Do you have a question about writing simple and effective collections for SuperMemo? Write to Dr Wozniak. If you would like to have your items evaluated, please send 3-5 for review. Do not send whole collections in an e-mail attachment |
See also:
(Mike
Condron, USA, Dec 10, 2000)
Question:
I am finding that anatomy is a subject that consists largely of lists.
The
branches of the axillary artery are... the layers of the abdominal
fascia are
... the contents of the posterior triangle of the neck are ... and so
on. What
is the best way to learn such lists?
Answer:
Enumerations should be discouraged. These always result in
recall
problems. You should rather use multiple graphic deletion tests. You
can, for
example, use a picture of the branches of
the axillary artery, occlude or point to a
single branch in the picture and ask: Which branch is pointed
to in the
picture? You will have as many items as there are branches of
the artery.
See also:
(John
Meritt, UK, Nov 26, 1999)
Question:
How can I best learn programming with SuperMemo?
Answer:
(John
Meritt, UK, Nov 26, 1999)
Question:
How can I best learn spelling with SuperMemo?
Answer:
You should use/create a template
in which the answer will be a Spell-Pad (i.e. text input component). In
the
question part you should ask about the word that is to be spelled.
Because many
spelling problems come from the use of double letters (e.g. traveling
vs.
travelling), you do not need to define the word. It
is enough you ask to
choose a correct variant. For example, your question might look like
this: traveling/travelling
or better yet trave(l/ll)ing.
It is very important to focus on one problem at a time. This is why
instead of o(c/cc)a(s/ss)ion,
you should create two items:
Occasionally, you can make an exception to this rule. For example, you might ask Mi(s/ss)i(s/ss)i(p/pp)i as a request to spell Mississippi. In this case, it is easy to remember that all questionable consonants in this word must appear in double. Once you realize that, you may never experience problems with recalling how to spell Mississippi
(Luis
Gustavo da Silva, Brazil, Nov 9, 1999)
Question:
What is your view on the formulation of items in which the
question lists the symptoms of a disease and the answer provides the
name of the disease?
Answer:
This sound like knowledge that should not cause much
trouble in
learning:
(Jim
Ivy, USA, June 4, 1997)
Question:
What is the difference between a topic
and an item?
Answer:
Topics are used to store articles or other content that presents
knowledge, while items are used to
test knowledge by means of repetitions
(usually they have the
question-and-answer structure or are cloze
deletions). See: Topics
vs. items
You can learn programming language syntax Q: mysql: To
rename a table named table_name to new_table_name, use: Q: mysql: To
rename a table named table_name to new_table_name, use: Q: mysql: To
rename a table named table_name to new_table_name, use: Q: mysql: To
rename a table named table_name to new_table_name, use: Q: mysql: To
rename a table named table_name to new_table_name, use:
(Noah Chanin, Friday, March 11,
2005 1:33 AM)
Question:
I want to memorize all of the valid forms of SQL. If you have some
ideas about effective techniques to employ for learning syntax, it
would be appreciated
Answer:
Before you begin, you should be aware of the cost-benefit
balance. In most cases, syntax requires no SuperMemo. Simply put, your
daily or regular use of the language will ensure this knowledge is
easily retained without repetition. However, if you are only a
beginner, or you plan to know the language without using it much on a
regular basis,
incremental reading is
always the best option. You can import your entire programming language
manual, and process it in proportion to priority of individual
subjects. In the end, you will arrive at simple cloze deletions as
quoted below. It is worth remembering though, that there is not much
benefit in memorizing details of syntax until you realize at some point
that not remembering a particular piece of information is a stumbling
block in your further progress. Knowledge of a single programming
language is usually vast enough to take years to master to the last
detail, even with the employment of the best techniques of incremental
reading.
This is why a good principle is: "memorize only in need" and process
the rest passively to reduce time costs.
Here are some examples of clozes to which you arrive in the end:
Q: mysql> [...]
TABLE table_name TO new_table_name;
A: RENAME
Q: mysql> RENAME
[...] table_name TO new_table_name;
A: TABLE
Q: mysql> RENAME TABLE [...] TO new_table_name;
A: table_name
Q: mysql> RENAME TABLE table_name [...] new_table_name;
A: TO
Q: mysql> RENAME TABLE table_name TO [...];
A: new_table_name
Item reviewed:
Q: a rod-and-tube element temperature sensor consists of:
A: a high expansion metal tube containing a low expansion rod. The rod & tube are attached on one end. The tube changes length with changes in temperature, causing the free end of the rod to move
Suggestions:
This is a typical case of combining a number of items in one with detriment to the ability to recall the combined item. The suggestion here is to split the item into a number of simpler items that reproduce the same information in student's memory:
Q: What are the two parts of a rod-and-tube temperature sensor?
A: rod and tubeQ: What is the expandability of the tube in rod-and-tube sensor?
A: highQ: What is the expandability of the rod in rod-and-tube sensor?
A: lowQ: How is temperature indicated in the rod-and-tube sensor?
A: tube moves relative to the rodQ: Where are rod and tube connected?
etc. etc.
Keep only one
deletion in cloze deletions
(Noel
Clary, USA, Sep 6, 1998)
Item reviewed:
Q: Step 5 HVAC duct design: Size ducts by the selected design method. Calculate system ..., then select ...
Suggestions:
Cloze deletions (i.e. questions with blanks) are generally a good learning tool; however, in most cases it is better to keep a single deletion per question
(Deron
Isaac, USA, May 21, 1997)
Question:
How can I edit texts of items during repetitions
without
backing out of the test mode?
Answer:
Choose Q to edit the question, A
to edit the answer, or E to
edit all text components.
You can also edit all properties
of all components by using the component
menu available with
the right
button click on a component in question
(John
Gibney, Australia, Sep 16, 1998)
Question:
In your materials you write that users should avoid memorizing sets
(e.g. countries of
Europe) or long sequences (e.g. the alphabet). What if I want to
remember the sequence of
a form of Tai Chi?
Answer:
Let us consider an example in which you want to memorize the entire
sequence of letters in
the alphabet. It won't be very effective if you use the following item:
Q: What is the sequence
of letters in the alphabet?
A: A,B,C,D,E,F,G,H,I,J,K,L,M,N,O,P,Q,R,S,T,U,V,W,X,Y,Z
You will notice that you frequently stumble on parts of the sequence and need to stop repetitions just to exercise the entire sequence in the traditional way (like we all learn poems by rote).
