Step 1Take Smart Notes ‌Gather the Right Materials‌Take Smart Notes in Nontechnical Courses (What’s the Big Idea?) **Nontechnical course” refers to any course outside of math, science, economics, and engineering. ‌Format Your Notes Aggressively‌Capture Big Ideas by Using the Question/Evidence/Conclusion StructureQuestionEvidenceConclusion‌A Brief Example

Part-2 quizzes and exam

Take Smart Notes in Technical Courses (Where’s the Problem?)‌The key to taking notes in a technical course is to record as many sample problems as possible.‌Don’t Read Your Assignments, but Do Keep Them HandyPrioritize Your Note-taking‌First priority: Record the problem statement and answer.‌Second priority: Question the confusing‌Third priority: Record the steps of the sample problem.‌Final priority: Annotate the steps.

Demote Your Assignments‌Work Constantly‌every Sunday night and plan out the week‌complete one problem a day, one hour at a time.‌reading assignments—knock off a chapter a day‌Don’t Read Everything‌It’s important to triage your assignments: What do you need to read? What do you need to skim? And what can you skip entirely?”‌Always read the assignments from favored sources‌Readings that make an argument are more important than ‌readings that describe an event or person, which are more important than ‌readings that only provide context (i.e., speech transcripts, press clippings).

Step 2

‌In a course with no favored sources, readings that directly address the specific topic of the lecture act as the favored sources for the day. ‌Don’t Work Alone on Problem Sets ‌Solve Problems on the Go ‌Write Solutions Right the First Time

Marshal Your Resources ‌Define the Challenge• Which lectures and reading assignments (or problem sets) are fair game?• What type of questions will there be, and how many of each? “It’s helpful to know in advance what kind of knowledge will be asked for on the exam—IDs, dates, broad syntheses of the texts’ major arguments?”

Step 3

• Is the exam open note or open book? • For a technical class, will formulas be provided or do they need to be memorized? • How much time will be available? Does the professor expect the exam to be easy to complete during the test period or a challenge? ‌Build a Study Guide (Organizing Nontechnical Course Material) ‌Construct a Mega-Problem Set (Organizing Technical Course Material)

1. Match the lecture to the problem set that covers the same material. 2. Copy sample problems from these lecture notes onto a blank sheet of paper. You don’t have to copy the steps or the answers, just the questions. 3. Label the blank sheet of paper with the date of the lecture. This will help you later figure out where these problems came from (and more important, where their answers can be found). 4. Fasten this sheet with a paper clip to the problem set you matched it to in step one.

‌Prepare Memorization Aids using flash cards ‌Schedule Your Organization WiselyD on’t try to organize and study in the same day

Conquer the Material ‌Trust the Quiz-and-Recall Method‌Using the Quiz-and-Recall Method for Nontechnical Courses‌The physical act of writing and the manipulation of the material in my mind was usually enough to keep things straightput little check marks on your quizzes next to any questions that you had trouble answering.‌Using the Quiz-and-Recall Method for Technical Coursesthe important equations and concepts out by hand.‌Memorize over Time

Step 4

Invest in “Academic Disaster Insurance” ‌Eliminate Your Question Marks • Ask questions during class. • Develop the habit of talking to your professor briefly after class. • Ask classmates.• Come prepared to exam review sessions (if offered).

Step 5

Provide “A+” Answers The potential pitfalls during an exam are numerous, but the most common are: (1) running out of time and (2) providing answers that, although detailed, don’t fully answer all parts of the question being asked.

Step 6

Strategy #1: Review First, Answer Questions Later ‌Always read through the entire exam first Strategy #2: Build a Time Budget lay down very strict time limits for myself on each question ‌First, take the time allotted for the exam and subtract ten minutes. ‌Next, divide this amount by the number of questions. The result is how long you have to spend on each prompt.

Strategies 

‌For an exam with a small number of questions, mark right on the test pages the time when you should begin and finish each one. For an exam with many questions, divide the exam into equal fourths, then jot down the time you should begin and end each section ‌these recorded times will keep you updated on how close your current progress matches your predetermined schedule

Here is the second part of this books i reviewed, hope it will be useful to everyone. 

