Learn Anything Faster By Using The Feynman Technique

[packman]

Richard Feynman is considered to be one of the most miraculous personalities in scientific history. The 1965 Nobel prize winner on QED (along with J. Schwinger and Tomonaga), Dr. Feynman was a remarkably amazing educator and a great physicist. Feynman, along with many other contributions to science, had created a mathematical theory that accounts for the phenomenon of superfluidity in liquid helium. Thereafter, he had fundamental contributions (along with Murray Gell-Mann) to weak interactions such as beta decay. In his later years, Feynman played a significant role in the development of quark theory by putting forward his Parton model of high energy proton collision processes. He also introduced basic new computational techniques and notations into physics. Besides being a physicist, he was at various times repairer of radios, a picker of locks, an artist, a dancer, a bongo player, a great teacher, and a showman who successfully demonstrated the cause of the 1986 Challenger Shuttle Disaster as part of the Roger’s Commission

Basically the technique:


What is the Feynman technique?

The Feynman technique of Learning primarily involves four simple steps:

> Pick a topic you want to understand and start studying it

> Pretend to teach the topic to a classroom or a child or someone who is unfamiliar with the topic

> Go back to the resource material when you get stuck

> Simplify and Organize

Learn much more at:

https://www.cantorsparadise.com/learn-anything-faster-by-using-the-feynman-technique-6565a9f7eda7

On a personal note- I used this technique to help my granddaughter who was struggling with her calculus class. I had her teach me what she had learned - she became the teacher. Now, I took a few cal classes way back when and forgot most. But she discovered after my prodding and asking questions about what she knew, to understand and discover she knew more than she thought.

[Delphinus]

1. Hmm ...

trying to learn German (through DuoLingo) and wonder if this would help. Thanks for sharing.

[reACTIONary]

16. I think it would help with...

... the more analytic aspects, such as the grammar. Becoming conversationally fluent and facile would be a different matter.

[kskiska]

2. Richard Feynman is a very interesting man.

I'd recommend reading his autobiography, "Surely you're joking, Mr. Feynman!"

[mopinko]

27. +1

i'm sorely tempted to carve out some time to watch his princeton physics lectures, which are online.
i was pretty good at physics in college, i think i wouldnt be too lost. his book was so interesting, i just want to listen to him talk.

[Sneederbunk]

3. Sounds like many of my teachers.

[triron]

4. My own experience (with calculus) was that I had so much more facility with it once I taught it.

[catrose]

30. With economics, I echoed Robert Heinlein in saying,

"It feels strange to be teaching this instead of flunking it."

Over the years, I developed a research method of starting with children's nonfiction books on the topic. From there, having acquired a rudimentary understanding and some vocabulary, it was easier to grasp more complex texts.

[Demovictory9]

5. Thanks. I'm trying to learn some new skills

[lapfog_1]

6. I was lucky enough to meet him when I was at NASA

he gave an excellent lecture on learning from our mistakes in a small auditorium in our building where I worked.

[Poiuyt]

13. I would have loved to have been there for that!

[TuxedoKat]

7. Thank you for posting this

I have something fairly simple that I have to master for a test next week but I’m intimidated by it so I’m worried about not doing well. I’m going to try this.

[EYESORE 9001]

8. Long ago, I found that the best way to master a subject was through teaching it

Feynman was indeed a visionary.

[hunter]

9. That guy had zero tolerance for ignorance and anti-intellectualism.

If you weren't using your brains at full capacity, whatever that capacity was, he had no respect for you.

I sometimes amuse myself imaging what he might have said about Trump.

[ThoughtCriminal]

12. Trump is the Anti-Feynman - nm

[kskiska]

10. Quote from his book

"When you’re young, you have all these things to worry about—should you go there, what about your mother. And you worry, and try to decide, but then something else comes up. It’s much easier to just plain decide. Never mind—nothing is going to change your mind. I did that once when I was a student at MIT. I got sick and tired of having to decide what kind of dessert I was going to have at the restaurant, so I decided it would always be chocolate ice cream, and never worried about it again—I had the solution to that problem."