However, you can approach this in a way that guarantees quick effects:
Q: What is the sequence
of letters in the alphabet
between A and E?
A: A,B,C,D,E
Q: What is the sequence
of letters in the alphabet
between D and H?
A: D,E,F,G,H
Q: What is the sequence
of letters in the alphabet
between G and K?
A: G,H,I,J,K
etc. etc.
After 2-3 weeks of repetitions, you may take on an extra task of recalling the whole sequence after each repetition of these simplified items. This will make sure you can recite the entire alphabet quickly. You will also frequently rehearse that parts of the sequence that are harder for your memory (e.g. V,W,X,Y,Z) as opposed to those that are much simpler (e.g. A,B,C,D,E)
Question:
What is the purpose of the option Search : Categories?
Answer:
SuperMemo introduces the concept of a category
to help you
keep items related to different subjects in different branches of the knowledge tree (contents window).
It also makes it possible to give different item
groups different
appearance (e.g. size of text components,
screen layout,
font, color, and many more). Read more: Using
categories
(Anatolyi
Lipatov, Ukraine,
Jul 12, 1998)
Question:
I am using Advanced
English to enhance my English and
business English. Now
I am registering
for CFA examination (that is Chartered Financial Analyst program of
Association of
Investment Management and Research). There are several organizations
developing and
distributing methodological stuff for preparing to the exam. A lot of
things should be
memorized for passing the exam. What do you think the best way to fit
SuperMemo for
memorization is and what approach should I use to prepare my own knowledge
base for
memorizing the material. Is special programming knowledge needed for it?
Answer:
No specialist knowledge is needed to prepare simple knowledge
collections in SuperMemo.
With Alt+A (i.e. Add
new) you get
the core functionality! All advanced editing options can be worked around
by an appropriate
questions-and-answer approach. Perhaps it would be useful yet to learn
how to add images
to your items (see help for details). To learn more about effectively
structuring
knowledge in SuperMemo you might want to read 20 rules of formulating
knowledge in learning and Knowledge
Structuring and Representation; however, nothing works better
as learning on one's own
mistakes in formulating knowledge for learning with SuperMemo
It is
recommended that you keep all your knowledge in one collection
(David
Mckenzie, New Zealand, Apr 8, 1998)
Question:
Is there any point in keeping collections
separate?
Answer:
No. Once you master contents
categories
and templates, and Postpone, there
is no point. You gain global search,
global registries,
global repetitions, global optimization, etc.
This would not be advisable back in SuperMemo 7 as item difficulty
measure (E-factor) was
dependent on the average difficulty of items
in the collection.
Presently, the item difficulty measure (A-Factor,
or absolute
difficulty factor) is absolute and does not depend on the context in
which an item is
placed (see: SuperMemo
Algorithm). Only the length of the
first interval will significantly be affected by the average difficulty
of items in the
collection. However, this shall not bear dramatically on the speed of learning.
Especially that variable forgetting
index for individual items makes it possible
to set different first intervals for whole contents categories
or branches
of the knowledge
tree
Question:
What should I use Duplicate
for? What
for do I need the same item in the same collection?
Answer:
You can duplicate an item,
if you want to add to the another item
which is only slightly different. This way you can spare some time by
reediting the old
item instead of typing in the new one
Question:
It is possible to have SuperMemo do follow-up questions
like this:
I am learning Chinese Characters, so first I have a
character which is the Question, then I have to give the answer which
is the
pronunciation of that character, but then I have to give the meaning in
English.
So basically there are three things: character - pinyin - translation
Answer:
This is a case where you would like to learn three
associated things
A-B-C, where A is your question, B is the follow up and C is the follow
up to B.
It is never a good idea to learn more than one thing in a single item!
SuperMemo
needs to separately understand your difficulties with linking A and B,
B and C,
as well as A and C. Building a test according to your suggestions is
possible,
yet it would be better to use cloze deletions here. For example:
Parent template item:
A B C
Items generated with cloze deletion (e.g. using Reading : Remember cloze):
Item 1:
Q: ... B C
A: AItem 2:
Q: A ... C
A: BItem 3:
Q: A B ...
A: C
It is important to know that Item 1 above may make you fail to answer with A to the question C if you only learn to answer Item 1 by understanding the association of B with A. In such cases, you will need even more work by formulating items: A-B (where A is the question and B is the answer), A-C, B-A, B-C, C-A, and C-B. Although you will get six items instead of one, you knowledge is likely to be more solid and you may actually spend less time on repetitions of those multiple items than on repetitions of the conglomerate A-B-C item
See also: Sequential review may be inefficient
(Patrick
Mon, Jan
14, 2001)
Question:
Can SuperMemo be used to memorize a hundred digits of PI? What about
memorizing
very complex formulas or foreign language characters? The 20
rules page did not include those things
Answer:
Memorizing PI falls into the domain of mnemonic
techniques. You could try
to use SuperMemo to memorize PI as is but it would
be tremendously
inefficient. On the other hand, if you use mnemonic techniques to
memorize
things, you should use SuperMemo to handle the periodic review. Despite
the
claims of many mnemonists, mnemonic techniques will not make you remember for
ever.
In other words, to memorize PI, use both mnemonic techniques and
SuperMemo. For
memorizing numbers, the best technique is called the peg-list method. A
peg-list
is a list of 10 or 100 pictures associated with numbers 0..9 or 0..99
respectively. Memorizing PI is then equivalent to building a list of
pictures
that correspond with the number. The rule of the thumb in reference to
mnemonic
techniques is: use them on material that is particularly difficult to
remember
(e.g. numbers, sets, lists, etc.); do not use them on material that
stick well
to your memory in SuperMemo. To learn more about mnemonics, see some of
the
links below:
Question-answer swapping will usually involve some
reediting
(Patrik Nilsson, Thursday, July
26, 2001 5:41 AM)
Question:
SuperMemo website claims that swapping questions with answers is rarely
applicable beyond word-pair learning. I disagree. If you show a picture
of a car to a little child and ask for what's at the
picture, next time you ask the child what a car looks like and want him
to draw it or explain it by words
Answer:
You are right about swapping the roles of stimulus and
response. However, in
practice, optimum knowledge representation will enforce a degree of
editing. In your presented example, we would rarely use name-picture
pairs (unless the whole collection is uniform and leaves no doubt as to
the question format). Optimally you will need a verbal clue:
What object is presented in the picture? and then
How does a car look like? Those minor editing enhancement
substantially speed up the learning process
The best way for providing context is to use labels
inside your questions
(Steve Brown, Tuesday, August 21,
2001 4:01 PM)
Question:
Is there a way to tell what category a Q/A pair belongs to. The same
question may have a different answer. For example,
"what is a strike" could have 2 different answers
depending whether I was in the
"bowling" category or the "union"
category
Answer:
Instead of using categories for such a purpose, you could
accomplish the same with domain labels inserted before the question.
