Joshua Foer
Author of Moonwalking with Einstein
Discussion
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
Hello, Joshua Foer here, science journalist, author of Moonwalking the Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything, and co-founder of Atlas Obscura. Ask me anything.
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Thomas
@thomasp423 · UI Designer, Zazn App
@joshuafoer What inspired you to write Moonwalking with Einstein?
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@thomasp423 It all started with this Slate article: http://www.slate.com/articles/ne.... Once I discovered that anyone could perform these incredible feats of memory, I realized I didn't really know the first thing about how my own memory worked. I set off on a year-long quest to find out. At the end of that year I ended up winning the USA Memory Championship.
Cal Bachand
@calbachand · COO, Positive Traders
@joshuafoer What are you top 3 favorite books?
Graham Mumm
@grahammumm · CEO and Founder at Rebilder
@calbachand As a related question, what book was the most insightful when trying to understand the history of mnemonics and memory?
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@grahammumm Asking me to pick my 3 favorite books is just unfair, but I'm willing to pick my three favorite books on the history of memory. They are: the Art of Memory by Frances Yates, the Book of Memory by Mary Carruthers, and Logic and the Art of Memory by Paolo Rossi.
Todd Kleinhans
@toddkleinhans · Sr. DBA
@joshuafoer Do you think memorization is a gateway to creativity? I'm looking to memorize a lot of content and was wondering about its affect on creativity.
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@toddkleinhans One of the things I talk about in Moonwalking is how memory and creativity were regarded as two sides of the same coin during the middle ages. One had to have a good inventory of ideas in order to invent anything new (both words--inventory and invent--stem from the same Latin root). I'm skeptical though that memorizing a lot of facts is going to have any effect on your creativity.
That said, when I was training for the US Memory Championship, I don't think I was really training my memory, I was training my ability to create really funny, weird, strange, beautiful, gory, lurid images in my mind's eye as quickly possible. So in a way, I guess it was a kind of creativity I was trying to develop.
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@joshuafoer Just to add on to that: if you're creating strange, novel imagery in your mind's eye, remembering takes care of itself.
Todd Kleinhans
@toddkleinhans · Sr. DBA
@joshuafoer Using creativity itself to attack a memorization problem, gotcha. I was thinking more along the lines of memorizing a lot of poetry/text- wondering if that kind of memorized content could lead to new ideas. In MWE you mentioned Shas Pollak- I was wondering about the art (if any) they created post memorization.
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@toddkleinhans My recollection is that the Shas Pollak were specifically noted for NOT having made any great insights. They were first-rate memorizers, but that didn't necessarily make them particularly wise or creative.
Chris Schroeder
@cmschroed · investor
Joshua: how is your memory today as compared to your championship days? And does it affect you as an entrepreneur?
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@cmschroed Hi Chris, thanks for making the connection to bring me here. When I was competing on the memory circuit I was a veritable mnemonic Lou Ferrigno. Today I'm a bit of a schlub. I couldn't compete at a high level today, without getting my nose back to the grindstone.
Todd Kleinhans
@toddkleinhans · Sr. DBA
@joshuafoer I am playing around with using virtual reality using an Oculus DK2 and Epic Game's Unreal Engine to build memory palaces and journeys. It is a lot of work. What are your thoughts on learning content or experiencing travel destinations using virtual reality? Have you had a chance to try VR yet?
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@toddkleinhans I haven't had a chance to really delve into VR. But I'd love to. I'm sure these tools will be a part of the future of education.
Brett Watson
@brettewatson · Learner
@joshuafoer Thanks for taking questions. I was a huge fan of MWE! What current projects are you working on?
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@brettewatson Thanks. I'm working on a book about hunter-gatherers. Over the last three years, I've been spending time in the Republic of Congo, living with a group of Yaka pygmies, who are the largest remaining group of active hunter-gatherers left on the planet.
Brett Watson
@brettewatson · Learner
@joshuafoer Very interesting! Why did you chose that as your next project?How do they organize themselves to sustain the hunter-gather lifestyle on such a scale and during modern times?
Also, have you used any memory techniques in everyday life recently, or even in Congo with the pygmies?
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@brettewatson This project grew out of a National Geographic story I wrote about chimpanzees in the Congo: http://ngm.nationalgeographic.co.... I ended up more fascinated with the people I met living in the forest than the chimps I was there to write about. I vowed to come back and spend more time with them. First though I had to learn Lingala, the national language of the Congo. So I memorized the Lingala-English dictionary. That was a very practical use of memory techniques, which I wrote about for the Guardian: http://www.theguardian.com/educa...
Andrew Liebchen
@andrewliebchen · Product designer @ Facebook
@joshuafoer Have you thought about starting Sukkah City again? Thought the premise of the competition was great, even if the execution was un-even.
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@andrewliebchen It was a one-off event. Ephemeral, like the sukkah. I'm thrilled that it has inspired others to create similar events in other cities.
Andrew Liebchen
@andrewliebchen · Product designer @ Facebook
Aw, too bad. Hoped it would eternal, like Sukkot. @joshuafoer
Ryan Hoover
@rrhoover · Founder, Product Hunt
@joshuafoer what's the meaning behind the title of your book, Moonwalking with Einstein?
P.S. awesome TED Talk:
Lukas Fittl
@lukasfittl · Product Hunt
@joshuafoer I've loved "Moonwalking with Einstein", such a great book that distills the science of remembering things into understandable words!
Since its been a few years since you wrote the book - whats been keeping you busy? Any new projects coming up? :)
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Joshua Foer
@joshuafoer
@lukasfittl Thanks! Besides the hunter-gatherer book, Atlas Obscura has been keeping me busy. Keep an eye out for the Atlas Obscura book next year.