| The importance of involving our physical bodies and | | | | recent event in the development of the human race. |
| senses into practical learning strategies has long been | | | | We are still much more hunters-gatherers than we |
| underestimated or even ignored. Find out why | | | | would usually like to think. I propose, then, that our |
| working with visual association techniques can boost | | | | talent to work with visual information is part of our |
| your ability to recall information. Human beings lived | | | | inheritance from the days of the hunter-gatherer and |
| as hunters-gatherers until only a few thousand years | | | | that this is also the reason why most people find it |
| ago. The expression "hunter-gatherer" describes a | | | | easier to remember sequences of images, or physical |
| lifestyle in which the food supply focused on hunting | | | | items that we can smell and touch, than information |
| and gathering food in the wild rather than cultivating | | | | that is primarily abstract, like much of the information |
| crops and raising animals in captivity. Before humans | | | | in a textbook. Unfortunately, the importance of |
| developed these techniques (and managed to | | | | involving our physical bodies and senses into practical |
| safeguard their water supplies), life was a constant | | | | learning strategies has long been underestimated or |
| struggle for survival. One of the characteristics of the | | | | even ignored. For example, looking back at my formal |
| hunter-gatherer lifestyle was that community groups | | | | education in schools and universities, we were never |
| frequently had to relocate to find water and to | | | | showed how to use associations for the learning |
| renew the available food supply. This nomadic lifestyle | | | | process. In fact, too often, learning has been |
| was extremely demanding. In fact, instead of using | | | | organized contrary to the inbuilt physiological needs |
| the word "lifestyle," the term "struggle for survival" | | | | of our bodies and our minds, wasting an enormous |
| might be more appropriate. The keys to survival | | | | potential. Yet, this potential still waits to be used- and |
| revolved around the use of the body and application | | | | for free. So, why not hunt and gather information |
| of the senses. Humans would not have survived if | | | | instead of food and animals? Why not work with |
| they had not become good at running, smelling and | | | | your body and your mind instead of working against |
| tasting; using their eyes and working with their hands; | | | | it? Involving our bodies and senses in the process of |
| and learning to orient their position in space. In other | | | | studying and learning gives us the chance to make |
| words, the body and the senses were the main | | | | use of an innate system that has helped our species |
| instruments our ancestors had to rely on in order to | | | | survive hundreds of thousands of years. Involving our |
| survive. In contrast, they did not have to rely on | | | | bodies and senses in the process of studying will |
| their capacity to understand math, law or history. | | | | make it easier to store and recall information. For |
| These days, our brains and the ability to apply | | | | example, working with visual association techniques is |
| learned knowledge have reduced our dependency on | | | | one very simple but highly effective and successful |
| our bodies and our senses. We invent and make use | | | | strategy that can help you to recall information on |
| of technology, thereby delegating all kinds of | | | | demand. Using unusual, strange and memorable |
| activities to machines and intelligent devices. We don't | | | | images and items as retrieval cues may be your key |
| have to run any more, because we have learned to | | | | to success in that upcoming exam. |
| construct and use bicycles, cars, buses and planes. | | | | Red Rubber Duck's Learning & Study Skill Guide - |
| We don't have to detect dangerous plants by | | | | With a background in intellectual property law, Dan |
| smelling and touching them, as supermarkets only sell | | | | Vandon has earned law degrees in several countries, |
| food that is not poisonous. In many parts of the | | | | a chore that led to perfecting the tools and |
| world, we no longer depend on our bodies and | | | | techniques presented in Red Rubber Duck's Learning |
| senses to survive. Nonetheless, our physical bodies | | | | & Study Skill Guide. This guide is Dan Vandon's |
| and our minds are still innately prepared to perform | | | | personal recipe for dealing with an overflow of |
| these functions, possibly because the step from | | | | information and mastering exams. |
| hunting and gathering to our current lifestyles is a | | | | |