This is the recommended method which immediately evokes the appropriate
context. For example:
sport: What is a strike? or econ: What
is a strike?, etc. This is how most collections in
SuperMemo
Library are formulated
Combining multiple pieces of information in one item
is not
recommended (#6101)
(Telepolis,
Spain, Thursday, December 20, 2001 1:57 PM)
Question:
What would happen if you presented the pronunciation sound at the same
time
as its correspondent word? If you are not looking at the screen you are
improving the
comprehension, and if you are looking, you can check the spelling too.
The associative learning will increase
Answer:
Ideally, you should adjust the mode of repetition to your
goal. For that purpose it is better to separate learning the
pronunciation, from learning the spelling, and from learning the
semantics or synonyms. This means that you can create several items for
the same word. Experience shows that this is the most efficient method.
This is how
Advanced English
was designed. However, it is rather
impractical to produce all combinations of items for all words and
synonyms. For that reason, Advanced English includes the
pronunciation branch that includes only the words that are hardest to
pronounce. Similarly, the spelling branch lists only words that cause
most problems with spelling. Bombarding the brain with many stimuli at
the same time may produce ambiguous
stimuli and you will not always learn that what you really want to
learn. Some important aspects of information can be lost
Incremental
reading requires some
experience
Question:
I do not know how to tackle this text in incremental reading.
Any hints?
After the discovery of Pluto, it was quickly determined that Pluto was too small to account for the discrepancies in the orbits of the other planets. The search for Planet X continued but nothing was found. Nor is it likely that it ever will be: the discrepancies vanish if the mass of Neptune determined from the Voyager 2 encounter with Neptune is used. There is no tenth planet
Answer:
Here are some exemplary processing stages. Yours might be
different. In the
end, you can convert the cloze deletions into more direct and
well-formulated
questions-and-answers:
Extract 1: Pluto is too small to account for the discrepancies in the orbits of the other planets
Extract 2: Pluto was too small to account for the discrepancies in the orbits of the other planets. The search for Planet X continued but nothing was found
Extract 3: Pluto was too small to account for the discrepancies in the orbits of the other planets. The discrepancies vanish if the mass of Neptune determined from the Voyager 2 encounter with Neptune is used
Extract 4: There is no tenth planet
Developer's Guide for authors of SuperMemo
collections
(anguskwong, Wednesday, August 28,
2002 8:01 PM)
Question:
I would like to develop a knowledge collection similar to 100
English Spellings for Kids with sound, spell pads, etc.
It seems I can not do all these as a normal user. Do I need Developer's
Guide to do that?
Answer:
You
can develop such collections with SuperMemo. It is fully functional if
you turn
on Full access
and Professional
level.
Please have a look at these:
Does minimum information principle hold in all cases?
(Simon J., Apr 08, 2004, 08:59:51)
Question:
My wife is using Advanced English and has now gone through about 9000
words. However, each time there is a big gap (say 1 month), she will
always forget some items (e.g. amenable=responsive/susceptible). Her
forgetting index is set at 7%. It seems the word is too abstract and
floating in space. Especially when both of the words were previously
unknown. I wonder if the 'minimum information principle' holds true for
everyone
Answer:
Not all items in Advanced English are structured ideally. We
try to locate such cases and improve them in future upgrades. This is
what differentiates Advanced English from a simple dictionary. However,
it is not always possible to adapt this material for everyone's needs
and some individual intervention is always necessary.
You are right that it is unacceptable to learn a word pair if both
words are not understood. Adding translations or one's own examples in
such cases is very important.
You could for example start with finding exemplary sentences where
"amenable" is used and add them to your Advanced English. You might add
then two additional items like these:
Q: Middle East is not [...](responsive) to improvements along American lines
A: amenable
Q: Some things are not [...](open) to the approaches of scienceNaturally, for passive recognition you need an item too. This could then be:
A: amenable
Q: amenable (adj)(e.g. some things are not amenable to science)As for the minimum information principle, you should remember that it does not refer to the number of words or characters in the question. It refers to the information that needs to be stored in the brain. For that reasons, cloze deletions built of exemplary sentences (as indicated above), are FAR easier to remember. Even though they are wordy, they produce a very simple association link in memory. They are highly recommended. As for the forgetting index, you should rather keep a higher forgetting index for the entire collection and lower it only for the most important items. Do not use the forgetting index as a remedy against imperfect structure of knowledge! Modify your items first and lower the forgetting index only if you still have problems with recall and the materials is vitally important.
A: open/susceptible
Why do we remember weird words?
(MRW, Mar 04, 2002)
Question:
Have you noticed that in learning English, the words that are easy to
remember are often the "weird" ones (e.g. tintinnabulation)
Answer:
It all depends on the associations formed in your brain.
Tintinnabulation may have stuck easily with you while it could be
somebody else's pet peeve. However, weirdness often implies uniqueness
which helps you avoid memory interference. Then, one day, you learn the
word tinnitus and, all of a sudden, tintinnabulation may start causing
serious trouble
"Successful" leeches should not be reset
(christian.roessel, Germany,
Wednesday, January 10, 2001 11:26 AM)
Question:
What to with a leech that has been well-known for the last
n repetitions? Is it more time-efficient to forget and reintroduce this
element or shall I keep it as is?
Answer:
If the leech has been remembered for a number of repetitions,
its inherent problem might have already been resolved. In general, you
should take postpone, reformulate or delete actions only at the moment
of forgetting the leech. As
long as it progresses towards longer intervals, your best action might
be to do nothing or to add minor edits that you
believe could improve retention
You
can learn Arabic with SuperMemo
Question:
Can I learn Arabic with SuperMemo?
