Have you read my email? If not, read this post first - www.unleashenergy.com/memory-tips/did-you-get-my-email
I had asked you a question how you would remember this detail?
“Johannes Gutenberg invented the printing press with replaceable/moveable wooden or metal letters in 1436 (completed by 1440). This method of printing can be credited not only for a revolution in the production of books, but also for fostering rapid development in the sciences, arts and religion through the transmission of texts”.
What memory tips will you use? which mnemonic strategy may be helpful here?
Do not read further unless you have thought about it yourself and thought of an idea.
You need to associate 1440 - Johannes Gutenberg and Printing Press and visualize something.
1. Visualize Something Bizarre, Strange, Funny
Look at the number 1440
Does it remind you of anything?
Your house no, car no, phone no, etc. Then you can visualize Gutenberg working on a printing press on the roof of your house / on car top / under the phone table etc. and moving wooden letters on a huuuuuuge printing press and taking a print out from a laptop.
What are we trying to do here?
We are visualizing something unusual. If somebody sits in your drawing room and drinks tea, it is ordinary, the usual thing that happens. If you visualize someone sitting on your rooftop or chimney or hanging upside down from your terrace it is bizarre, unusual. You will remember unusual things for a longer time than the usual.
You know laptops were not available to him at that time. That is why the picture of a very old printing machine and the most modern laptop is a great unusual combination. And all of this is happening on your house roof top. Wonderful, isn’t it?
2. Sing The Facts
Try to repeat ‘Printing Press’ ‘Johannes Berg’ in rhythm.
The rhythm may go like this - da dum da - da dum da - the stress is on the “n” part in both printing and Johannes
Clap your hands in rhythm while saying this - it will take two beats
If you repeat it say, ten times, you will remember this forever. Your mind starts playing the rhythm even after you stop saying it.
Sometimes you hear a song and the tune goes on in your mind unconsciously and suddenly you realize you are singing that song internally. Have you experienced anything like that?
You can also repeat
Printing Press Johannes Berg
Printing Press Gutenberg
These two things you can repeat alternatively to get the full name correct.
3. Associate Numbers with Letters
You need to visualize to remember something. Numbers are dry. There is nothing to visualize in that. So what do you do?
You can associate numbers with something you can visualize.
For example,
- 1 is similar to l in appearance,
- 4 is similar to R (the word four also ends in r) and
- 0 can stand for Z (Zero) or S (sssssssa and zzzzza sounds)
Now you can create a word, phrase or sentence using l, r, r and z /s.
Make that word or phrase or sentence unusual.
Loves Ripping Real Snakes
or
Loves Reading Rare Snakes
You are ready for the visualization part now.
Imagine Johannes Gutenberg sitting at an enormous printing press with a real snake in hand. Johannes is ripping the real snake apart. He is holding the snake in his left hand and ripping a piece apart with his right hand. He slowly rips the real snake apart and places the pieces on the printing press one by one. After he completes ripping apart the whole snake, he prints out a copy. The copy from his laptop comes out as a huuuuuuuuge snake. After all he loves ripping rare snakes and he loves reading rare snakes.
4. Use Your First Language Where Appropriate
Visualization is often better if we use our first language, the language you learnt at home as a baby.
For Hindi speakers for example, this scene might work:
Johannes Gutenberg is sitting at his Printing Press and moving the wooden pieces day and night. His wife gets tired and says, “I have been asking you to come out with me. Jo Ha(n) ho to ha bolo, na ho to na bolo. Muje yaha gutan hota hai. Burger kaane chale. Come at least for tea, for tea.
You have the numbers and letters in front of you on a paper and you say this, repeat the dialogue to yourself twice.
Johannes Gutanberg - 1440
Jo ha (hoto ha bolo) na (hoto na bolo) Johannes
Gutan (hota hai)
Berg (burger kaane chalo)
40 - forty - it sounds like “for tea”.
or you can think of letters which look similar to 1440 -
For example, you can associate 1 with ye (yek), 4 with ‘ka’ (if you write ka in Hindi it is somewhat similar to 4), 0 can be ‘am’ the bindu or point we have on letters.
So Johannes Gutenberg’s wife can say, “Ye Kyaa KaaM karte rehte ho? Muje Gutan ho rahi hai. Chalo burger kaane”.
The important point is you must remember what you are associating things with.
If you associate 4 with ka do it always. Don’t change it for another fact that has this number.
If you associte it with R stay with it always.
You can also have English letters and Hindi words -
l = 1
R = 4
S/Z = 0
The tortured wife says, “Lo, Roj RoZ yahi printing karte rehna hai? Jo Hardin Estara GutanBerenGe, mai burger me poinson milaake kilaavungi”. 
For English students these questions usually come in the multiple choice items. So even if you remember only part of the name, you will be able to choose the correct answer.
For an essay if you don’t remember the whole name you can have a sentence such as..
Right from the time the printing press started in 1440, there has been an explosion in knowledge, which has only increased million times in this digital era.
Ok that is enough for a day, I think. What do you think about these tips?
What tips did you work out for yourself?
Click on comments and post them.