'Remembering' ... and writing it down

“During the Middle Ages they understood that words accompanied by imagery are much more memorable. By making the margins of a book colorful and beautiful, illuminations help make the text unforgettable. It's unfortunate that we've lost the art of illumination.” –  Joshua Foer

Born on this date in 1982, Joshua Foer is a freelance journalist living in New Haven, CT with a primary focus on hard sciences.  He also was the 2006 U.S.A. Memory Champion, described in his 2011 bestselling book, Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything.

A native of Washington, DC, Foer’s writings have appeared in some of the nation’s top newspapers including The New York Times and The Washington Post. 

“We often talk about people with great memories as though it were some sort of an innate gift, but that is not the case,” Foer said.   “Great memories are learned. At the most basic level, we remember when we pay attention. We remember when we are deeply engaged.”

In 2012 Foer gave a TED Talk that has been heard and viewed more than 4 million times.  If you’d like to join the group, click on this link for the very entertaining and enlightening 20-minute presentation:

http://www.ted.com/talks/joshua_foer_feats_of_memory_anyone_can_do

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