Answer:
Yes. See: Arabic
Verbs collection
Copying material from a dictionary (#17003)
(Rune, Norway, Monday, April 28,
2003 1:38 AM)
Question:
I copy word descriptions from the Collins Cobuilder dictionary and
paste them into the answer field. It would be nice, if SuperMemo could
create a new learning item and paste the description into the answer
field. Now I first have to copy from Collins, create an new element,
and paste into the answer field
Answer:
The best way to handle dictionary items is to paste the
entire item to SuperMemo with Ctrl+Alt+N. Then extract individual
definitions along with the headword with Alt+X. Finally, while learning
individual definitions, create individual passive, active or detail
items with Alt+Z
Here is an example of learning the meaning of the word trachea. Although there are 19 items on the output, not all these items are necessary to extract the basic meaning of the word. For that reason, the process can be executed incrementally. More specialized meaning can be refined in more advanced stages of learning.
tra�che�a P Pronunciation Key (trk-)
n. pl. tra�che�ae (-k-) or tra�che�as
- Anatomy. A thin-walled, cartilaginous tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying air to the lungs. Also called windpipe.
- Zoology. One of the internal respiratory tubes of insects and some other terrestrial arthropods.
- Botany. One of the tubular conductive vessels in the xylem of vascular plants.
trachea
- Anatomy. A thin-walled, cartilaginous tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying air to the lungs. Also called windpipe.
- Zoology. One of the internal respiratory tubes of insects and some other terrestrial arthropods.
- Botany. One of the tubular conductive vessels in the xylem of vascular plants.
trachea Anatomy. A thin-walled, cartilaginous tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying air to the lungs. Also called windpipetrachea Zoology. One of the internal respiratory tubes of insects and some other terrestrial arthropods
trachea Botany. One of the tubular conductive vessels in the xylem of vascular plants
trachea Anatomy. A thin-walled, cartilaginous tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying air to the lungs. Also called windpipe
a cartilaginous tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying air to the lungs trachea
trachea: A [thick/thin]-walled, cartilaginous tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying air to the lungs thin (thickness is a relative concept and you may want to skip that property)
trachea: a [bony/cartilaginous/muscle/membranous] tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi cartilaginous
trachea: A cartilaginous tube [descending/ascending] from the larynx descending
trachea: A tube descending from the [...] to the bronchi larynx
trachea: A tube descending from the larynx to the [...] bronchi/lungs
trachea: A tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying [...] to the lungs air
trachea: a tube carrying air to [...] (the) lungs/bronchi
trachea: A tube carrying air to the lungs. Also called [...] windpipe
Q: a cartilaginous tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying air to the lungs
A: trachea
Q: trachea: A [thick/thin]-walled, cartilaginous tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying air to the lungs
A: thin
Q: trachea: a [bony/cartilaginous/muscle/membranous] tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi
A: cartilaginous
Q: trachea: A cartilaginous tube [descending/ascending] from the larynx
A: descending
Q: trachea: A tube descending from the[...] to the bronchi
A: larynx
Q: trachea: A tube descending from the larynx to the[...]
A: bronchi/lungs
Q: trachea: A tube descending from the larynx to the bronchi and carrying[...] to the lungs
A: air
Q: trachea: a tube carrying air to [...]
A: (the) lungs/bronchi
Q: trachea: A tube carrying air to the lungs. Also called [...]
A: windpipe
Q: zool: [...]: one of the internal respiratory tubes of insects and some other terrestrial arthropods
A: trachea
Q: zool: trachea: one of the internal[...](function) tubes of insects and some other terrestrial arthropods
A: respiratory
Q: zool: trachea: one of the internal respiratory tubes of[...](main animal group) and some other terrestrial arthropods
A: insects
Q: zool: trachea: one of the internal respiratory tubes of insects and some other [aquatic/terrestrial] arthropods
A: terrestrial
Q: zool: trachea: one of the internal respiratory tubes of insects and some other terrestrial [...](phylum)
A: arthropods
Q: bot: trachea: one of the[...] in the xylem of vascular plants
A: (tubular conductive) vessels
Q: bot: trachea: one of the tubular conductive vessels in the[...](tissue) of vascular plants
A: xylem
Q: bot: trachea: one of the tubular conductive vessels in the xylem of[...](division) plants
A: vascular
Q: trachea: one of the tubular conductive vessels in vascular [plants/animals]
A: plants
Q: bot: [...]: one of the tubular conductive vessels in the xylem of vascular plants
A: trachea
How can SuperMemo help an actor?
(David Baldwin, Saturday, August
17, 2002 4:45 AM)
Question:
As an actor specializing in one-man plays, I'm required to memorize and
regurgitate hours of material. How can I best use SuperMemo to quickly
and permanently memorize?
Answer:
SuperMemo is primarily useful in learning material that is to
be retained in memory for months and years. It might be very useful in
lifelong retention of quotes, citations or proverbs. However, if you
need to memorize long passages, and you need to be able to recall them
for weeks rather than years, SuperMemo's applicability will be limited.
You could use it, for example, to cram pieces on which you
stumble or get stuck. You could paste the problematic piece of text and
generate lots of cloze deletions (i.e. questions with blanks to fill).
With regular repetitions, the recall of such pieces of text will become
quite automatic. You cannot expect much qualitative change in your
performance as an actor by employing SuperMemo today. However, it is
still recommended that you get to know it. Gradually, you will get a
better grip on the inner workings of your memory. You will also find
optimum ways of employing the program. With time, you might discover
that SuperMemo is more useful that suggested in this answer. However,
that will depend on your creative approach to selecting the right
portions of knowledge to learn, and representing them optimally for
your purposes
Strategic recall is a matter of knowledge structure
(Noel L, Sweden, Tue, 19 Mar 2002
13:11:25 -0000)
Question:
How can I bring knowledge learned with SuperMemo into my mind when I
need it
Answer:
Ideally, the knowledge is already stored in your memory and
it comes up
naturally when you need it. However, the picture is more complex if you
consider
that the way you ask the question in SuperMemo may differ from the way
your life
asks you the same question. In other words, you may store some material
in
SuperMemo, but a real-life situation will trick you into being unable
to recall
it. In other words, you need to properly formulate the material to
maximize its
recall in all potential contexts (see: "20
rules" article). There are two basic tools that will help you
keep
knowledge at hand in need. The first is simplicity. Simple things are
easier to
remember, but they are also easier to apply in varying context. The
second is
universality of rules. For example, it is better to learn a universal
mathematical formula than just the examples of its use. Examples can be
used to
emphasize applicability in various contexts. To sum it up: to make
knowledge
available at hand, you need lots of practical experience in using
SuperMemo. See
for yourself what works and what does not
Sequences are best learned through logical consequence DNA
Replication:
(Gary B., Canada, Mar 25, 2005,
19:37:03)
Question:
I am memorizing DNA synthesis. After formulating various extracts and
cloze questions, how can I ensure that I am able to recall the events
in the proper
sequence? Here is the material I am learning:
Answer:
All you need to do is to ensure that the sequence is a
logical consequence of
extracts you are processing.