Looking to jumpstart your GPA? Most college students believe that straight A’s can be achieved only through cramming and painful all-nighters at the library. But Cal Newport knows that real straight-A students don’t study harder—they study smarter. A breakthrough approach to acing academic assignments, from quizzes and exams to essays and papers, How to Become a Straight-A Student reveals for the first time the proven study secrets of real straight-A students across the country and weaves them into a simple, practical system that anyone can master. You will learn how to: • Streamline and maximize your study time • Conquer procrastination • Absorb the material quickly and effectively • Know which reading assignments are critical—and which are not • Target the paper topics that wow professors • Provide A+ answers on exams • Write stellar prose without the agony A strategic blueprint for success that promises more free time, more fun, and top-tier results, How to Become a Straight-A Student is the only study guide written by students for students—with the insider knowledge and real-world methods to help you master the college system and rise to the top of the class.

productivity

Productivity

education

Learning & Education

books

Books

Looking to jumpstart your GPA? Most college students believe that straight A’s can be achieved only through cramming and painful all-nighters at the library. But Cal Newport knows that real straight-A students don’t study harder—they study smarter. A breakthrough approach to acing academic assignments, from quizzes and exams to essays and papers, How to Become a Straight-A Student reveals for the first time the proven study secrets of real straight-A students across the country and weaves them into a simple, practical system that anyone can master. You will learn how to:  • Streamline and maximize your study time  • Conquer procrastination  • Absorb the material quickly and effectively  • Know which reading assignments are critical—and which are not  • Target the paper topics that wow professors  • Provide A+ answers on exams  • Write stellar prose without the agony A strategic blueprint for success that promises more free time, more fun, and top-tier results, How to Become a Straight-A Student is the only study guide written by students for students—with the insider knowledge and real-world methods to help you master the college system and rise to the top of the class.

Cal Newport is Provost’s Distinguished Professor of Computer Science at Georgetown University, and the author of seven books. His ideas and writing are frequently featured in major publications and on TV and radio.From his website: "I write about the intersection of digital technology and culture. I’m particularly interested in our struggle to deploy these tools in ways that support instead of subvert the things we care about in both our personal and professional lives."

Cal Newport

How to Become a Straight-A Student

New knowledge or memory is not created by new neurons rather by existing ones firing over and over again. Another way memory is created is through strong activation once and only once called one trial learning it is most associated with negative events

Repetition Does Increase Memory  

<ul><li>Working memory: memories that you hold for a short amount of time and then discard right away </li><li>Long term memory: memories that you hold for a long term or life </li><li>Short term memory: memories you hold for a little while maybe a month and then discard </li></ul>

Different Types Of Memories 

<ol><li>Repitition and Recall: this is the most proven and most effective way to increase memory you strengthen the connections </li><li>Create a heighten emotional state it’s not just about stress but rather creating higher awareness </li></ol>You need to increase adrenaline to learn better there are multiple different ways of doing that

Tools For Increasing Memory 

Caffine could have a positive or a negative impact on the effects on learning Dont use Caffine too much while learning it increases your attention but decreases your retention so it is a slippery slope that you would need to be careful about.

The Effects Of Caffine In Learning 

To put it into action you need to increase the amount of emotions you feel immediately after learning something some ways you can do that is as follows <ol><li>Dip your hand in cold water right after learning it </li><li>take an ice bath </li><li>Drink Caffine</li><li>Go out for a hard run or do exercise </li></ol>The main goal of the podcast is that to drastically improve your memory you need to spike Adrenaline after learning

Putting It into Action 

Cardiovascular exercise is very key increasing memory because if Increases the memory neurons

Exercise Is One Of The Best Way To Increase Memory 

Taking photos is very effective in increasing memory it could happen via a mental snapshot or an actual device screenshot When we are taking a picture of something we are stamping down a visual memory but we are inhibiting the ability to rembeer the auditory or sound version it didn’t matter whether they look at the photos again or not

Taking Photos Is A Very Understated Way To Increase Memory 

Meditation can drasticallly improve memory though there are a lot of things to consider <ul><li>You need to do it for at least 8 weeks for it to occur just like lifting </li><li>Improvements are not obvious to see </li></ul>

Meditation Can Drastically Improve Memory

Wow, another great podcast. He breaks down how to dramatically improve memory here are the main points 

