beginning adults because the language is syntactically correct but not too complicated. (Watch out though!; Jackie Chan has lousy Mandarin pronunciation and Zhang Ziyi has lousy Cantonese pronunciation.)

Side note: Japanese Kanji are derived from Chinese characters, b

Yeah. Some methods do work. Wired published a lengthy article earlier this year about how to remember everything. Apparently, a Polish guy named Piotr Wozniak sells a program called SuperMemo that does the trick.

Memory training software. Supposedly backed by some research that optimizes the time spent using the software by testing facts at optimal times instead of excessive repetitions.

http://www.supermemo.com/

You should have a talk with this guy, he affectionately mocks polyphasic sleepers and says polyphasic sleep is detrimental.

http://www.supermemo.com/articles/polyphasic.htm

SuperMemo is an interesting software package that helps with memorization and even "reading thousands of web pages at once." Seriously. To my memory, the story goes something like this: Piotr Wozniak was studying molecular biology in Poland and realized that the amount of information he had to consume was way above the limits of what he was going to achieve with the methods he was using to study. Mainly concerned about his uptake of tens of thousands of English words, he began tracking his own memory, recall, experiences, etc. and devised his own spaced repetition algorithm which is now encoded into the freely available software on the site (well, not all of it is free).

Me, well. I prefer to "read 'thousands' of web pages at once" via Opera but the literal bookmarking, highlighting and the ability to fork pages into the equivalent of flash cards is quite interesting.

* Memorizing vocabulary
* Another post
* One here and here re: learning a language in the digital age.

Read entry #1 for the dangers, and the antidote:
http://www.supermemo.com/english/news.htm

http://www.supermemo.com/articles/polyphasic.htm

Don't screw around with your sleep people!

Read entry #1 for the dangers, and the antidote:
http://www.supermemo.com/english/news.htm

http://www.supermemo.com/articles/polyphasic.htm

Don't screw around with your sleep people!

Pimsleur -> It will make you feel like you're making progress and doesn't require a lot of motivation (just do it in the car).

Platiquemos -> I didn't see that anyone mentioned this one. It is an upgrade of the FSI course. I've done the FSI for French and it is fabulous and much much more complete than any other courses I have seen. I haven't done Platiquemos but I have every confidence it's even better than the original. See the site for comparisons with Pimsleur and Rosetta Stone (they're a little snide but pretty accurate). It's even cheaper than Pimsleur and R.S. yet is better. See http://language.bin.org/FXM/ for more language-learning tips and a testimonial of the FSI course.

Spanish for Reading -> Again, I have not done this for Spanish but there is a French version by the same author and it changed my language-learning life! You must try this book! I thought I didn't care about reading before, but it helps with speaking too.

Then, use SuperMemo for memorizing vocabulary and maybe read Barry Farber's How to Learn any Language for some inspiration and tips. And do what everyone else said. :) (TV, talking to people, etc.) If you can watch DVDs in Spanish (not dubbed--originally Spanish audio) with Spanish subtitles that is also very helpful.

I have a lot more to say about this but these would be what I would start with. :)

-MB (sd.t.mkb@spamgourmet.com)

If you want to learn and retain extensive vocabulary, you're going to have to repeatedly test yourself on it (relying on "real life" conversation will not work, as some words are far too rare), so it makes sense to optimize the scheduling of that learning according to what we know about memory formation.

The most effective software for this purpose is SuperMemo, but it is non-free, so you may instead want to use the slightly inferior, but still effective Memaid. I have found memaid very useful for teaching myself kanji. Even if you don't decide on using Supermemo or Memaid, you should definitely read the SuperMemo website, as it contains a wealth of information on effective memorization. Both these programs are most effective if you can use them every day, but it does not have to take much of your time each day.

Keep that up every year as mandatory courses along with the other mandatory courses, and there won't be educational problems.

= 9J =

I will begin by making the assumption that you know what you are asking for, and that whatever your mothers condition you already know that you need memory software. In my experience there are two good systems for this. The first is SuperMemo. SuperMemo is proprietary but it not expensive and it is good for three main reasons.

1. It tracks progress and has sophisticated algorithums for determining the display of memory items (which is the main variable in how well these programs work)
2. It has a relatively simple import format so that you can easily make your own courses. This is a great way to relearn phone numbers/names/accounting info
3. It has a Huge library of both free and not free memory courses. This is really good if you want to learn something new.

In a shameless plug I wrote a CISSP course for supermemo.

However, despite my obvious bias I actually prefer the FLOSS alternative which is Pauker. Pauker is java and works on windows, the only problem is that it does not have a goog library of courses. I wrote a perl script which will convert SuperMemo courses to Pauker, contact me if you would like it.