For example, the following sentence creates a link between events: Once DNA is unwound, a replication fork forms. The preceding event is unwinding DNA, and the succeeding event is the forming of the replication fork (naturally, you must know what a replication fork is before you go into details). If this exemplary sentence is well consolidated in your memory, you will have little problems with figuring out the correct logical sequence of events.
In other words, there is no need to memorize the sequence in a separate set of questions. If you understand the sequence, see the big picture, and consolidate individual steps, you shall have little problems with reproducing the events of DNA replication (today or 30 years from now). This guarantee requires primarily that: (1) you understand the text and (2) you generate some material redundancy to counteract the forgetting index. You generate redundancy with prolific cloze deletions. Here is how your material might look once incremental reading process is completed:
Q: Once parental DNA is [...], replication fork forms at fixed origin of replication
A: unwound
Q: Once parental [...] is unwound, replication fork forms at fixed origin of replication
A: DNA
Q: Once parental DNA is unwound, [...] fork forms at fixed origin of replication
A: replication
Q: Once parental DNA is unwound, replication [...] forms at fixed origin of replication
A: fork
Q: Once parental DNA is unwound, replication fork forms at fixed origin of [...]
A: replication
Q: Once parental DNA is unwound, replication fork forms at fixed [...] of replication
A: origin
Q: One new DNA strand called [...] is synthesized continuously as DNA polymerase moves toward replication fork
A: leading strand
Q: One new DNA strand called leading strand is synthesized [continuously / discontinuously] as DNA polymerase moves toward replication fork
A: continuously
Q: One new DNA strand called leading strand is synthesized continuously as DNA polymerase moves [towards / away from] replication fork
A: toward
Q: One new DNA strand called leading strand is synthesized continuously as DNA polymerase moves toward [...]
A: replication fork
Q: One new DNA strand called leading strand is synthesized continuously as [...](enzyme) moves toward replication fork
A: DNA polymerase
Q: Because DNA polymerase only adds new nucleotide to [3/5]', RNA primer (synthesized by RNA Polymerase) is needed to start synthesis
A: 3
Q: DNA is synthesized in [5'->3' / 3'->5'] direction
A: 5'->3'
Q: Because DNA polymerase only adds new nucleotide to 3',[...] primer is needed to start synthesis
A: RNA
Q: Because DNA polymerase only adds new nucleotide to 3', RNA [...] (synthesized by RNA Polymerase) is needed to start synthesis
A: primer
Q: Because DNA polymerase only adds new nucleotide to 3', RNA primer (synthesized by [...](enzyme)) is needed to start synthesis
A: RNA Polymerase
Q: Because DNA polymerase only adds new nucleotide to 3', RNA primer (synthesized by RNA Polymerase) is needed to [...]
A: start synthesis
Q: [Lagging / Leading] strand of new DNA is synthesized in approx 1000 piece nucleotides called Okazaki fragments as DNA polymerase moves away from replication fork
A: Lagging
Q: Lagging strand of DNA is synthesized in approx [...] piece nucleotides called Okazaki fragments as DNA polymerase moves away from replication fork
A: 1000
Q: Lagging strand of DNA is synthesized in approx 1000 piece nucleotides called [...] as DNA polymerase moves away from replication fork
A: Okazaki fragments
Q: Lagging strand of DNA is synthesized in approx 1000 piece nucleotides called Okazaki fragments as DNA polymerase moves [towards / away from] from replication fork
A: away
Q: Lagging strand of DNA is synthesized in approx 1000 piece nucleotides called Okazaki fragments as DNA polymerase moves away [...]
A: replication fork
Q: DNA polymerase digests RNA primer and replaces it with [...]
A: DNA
Q: [...](enzyme) joins new discontinuous fragments of lagging strand
A: DNA ligase
Q: DNA ligase joins new discontinuous fragments of[...] strand
A: lagging
Before you start learning, you would best ensure you understand the big picture of the entire replication process as your short sequence does not fully illustrate it. You can also build the big picture incrementally, but that may take substantial time and is not recommended when you learn for an exam. If you have the big picture in your mind before you begin to learn incrementally, the savings in time may be substantial. However, if you are learning from lecture notes, this rarely is a case (a testimony to the dismal efficiency of taking notes during lectures in the "old world" of learning). Luckily, you can easily substitute with plethora of well-written materials imported from the web.
For the HTML source of the incremental reading process that led to the above questions see: DNA Replication example
You can learn to retrieve words faster from memory
(Samson Chen, Aug 10, 2005,
01:17:00)
Question:
I learn English. I use items like this one:
Questions: to move in a direction suddenly and quickly
Answer: shoot
Verb prep/adv
eg. A car shot by.
At the moment, I have no problem recalling the definition of
a term. And if I see the word "shoot", I know one of its meanings is
"move in a direction suddenly and quickly". However, I have trouble
using these words in daily life. Although my oral English is fluent, I
am unsatisfied with limited vocabulary in my speech
Answer:
The main problem with your item is that the question does not
bring the word "shoot" instantly to your mind. A fluent speaker might
answer your question differently (e.g. "rush", "dart", "hurry",
"blast", etc. ). In other words, your question part is not specific
enough.
Your optimum learning strategy should include:
For the latter, you could use cloze deletion examples that would anchor a specific synonym in a specific context. For example: "The police car ... by in a chase", or "Johnny English ... out from a hot tub".
Passive items will help you understand other people. Active synonyms will help you express yourself. Anchored synonyms will help you enrich your language.
You may memorize a couple of cloze examples for the word "shoot". It is important though, that you do not rigidly cram them if you fail to anchor "shoot" in a given context. If you fail a few times, change your example. Probably it is not specific enough.
Some narratives may be thin on memorizable material
(Tanya, Sunday, November 24, 2002
11:46 PM)
Question:
I am
trying to learn incremental reading. For starters, I decided to learn
the incremental
reading FAQ using incremental reading. However, I have no
idea how I might
cope with FAQs such as "
High priority of material or long review intervals will prompt you to
run an
article preview".