[JI7]

25. Isn't this the reason Jobs wore the same thing . I think Buffett eats

the same thing in the morning.

[fierywoman]

11. Thank you for putting this up!!!

I (30+ years professional classical musician) have been trying to gather up the courage to teach myself how to improvise and this gives me the courage and a path to start.

[jmbar2]

23. Good for you!

I went through that path on the guitar.

For many years, I thought that it was an inborn ability, not acquired. Then I started researching it, and found that it was learned. I was utterly fascinated with how it was learned after that. There is a good doctoral dissertation on how the greats learned jazz improvisation - can't remember the name, but it affirmed that it is learned.

One of the things that stuck with me was the concept of "spontaneous composition".

I started my journey on guitar just making up little phrases over a backing track, and did that every day for a long time. I didn't bother learning the theory or even scales until later. Just start a backing track, pick a spot on the fretboard, and start making up little riffs and melodies over it.

There are no errors. If you pick the wrong spot, move to another and try to make it sound like a melody.

Later on, I learned the chord structures, melodies to many songs, fingerings to fit the chord structures, and then started learning great solos note-for-note.

But the thing that helped me most, was simply making up the little melodies, day-after-day, with no thought of theory, scales, etc. Just make something up on the spot. Play badly boldly until it starts to sound like music.

One of the best experiences of my life. Still working on it. Good luck!

[fierywoman]

28. Thank you for the encouragement and a hint about the path.

I had an epiphany a few weeks ago that jazz was basically embroidering (with sound, obviously) around certain notes. Do you know Christian Howes' backing tracks? It's directed to string players (which I am, a violist) but useful to anyone.

[jmbar2]

31. I'd never heard of him until now

Cool approach for learning the intervals by ear. Will explore him some more - thanks.

The tracks I use are called "learn jazz standards" on youtube. Here's the one for "Shadow of your Smile". It doesn't tell you the key - you have to find it.

&list=PLEk1V5QgcGrPLxlnIV_NPFyIh8mfAvPCF&index=109&ab_channel=LearnJazzStandards.

I start by learning the melody, and playing it over and over until I feel fluent in it. Then just try little riffs. One concept that helped a lot is "limiting", where you just try to make melodies with five notes of the scale, varying the combinations and rhythms.

I love the idea of embroidering. Makes a lot of sense. Keep me posted how you are coming along.

[fierywoman]

36. Thank you!

[waddirum]

33. Take a deep dive into Bill Evans

especially his solo piano albums.

[fierywoman]

35. Thanks!

[certainot]

14. thanks. edward debono has a good one too - start at the back of the book, or at least don't go chap

chapter 1-10 etc

there aqre limitations of course, but the idea is linked to his lateral thinking techniques - by starting at the end you know what to expect, the goals, and the connections getting there make more sense/are easier- something like that

[Pepsidog]

15. Years ago I saw a 60 Minute segment on a school where everyone gets straight "A"s. Basically, the

kids in the class learn a subject and those who get an “A” teach the other kids until everyone knows the subject well enough that everyone has an “A” then they move on to the next subject. Basically, kids learn best when they teach others.

[skip fox]

17. "The best way to learn anything is to teach it."

I was a univ. professor in English for almost 40 years and used to say that with knowledge and conviction often to grad students assigned a sophomore lit class for the first time. Each one told me how right I was.

[wryter2000]

18. Absolutely

If you have to explain something to someone else, you learn it. I taught a lot during my graduate studies. I generally found that the best person to teach something wasn't necessarily an expert. Often it was someone whose understanding was good but close to that of the learner. That person is more likely to understand where the learner is coming from and what is confusing. So, a professor might give a lecture up in the clouds while the graduate student TA was better at explaining the material.

[JI7]

37. I have experienced this with new jobs

I have found that I learned more from people who were doing the same or similar job as the one I would do and had been there long enough to have a good understanding of the job but still remember their own early days. I learned more from them than the ones who were higher up and considered to be more experienced or experts .

[dalton99a]

19. But why?

[hunter]

29. It's complicated...

... and the deeper you dig the more complicated it gets.

