Ultralearning

Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything
 (Foer), 174
multitasking, 81
Naifeh, Steven, 199
Nemitrmansuk, Pakorn, 156
Newton, Isaac, 51
noise, signal vs., 148–49, 152
outcome feedback, 141–43
overlearning, 104–5, 170–72
pattern recognition, 182–83, 184
Pavlina, Steve, 21
photography, x–xi, xii
physics, 178, 180, 181, 182
Picasso, Pablo, 197
Pike, Kenneth, 54
Pimsleur, 165
pixel art, 13–14, 117
planning, allotting time for, 66–68
play, in learning, 243–44
Polgár, Judit, 233–49
chess as obsession of, 238
chess education of, 235–38
Kasparov's first match with, 234–35
Kasparov's rematch with, 238–39
Polgár, Klára, 236, 237
Polgár, László, 237, 242
coercive learning opposed by, 244
daughters' chess education as focus of, 236–37, 243
daughters' general education and, 237
educational strategy of, 242–49
genius as viewed by, 236, 239–40
play emphasized by, 243–44
positive reinforcement practiced by, 244
sexism opposed by, 237–38

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ultralearning principles used by, 245–49
Polgár, Zsófia, 236, 238
chess education of, 237
Polgár, Zsuzsa, 236, 237, 238
chess education of, 237
Pomodoro Technique, 76, 77
Poor Richard’s Almanack
 (Franklin), 106, 108–9
Portrait Drawing Challenge, 265
positive reinforcement, 244
praise, negative impact of, 138–39
prerequisite chaining, 116–17
problem solving:
concrete examples in, 189–90
not giving up on, 185–86
pattern recognition in, 182–83, 184
principles-first approach to, 182, 183–84
proving and, 186–87
proceduralizations, 167–70
procedures, in metalearning, 62–63
processing, levels of, 189–90
procrastinating, 73–77
causes of, 74
self-recognition of, 74–75
tactics for combating, 75–77
proving, developing understanding through, 186–88
public speaking, ultralearning and, 41–46
Putnam Mathematics Competition, 178
Pythagorean Theorem, 187
questions, importance of asking, 190–91
Raise a Genius!
 (Polgár), 240, 242
Ramanujan, Srinivasa, 119–21, 123, 133
Rappard, Anthon van, 201, 206
rate-determining steps, 109–11, 112, 113
drill and, 110–11
recall, free (active), 121–23, 125, 131, 157, 166, 176
Reddit, 16
reference groups, ultralearning and, 252–53
regionalization, 28–29
remembering, 
see
 retention; retrieval
research:
allotting time for, 66–68
for ultralearning projects, 217–19
resources, choosing, 218
retention (ultralearning principle), 48, 153–76, 223, 248
decay over time of, 160–61
difficulty of, 159–63
false memories and, 163
interference and, 161–62
lost cues and, 162–63

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mechanisms for, 163–75
mnemonics and, 172–75
overlearning and, 170–72
proceduralization in, 167–70
spacing and, 164–65
retrieval (ultralearning principle), 48, 119–34, 223, 247–48
closed-book tactic in, 132–33
desirable difficulty in, 125–26
directness and, 128–29
feedback and, 147
flash cards and, 130
forward-testing effect in, 126–27
free (active) recall and, 121–22, 131, 157, 166, 176
maximizing efficiency in, 127–28
question-book technique in, 131–32
self-generated challenges in, 132
Revit, 89
Richards, Nigel, 153–59, 164, 166, 176
Rock, Chris, 135–36, 140, 143
Royal Astronomical Society, 71
Ruiz-Primo, Maria Araceli, 144
schedules, 76–77
Scrabble:
French-language version of, 153–54
rules and strategies of, 154–56
self-confidence:
competition and, 244, 251–53
learning and, xiv, 256
self-education:
directness and, 90
intense, 
see
 ultralearning, ultralearners
of van Gogh, 200–203, 204–5, 206
self-testing, 121–23
feedback and, 123
see also
 retrieval
Shelley, Mary, 216
Short, Nigel, 234
signal, noise vs., 148–49, 152
skill polarization, 28
skill sets, acquiring and upgrading of, 88–90
Smalley, Susan, 83
Smith, Gregory White, 199
Socratic method, 108
Somerville, Mary, 70–73, 77, 85, 86
spaced-repetition systems (SRS), 11, 165–66, 175
spacing, retention and, 164–65
Spectator
, 107–8
Stardew Valley
 (video game), 15
subject matter, mastery of, 100–101

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Sujjayakorn, Panupol, 156
Synopsis of Elementary Results in Pure and Applied Mathematics, A
 (Carr), 121, 123
Tal, Mikhail, 234
talent, ultralearning and, 34–37
Tamu (username), 22
Tao, Terence, 34–35
task complexity, arousal and, 83–85
technology:
learning and, 5, 29–32
work and, 28–29
10 Percent Rule, 66–67, 68
Tersteeg, H. G., 198
Thorndike, Edward, 95–96
time slicing, 114–15
Toastmasters International, 42–45
topics, choosing of, 217–18
Toulouse-Lautrec, Henri de, 198
Traité de mécanique céleste
 (Laplace), 71, 72
transfer, 94–99
directness and, 97–101
failure of traditional education to achieve, 94–97
Tyson, Mike, 135
ultralearning, ultralearners, 9, 21
alternatives to, 228–32
careers and, 
see
 careers, ultralearning and
children and, 241–49
definition of, 25–26
ethos of, 49–50, 158
everyday application of, 23–24
fostering of, 249–54
instrumental vs. intrinsic projects in, 58–59
as life changing, 45–46
L. Polgár's strategy for, 242–49
mastery and, 100–101
obsessive intensity of, 26, 39, 133–34, 157, 158, 176, 202, 241
personal stories of, 2–24, 40–47, 51–55, 70–73, 87–89, 106–9, 119–21, 153–59, 177–81, 183–
86, 193–94, 195–96, 197–98, 233–49, 255
principles of, xiii, 47–50, 245–49; 
see also
 
specific principles
process of, 40–50
public speaking and, 41–46
reference groups and, 252–53
as self-directed, x, xiv, 25, 39, 49–50, 145, 231, 241
sense of self as expanded by, xiv–xv, 33–34
shared traits of, 22–23, 26, 33–34
as strategy, 25, 228
tactics of, 12, 21, 38, 47, 49
talent and, 34–37
time commitment and, 37–38
value of, 26–27, 39

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ultralearning projects, 216–32
applying principles and measuring progress in, 221–24
effort required by, 216–17
instrumental vs. intrinsic, 58–59
maintaining knowledge gained through, 225–26
mastery of skills gained through, 227–28
relearning knowledge gained through, 227
research for, 217–19
reviewing results of, 224–25
scheduling time for, 219–21
work ethic of, x, 46
UltraSpeaking, 45
uncertainty, experimentation and, 213–15
understanding:
illusion of, 187–88, 190–91, 192
proving as path to, 186–88
Unschooled Mind, The
 (Gardner), 95
van Gogh, Vincent, 197–98, 200–203, 204–5, 206
video games, 12–15
Vitruvian Studio, 171
Watson, John, 233
Willingham, Daniel, 153
Winston, Diana, 83
Woodworth, Robert, 95–96
work, technology and, 28–29
work ethic, 46
World Championship of Public Speaking, 43–45, 104
World Chess Championship, 233–34
World Scrabble Championships, 153, 156
Woźniak, Piotr, 11
Yang, C. N., 186, 187
“Year Without English, The,” ix, 18–19, 263–65
Zenger, John H., 95

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