The answer is too long and I don't know how to grab it.
Answer:
Not all materials are suitable for generating extracts and
clozes. Some
narratives should just best be read passively. Like the quoted FAQ,
they may be
a compilation of facts that are generally obvious. In such cases you
can just
read and dismiss. Or you can read and schedule another review in a
month or in a
year (if you worry you miss something important). Or you can try to
write, in
your own words, a sentence or two on what new things you have learned
from the
narrative. Your sentence would shortly extract the quintessence from an
otherwise lengthy passage. If it is meaningful and quintessential, you
shall
find little trouble with locating keywords suitable for
clozing.
Nevertheless, if you really wanted to process that particular FAQ with incremental reading, you should eliminate as much verbiage as possible, avoid memorizing it as an enumeration, and focus on its components that are the least obvious. In such a case you might arrive at the following set of questions and answers:
Q: The most important incentives for whole-article preview: [low/high] priority of the material
A: high
Q: The most important incentives for whole-article preview: [short/long] inter-review interval
A: long
Q: The most important incentives for whole-article preview: [presence/absence] of higher-priority fragments buried in a lower-priority text
A: presence
Q: Extract-preview will [increase / decrease / not change] your exposure to previewed material
A: increase
Q: Line-at-a-time reading will be equivalent to assigning a [lower/higher/same] priority to an article (assuming you do not interfere with intervals, A-Factors, priority settings, etc.)
A: lower
Q: If your reviews occur in very long intervals as a result of slow reading, you may opt for [...](passive method) or running a preview of the most important sections instead
A: shortening the interval
Q: If your reviews occur in very long intervals as a result of slow reading, you may opt for shortening the interval or [...](active method)
A: running a preview (of the most important sections)
Q: if you are reading texts from your e-mail tasklist, preview is highly recommended because [...]
A: not everyone starts their message with the most important points
Inventiveness is the key to mnemonic techniques
(Daria, Jan 12, 2006, 19:13:30)
Question:
I could never remember the name of tryptophan. I remember its name just
more or less. Do you think it is a good idea to add an item like
this:
Q: [Hit the fan] is an amino acid that is essential in human nutrition
A: tryptophan
Answer:
Yes. This item will work, esp. if "hit the fan" is what comes
to your mind when speaking of tryptophan. However, your item does not
say anything characteristic of tryptophan itself (many other amino
acids are essential as well). In other words, you are only learning to
associate the name and "hit the fan" sound. You could fare much better
in the long run if you used the formula of tryptophan as the question
(e.g.
"What amino acid is presented in the picture?"), or
better yet ask a question based on something unique or memorable about
tryptophan. For example, you could ask
"What amino acid used as a supplement caused an autoimmune
disease outbreak due to supplement contamination (US,
1989)?"
Math proofs in SuperMemo
(JOSEPH PRIMO BELARMINO, Feb 06,
2006, 03:18:38)
Question:
I'm trying to format math proofs into SuperMemo, but I'm not sure
exactly how to
make it so that it's always shown sequentially.
Hence if I have a proof that goes like:
often I'd get the step 2 window such that I'm unintentionally getting information for the step 1. How do I fix this?
Answer:
You can decompose the proof into individual cloze deletions. For
example:
Q: Proving X:
- step 1: let a=b
- step 2: [...]
- step 3: using theorem d, c is the final answer
The sequence of review is not important. Repetitions are not supposed to help you build the big picture of the proof. They are just supposed to refresh memories on the assumption you have already built the coherent picture of the proof. The more clozes you create, the less likely you are to lose the coherence of the proof. Even for simple proofs as above, it may often be necessary to generate 6-8 separate cloze deletions. Moreover, individual steps are usually a bit more complex and need to be clozed too.
The difficulty is only in making sure that your clozes are well-structured and do not provide hints that make answers obvious. For example, you do not need to worry about the hint given by Step 1. After all, in real life, you will always worry about Step 2 only once you solved the Step 1. However, it may be necessary to delete Step 3 from the question as it may hint on the action taken in Step 2. You can, for example, move Step 3 from the question to the answer in the form of the comment:
Q: Proving X:
- step 1: let a=b
- step 2: [...]
A: b=c (step 3: using theorem d, c is the final answer)
It will also be helpful if you try the entire proof in a real-life situation to make sure your clozes indeed do the job of making you able to prove the theorem.
See also: Sequential review may be inefficient
Syllables may be easier to remember than numbers
(stephanie phillips, Jan 14, 2006,
21:40:55)
Question:
Is it easier to remember a sequence of letters (example aw by hu il te
be ha qx lm ni) rather than
remembering a sequence of numbers (example 33 57 96 75 29 65 92 01 75)?
If so why?
Answer:
No
theory answers such questions better than a practical test. If you put
a couple of examples of both sequences to SuperMemo, you will be able
to compare performance in a number of ways (for example, an average
inter-repetition interval after a longer period of time). Such tests
are important as individuals may differ substantially in the way they
convert question-answer pairs into specific representations in their
mind. Moreover, there is substantial interference between student's
knowledge, knowledge currently learned and retained with SuperMemo, and
the newly memorized material.
If syllables are easier to recall than numbers then, as in all similar
cases, it is related to the complexity and uniqueness of individual
memories that are to be consolidated. Numbers are less unique and an
average
individual does not store specific representations beyond the ten
digits, plus a set of numbers (s)he easily associates with other memory
landmarks such as one's own birthdate, the date of landing on the moon,
etc. Syllables, on the other hand, are central for language processing
and a typical set used by an average individual (including
"sounds-like" syllables) will be far larger than the set of landmark
numbers.
The ability to store memories in a specific form is related to their
evolutionary applicability. Humans have used basic numbers in a limited
way for a couple of
millennia. That time-span is too short to equip our brain with specific
number circuits. Spoken language has been in use for a period 10-40
times longer. And the best mnemonic tool,
visualization, capitalizes on circuits that have been in use for
hundreds of millions of years (i.e. even before the appearance of
vertebrates).
The importance of uniqueness of memories is well illustrated by the
fact that you can best defeat a mnemonist by asking him or her to
memorize strongly interfering patterns. For example, when asking to
memorize objects, you can list those that are very similar to each
other, e.g. rod, javelin, stick, pole, whip, pale, spear, pike, etc.