Maxwell's equations are a set of coupled partial differential equations that, together with the Lorentz force law, form the foundation of classical electromagnetism, classical optics, and electric circuits. The equations provide a mathematical model for electric, optical, and radio technologies, such as power generation, electric motors, wireless communication, lenses, radar etc. They describe how electric and magnetic fields are generated by charges, currents, and changes of the fields.[note 1] The equations are named after the physicist and mathematician James Clerk Maxwell, who, in 1861 and 1862, published an early form of the equations that included the Lorentz force law. Maxwell first used the equations to propose that light is an electromagnetic phenomenon.

--more--

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maxwell%27s_equations

Feynman dug down further than Maxwell and things got really, really strange down there.

The technology in your cell phone or computer wouldn't be possible without that deeper understanding of quantum weirdness that Feynman and others worked out.

I think one of the problems with our society is that we don't like questions that can't be adequately answered in a seven minute video, or questions that require some facility with mathematics.

It takes some effort to achieve even a basic understanding of magnets. Simply listening to a quick explanation won't get you there.

Our bodies and nervous system are pretty good at gathering a physical sense of things. If they weren't our arms and legs and hands and fingers would be useless. We have an innate understanding of physics that has been essential to our survival as a species.

Most anyone can get a "feel" for magnets just by playing with them. And that's where most people stop. They don't dig in to understand the relationship between magnetism and electricity and the methods used to quantify those things. And that's okay, so long as you understand the limitations of your own understanding.

Ignorant people don't understand the limitations of their own understanding and they don't want to.

I've got some formal training as an evolutionary biologist. Creationists irritate me immensely. They don't want to know more than their ignorant belief that "God did it in six days."

If this video wasn't a setup it seems Feynman was irritated by a reporter asking him for a simple explanation of magnets. Feynman had a very deep understanding of magnetism, there were only a handful of people on earth at the time who had a similar level of understanding, and, damnit, here was some twit asking him for a "simple" explanation...

When I was teaching science to teenagers who often didn't have any reliable math skills beyond addition and subtraction (multiplication was never a sure thing...) electricity and magnetism wasn't something that could be covered in a week of 42 minute classes, let alone a seven minute video.

[calimary]

20. So simple, but so brilliant, also!

A major league keeper for sure!!!

[ananda]

21. It's true. I never learned a subject better than when I taught it.

...

[El Supremo]

22. We used one of his books in college E&M physics.

I also have watched some of his videos. He was a fantastic teacher.

[hunter]

32. My university physics professor was the nicest guy in the world...

... his office was always open, his lectures were clear and frequently entertaining, he was always willing to explain things to people who were struggling, but his exams frequently made people cry -- kids who'd been declared valedictorians and future scientists in their high schools.

There was no way to pass his exams by rote. You had to understand the stuff in your gut. I don't know if he was some kind of sadist or just a guy who loved physics deeply. My B- in Electromagnetism crushed me but I got back on my feet and kept going.

At the end of the year somewhere between a quarter and a third of the class were gone.

I've heard Feynman was like that.

[AnnetteChaffee]

24. I study/teach about Essential Oils and Energy

and although i never heard of this theory, its interesting to see that this is exactly what I did and I DID learn more as I taught it. I think getting questions from students/audience also helps, as it engages my mind to tap into the knowledge to come up with the answer to their questions. I'm teaching again on a cruise in February after not teaching for some time, so this is very timely and helpful to me. Thank you!
Annette

[LAS14]

26. There is nothing like trying to explain something to enhance your own understanding. nt

[Ms. Toad]

38. I've been engaged in that kind of learning since i was 4,

So for more than 6 decades. Fur the last 8 years, I've been formally encouraging my law students to use it to learn the law.

I went to a one room country school (starting at age 4). While it wasn't formally stated, it is baked into the nature of a school in which there is one teacher for (in our case) 7 grades. The olders teach the youngers.

Somehow, I think one room schools predate Feynman.

[NNadir]

39. I kind of use this technique in my writings in the Science forum.

I often write about things which initially I don't understand well, but research in the process of writing about them.

[Wingus Dingus]

40. Learning a new task: "See one, do one, teach one."

That was a nursing school thing.