HTH
Fred Trotter

Ughh. What's the hardest thing about learning Japanese? Kanji. Try looking up 1 character a sentence while reading and see how quickly you become "lazy". Here are some recomendations: Some version of supermemo to help them memorize/study kanji and vocab. Or Stackz, KingKanji, learnAlphabets, etc. Use a version on a PDA and they can/will study on the train, on line at the bank, etc. Get a Japanese model so it'll have handwriting recognition, and you have a character dictionary that'll beat Halpern &/or Nelson hands down. There's a thread on this at Jim Breen's site. And, lastly, for intermediate learning, get them reading news with my own rikai, or better yet, finish the moji/rikai plugin for mozilla!

The best way to learn masses of vocabulary at a rapid pace: Supermemo http://www.supermemo.com/.
Another one I rely on: Pauker http://pauker.sourceforge.net/

You could create some Japanese vocabulary bundles tailored to Readings and Audios you have.

Check http://antimoon.com/ for some great advice on general approaches, and why traditional classroom instruction fails.

As an aside, I've always thought that the addition of another course or subject would have benefited the liberal arts study. As strange as this may sound, I believe that most students who enter college would benefit from a very practical four year course of how to study. A series of courses that would help students to the gain most from the other courses. Perhaps, the course could even focus on the much neglected skill of memorization. Stranger is that this is a subject not taught in public elementary or high-schools (they may be taught in private prepatory schools, though I wouldn't know). This is all fantasy of course, as people generally think they don't require assistance in learning. Sadly, most grades reflect the opposite.

I recently found a free online book from MIT Press which mentions some of your concerns in the book's preface. I thought you, and others with similar concerns would be interested in reading How to Design Programs: An Introduction to Computing and Programming.

Here's an excerpt from the Preface:

" Many professions require some form of computer programming. Accountants program spreadsheets and word processors; photographers program photo editors; musicians program synthesizers; and professional programmers instruct plain computers. Programming has become a required skill.

Yet programming is more than just a vocational skill. Indeed, good programming is a fun activity, a creative outlet, and a way to express abstract ideas in a tangible form. And designing programs teaches a variety of skills that are important in all kinds of professions: critical reading, analytical thinking, creative synthesis, and attention to detail.

We therefore believe that the study of program design deserves the same central role in general education as mathematics and English. Or, put more succinctly, everyone should learn how to design programs.

On one hand, program design teaches the same analytical skills as mathematics. But, unlike mathematics, working with programs is an active approach to learning. Interacting with software provides immediate feedback and thus leads to exploration, experimentation, and self-evaluation. Furthermore, designing programs produces useful and fun things, which vastly increases the sense of accomplishment when compared to drill exercises in mathematics. On the other hand, program design teaches the same analytical reading and writing skills as English. Even the smallest programming tasks are formulated as word problems. Without critical reading skills, a student cannot design programs that match the specification. Conversely, good program design methods force a student to articulate thoughts about programs in proper English.

This book is the first book on programming as the core subject of a liberal arts education. Its main focus is the design process tha

As an aside, I've always thought that the addition of another course or subject would have benefited the liberal arts study. As strange as this may sound, I believe that most students who enter college would benefit from a very practical four year course of how to study. A series of courses that would help students to the gain most from the other courses. Perhaps, the course could even focus on the much neglected skill of memorization. Stranger is that this is a subject not taught in public elementary or high-schools (they may be taught in private prepatory schools, though I wouldn't know). This is all fantasy of course, as people generally think they don't require assistance in learning. Sadly, most grades reflect the opposite.

I recently found a free online book from MIT Press which mentions some of your concerns in the book's preface. I thought you, and others with similar concerns would be interested in reading How to Design Programs: An Introduction to Computing and Programming.

Here's an excerpt from the Preface:

" Many professions require some form of computer programming. Accountants program spreadsheets and word processors; photographers program photo editors; musicians program synthesizers; and professional programmers instruct plain computers. Programming has become a required skill.

Yet programming is more than just a vocational skill. Indeed, good programming is a fun activity, a creative outlet, and a way to express abstract ideas in a tangible form. And designing programs teaches a variety of skills that are important in all kinds of professions: critical reading, analytical thinking, creative synthesis, and attention to detail.

We therefore believe that the study of program design deserves the same central role in general education as mathematics and English. Or, put more succinctly, everyone should learn how to design programs.

On one hand, program design teaches the same analytical skills as mathematics. But, unlike mathematics, working with programs is an active approach to learning. Interacting with software provides immediate feedback and thus leads to exploration, experimentation, and self-evaluation. Furthermore, designing programs produces useful and fun things, which vastly increases the sense of accomplishment when compared to drill exercises in mathematics. On the other hand, program design teaches the same analytical reading and writing skills as English. Even the smallest programming tasks are formulated as word problems. Without critical reading skills, a student cannot design programs that match the specification. Conversely, good program design methods force a student to articulate thoughts about programs in proper English.

This book is the first book on programming as the core subject of a liberal arts education. Its main focus is the design process tha

A program that generates such sounds is Brain Wave Generator. It is Windows shareware, but the FAQ on the website says it runs on Wine.

On another note, has anyone tried SuperMemo? This is a software flashcard program. I like the concept behind it, and even bought the software. But the user interface is so horrible that I can't stand to use it. Are there any better alternatives?