Language ambiguities can be tackled with SuperMemo
(G.W., Mar 09, 2007, 03:26:54)
Question:
I
learn Spanish. Spanish words often have multiple English meanings. When
all common English meanings are matched to the same Spanish word,
failure rate dramatically increases. When single meanings are matched,
much is lost
Answer:
When
multiple meanings slow your progress, you could define Spanish words
using
Spanish definitions. Thus you can ask for two different meaning of the
word
"album" with two distinct questions:
- a book with blank pages for the insertion of collections of stamps
- a set of recordings issued together on cassette tape or compact disc
This approach should effectively cover for ambiguities in active recall. As for passive recognition, you can use synonyms with appropriate context. For example:
As your fluency increases, you can hone your semantic sensitivities with exemplary sentences processed with incremental reading. Here is another meaning of "album" taken from a real life situation:
We sat with my husband browsing our photo [...](book with pictures) from Madagascar.
Pick those sentences from real life situations in which your original active or passive items did not do their job up to your expectations.
If sequence is important, it must be included in a
single item (#348)
(Martin Zielinski, Friday, January
21, 2005 12:27 AM)
Question:
How can you memorize a poem if SuperMemo keeps randomizing the
entries I input
Answer:
If you need to recite the entire sequence in one go, you must
simply include the entire sequence in the item's answer.
It is economical to use SuperMemo for poems only if you need to be able to recall them for long periods of time. If you learning process is sparse (few repetitions, few postpones), you might consider using SuperMemo for poems if you need to retain them for months. However, a heavily loaded learning process may extend that minimum period to years. Learning poems is simply "workload intensive" and will stifle progress in all other areas.
As for the extraction of memory bottlenecks, the optimum strategy will depend on your goals, available time, and the required fluency. The higher the fluency required, the greater the redundancy needed. What makes learning poems costly is the fact that redundancy grows exponentially with fluency. For high levels of fluency, traditional poem learning techniques may be necessary and frequent recitation unavoidable.
If you want to apply SuperMemo, one item must include the call to reproduce the entire poem and must use a forgetting index that will determine the probability of recalling the entire poem. Without this item, you will always be able to reproduce fragments of the poem, but there is a possibility of the disruption in the chain. That cumulative probability will be very high for a large number of paragraphs (each carrying its own probability of forgetting).
In addition to the main poem item, you should include individual items in which the preceding line evokes the succeeding line. Those items will assist automation of the recitation and plug up weak-link bottlenecks. The hardest fragments thus will be repeated more often.
For example:
Q: Look, how spry she still is, how well she holds
up:
A: hatred, in our century.
Q: Look, how spry she still is, how well she holds
up: hatred, in our century.
A: How lithely she takes high hurdles.
Q: hatred, in our century. How lithely she takes
high hurdles.
A: How easy for her to pounce, to seize
and so on.
If it appears that one of the items above still causes frequent problems (e.g. wrong recall, substitutions, wrong word order, etc.), you will need to generate more specific queries.
For example:
Q: Look, how [...] she still is, how well she holds
up: hatred, in our century.
A: spry
Q: Look, how spry she [...], how well she holds up:
hatred, in our century.
A: still is
Q: Look, how spry she still is, [...]: hatred, in our
century.
A: how well she holds up
The fastest way to generate individual items is to use incremental reading tools. In addition, if you are not in a hurry, the entire process should be incremental. This means that you should generate detailed items only from fragments of the poems that you frequently stumble on. Processing the entire poem at once will generate an astronomical number of items and be very costly. Such gained redundancy will improve recall, but may make the entire process uneconomic
Vocabulary items for SAT exam (#11208)
(�� �3��, Nov 07, 2006, 15:00:34)
Question:
I'm
using SuperMemo to memorize college-level vocabulary (Barren's 3500
basic word
list (for SAT)) which includes the hand-made
flashcards for long-term memory. I'm now memorizing 40 words per day
(1000 words
in a month). Can you comment on some of my items?
For example:
Q: badger
A: pester [Korean translation of pester]; annoy
"Her boss badgered her to do the sales report early."
Answer:
As this is your first month, it will take you yet some time
to discover your own
mistakes. Although your item will work, it is far from ideal. Here are
a few
suggestions:
If you produce several simpler items, you may actually spend less time on learning and yet produce memories that might appear more useful at the exam.
The simplest way to proceed is to use incremental reading. You could start from writing down the essential information in a single topic:
to badger = pester/annoy/nag (e.g. "Her boss badgered her to do the sales report early.")
pester = [Korean translation of pester]
Using extracts and cloze deletions you will only need a few clicks to produce three items:
Try to mimic real life situations to combat memory
interference
(Dave M., Sunday, April 29, 2007
12:59)
Question:
I
would like to ask your advice on how to deal with memory interference.
I’m a 3rd year Osteopathic medical student. Unfortunately, this already
means I have to contravene some
of the rules of learning that
you’ve listed.
I’ve been using SuperMemo for the past couple of years now but I’m
having a particular problem with some of the information that has to be
remembered for ‘viva voce’ exams. An example might be the sympathetic
nerve innervations of the visceral organs. From a diagnostic point of
view I need to know that, say, someone with a liver problem may have a
spinal dysfunction at the level of Thoracic vertebrae level T7-9. Or
alternatively, if I see a dysfunction at this level, that there may be
a liver dysfunction in the patient. Sadly, there are many similar
overlapping items in this sort of category leading to significant
interference.
Below are some examples of the Q&A pairs that I’ve put together
so far.
Example 1:
Q: Which segmental level is the sympathetic innervation of the heart?
A: T1-T5
Q: Which segmental level is the sympathetic innervation of the bronchi and lung?
A: T2-T4
Q: Which segmental level is the sympathetic innervation of the oesophagus (caudal part)?
A: T5-6
Example 2:
Q: Which organs receive sympathetic innervation from the L1-L2 segmental levels?
A: Splenic flexure to rectum
Q: Which organs receive sympathetic innervation from the T10–L2 segmental levels?
A: Lower limb
Q: Which organs receive sympathetic innervation from the T6-T10 segmental levels?
A: Stomach, spleen and pancreas
Answer:
All your items seem to carry important information, and yet
they are truly scary due to their similarity. If you generate more than
10 items
per each example, memory interference is likely to be astronomical.
Such items
will quickly join the pool of "leeches" (items that are very hard to
remember), and will clog your learning process slowing you down in all
other
areas. In the end, for your future as a medical student, it might
be
better to never include these in SuperMemo (as if you never had access
to
SuperMemo in the first place).
Luckily, there are proven techniques that will help you tackle similar knowledge with SuperMemo. All solutions are costly, but will pay handsomely in the long run. The basic principle is to gradually glue individual pieces to your overall knowledge structure and be as visual and mnemonic as possible:
Uniqueness of memories helps retention (#3855)
(Mike Condron, Wednesday, November
29, 2000 1:29 AM)
Question:
Some
esoteric facts I can hold with ease (e.g. 2 molecules of
tetrahydrofuran are used in purine synthesis) but others I can't (e.g.
which step in the TCA cycle makes FADH?)
Answer:
If you
make unique associations, they are subject to far less interference. As
such, they are easier to remember. In the presented example, you may
form a unique association: tetrahydrofuran-purine. However, you may
recall many pathways in which FAD plays a role. Even if you remember
which reactions are catalyzed by dehydrogenases, you may wonder if FAD
or NAD plays the role. In such hard cases, you may try to use mnemonic
techniques. Try to imagine FAD as your pet TCA torturer, and SUCCINATE
as your smiling face expressing SUCCESS. With this link, you may need
only 5-6 repetitions to retain FAD-succinate pair for lifetime
Sequential review
may be inefficient
(name zero,
Sep 23, 2010, 20:11:59)
Question:
When doing repetitions, there are sometimes two elements that must be
presented to me together, even in a particular order, e.g. questions
like Element 1: "What do you need to create a beam?" : "SomethingX",
and then the other element, Element 2: "What are the properties of
SomethingX?" : "some properties as answer". If just the second question
was presented to me it might be so much out of context, or there might
even be ambiguity, that I cannot answer the question properly. I
searched the help and there you recommend to cure problem b) by
creating bigger elements with more questions/answers in one element. I
don't really like this solution I'm afraid. There doesn't seem to be
anything in SuperMemo do achieve this, so that's why I am suggesting it
as feature request
Answer:
If you want to semantically connect a group of elements related to a
single subject in incremental reading, you can use subset review based
on the elements tree structure (see below). This way you can quickly
review all elements related to a topic of which, you believe, you lose
the grasp on the big picture. However, you should remember that you
will always minimize the review time, if you ensure all elements are
self-contained with their full context, and are reviewed independently.
Each review of a knowledge granule belonging to a larger well-connected
structure entails benefits to long-term retention, as well as benefits
to selected components of the structure itself. In your case, if you
have SomethingX well defined and remembered (in the ideal case), you
should not have problems with listing its properties. Note also that a
list of properties, is obviously a list (or a set), and should be
avoided in the learning process if possible due to its high expense.
Ideally, you would create topic with properties of SomethingX and
generate a number of cloze deletions that would help you recall all
individual properties independently.
As for the procedure for your desired sematic review, you can, for example, do the following:
Note that abusing the above procedure will add extra time to your long-term learning process, and increases the chances you will forget individual components of the structure due to the spacing effect that comes into force with premature review. A slightly more efficient variant is to review only a portion of the subset in question. As long as the big picture re-emgerges in your mind, it is advisable to move on with your normal (i.e. not structured) learning process. When reviewing the portion, depending on circumstances, you should sort the subset along the knowledge tree (if sequences are important), along the priorities, or randomly (for large sets, in which high priority elements are well consolidated and should not be given preference).
You are best at
judging your own item formulation
(M van der
Laan, Netherlands, Nov 04, 2010, 00:33:25)
Question:
In a lot of cases, I don�t ask the question in a question-like format.
Instead I may use a statement:
Some texts are too general to be handled efficiently with cloze deletions
(Carl S., Sat, 13 Apr 2013 16:10:12 +0200)
Question:
I did read all the 20 rules for knowledge formulation, and I think I understand them, but I am not sure how to properly apply them.
Example of piece of knowledge: A good enterprise architect should enable the right balance between the needs of the organization for an integrated IT strategy, permitting the closest possible synergy across the extended enterprise, and allowing individual business units to innovate safely in their pursuit of competitive advantage.
I have no problem understanding this phrase (synergy across business units must be balanced against freedom to innovate within business units), and I constructed two cloze deletions from it for either side of the balance, and when presented with either question I can fill in the blanks. Yet, I was in a discussion recently defending a synergy position, not realizing that it might jeopardize innovation, not even realizing I had this SuperMemo question pointing it out to me.
In other words, even though I can answer the question in SuperMemo, it is not something that stuck in my memory, i.e. the synergy is not associated with freedom-to-innovate and vice versa (maybe it will after this mail). So, I suspect that I am only able to answer the question based on recognition of the question or some such, and not on recognition of the association.
I figure that a better way to associate the two would be to ask something like "what must be balanced against each other" but this question would be so general in nature that it would create serious interference with other questions that deal with other aspects of enterprise architecture that need to be balanced against each other. Or I would have to make it more specific, again risking to give away the answer in the question, which would also not cause the association to form.
This question is but one example, but I have lots of such cases of hidden (as here) or explicit enumerations where I need to consider many elements together, and I fail to formulate my questions in such a way that these elements come together in my mind when I think about the subject.
Answer:In this case, keywords such as "synergy" or "innovate" might provide a hazy way to capture the meaning of the passage. However, very general texts are not suitable for treatment with cloze deletions. You may waste unnecessary time on re-reading the entire passage at questions time, or waste time on simplifying the passage to capture the essence. In school jargon, you might call similar passages "waffle". They may carry an important message, they may help the flow of text, they might be explanatory, but they do not yield material suitable for memorization. In the extreme case you can juxtapose Wikipedia-like "IT = Information Technology" with "waffle" that cannot be clozed: We should be nice for other people.
In all sorts of exams, you will always need to tackle lots of "waffle". You will also meet teachers who demand fluent "waffle" performance. However, this is not the type of knowledge that will make you a better expert or a better person. If you meet "waffle", pause to think if there are questions that truly flow from the text, or if the text is too general to be handled with SuperMemo. In your case, you might do better by perhaps adding some meatier passages on enterprise synergy or constraints on innovation or ... Actually, you are the best person to find supplementary material that will help you better understand the underlying issues.
If you are new to incremental reading, working with texts from Wikipedia can be an excellent training ground. Due to the nature of crowdsourcing, Wikipedia lends itself perfectly to incremental processing. Once you get the hang and feel the benefit, you will quickly learn to spot text and passages that are less suitable and provide less benefit when processed with incremental reading.