This episode I explain the mechanisms by which different types of memories are established in our brain and how to leverage the amount and timing of key neurochemicals and hormones, such as adrenaline (aka epinephrine) and cortisol, to improve your learning and memory abilities. I describe multiple science-based protocols to do this, including repetition, caffeine, emotional states, deliberate cold exposure, sleep, meditation, and the role of vision, including taking “mental snapshots.” I also describe how exercise and an associated hormone, osteocalcin, can improve cognitive ability and memory formation. I also describe unique aspects and forms of memory such as photographic memory, extreme facial recognition (aka super recognition), and the phenomenon known as déjà vu. Thank you to our sponsors Eight Sleep: https://www.eightsleep.com/huberman Thesis: https://takethesis.com/huberman InsideTracker: https://insidetracker.com/huberman Our Patreon page https://www.patreon.com/andrewhuberman Supplements from Momentous https://www.livemomentous.com/huberman. For the full show notes, visit hubermanlab.com. Timestamps (00:00:00) Memory, Improving Memory   (00:02:45) Eight Sleep, Thesis, InsideTracker  (00:07:54) Sensory Stimuli, Nervous System & Encoding Memory  (00:11:12) Context & Memory Formation  (00:13:46) Tool: Repetition, Improving Learning & Memory  (00:17:11) Co-Activation and intensity Neuron Activation   (00:20:50) Different Types of Memory (00:25:40) Memory Formation in the Brain, Hippocampus  (00:28:00) Hippocampus, Role in Memory & Learning, Explicit vs. Implicit Memory (00:31:49) Emotion & Memory Enhancement  (00:36:44) Tool: Emotion Saliency & Improved Memory (00:41:42) Conditioned-Placed Avoidance/Preference, Adrenaline  (00:47:14) Adrenaline & Cortisol   (00:49:35) Accelerating the Repetition Curve & Adrenaline  (00:53:03) Tool: Enhancing Learning & Memory - Caffeine, Alpha-GPC & Stimulant Timing (01:00:50) Tool: Enhancing Learning & Memory - Sleep, Non-Sleep Deep Rest (NSDR) (01:04:48) Tool: Enhancing Learning & Memory - Deliberate Cold Exposure, Adrenaline (01:08:42) Timing of Adrenaline Release & Memory Formation  (01:12:36) Chronically High Adrenaline & Cortisol, Impact on Learning & Memory  (01:15:12) Adrenaline Linked with Learning: Not a New Principle  (01:17:25) Amygdala, Adrenaline & Memory Formation, Generalization of Memories (01:22:20) Tool: Cardiovascular Exercise & Neurogenesis  (01:27:00) Cardiovascular Exercise, Osteocalcin & Improved Hippocampal Function (01:29:59) Load-Bearing Exercise, Osteocalcin & Cognitive Ability  (01:34:41) Tool: Timing of Exercise, Learning & Memory Enhancement (01:37:29) Photographic Memory (01:38:49) “Super Recognizers,” Facial Recognition    (01:41:46) Tool: Mental Snapshots, Photographs & Memory Enhancement (01:49:12) Déjà Vu (01:53:24) Tool: Meditation, Daily Timing of Meditation (02:02:21) How to Enhance Memory  (02:05:51) Zero-Cost Support, YouTube Feedback, Spotify & Apple Reviews, Sponsors, Patreon, Momentous Supplements, Instagram, Twitter, Neural Network Newsletter Title Card Photo Credit: Mike Blabac Disclaimer

health

Health

scienceandnature

Science & Nature

This episode I explain the mechanisms by which different types of memories are established in our brain and how to leverage the amount and timing of key neurochemicals and hormones, such as adrenaline (aka epinephrine) and cortisol, to improve your learning and memory abilities. I describe multiple science-based protocols to do this, including repetition, caffeine, emotional states, deliberate cold exposure, sleep, meditation, and the role of vision, including taking “mental snapshots.” I also describe how exercise and an associated hormone, osteocalcin, can improve cognitive ability and memory formation. I also describe unique aspects and forms of memory such as photographic memory, extreme facial recognition (aka super recognition), and the phenomenon known as déjà vu. For the full show notes, visit hubermanlab.com. Thank you to our sponsors AG1 (Athletic Greens): https://athleticgreens.com/huberman LMNT: https://drinklmnt.com/huberman Supplements from Momentous https://www.livemomentous.com/huberman Timestamps (00:00:00) Memory, Improving Memory   (00:03:09) Sponsors: AG1, LMNT (00:07:54) Sensory Stimuli, Nervous System & Encoding Memory  (00:11:12) Context & Memory Formation  (00:13:46) Tool: Repetition, Improving Learning & Memory  (00:17:11) Co-Activation and intensity Neuron Activation   (00:20:50) Different Types of Memory (00:25:40) Memory Formation in the Brain, Hippocampus  (00:28:00) Hippocampus, Role in Memory & Learning, Explicit vs. Implicit Memory (00:31:49) Emotion & Memory Enhancement  (00:36:44) Tool: Emotion Saliency & Improved Memory (00:41:42) Conditioned-Placed Avoidance/Preference, Adrenaline  (00:47:14) Adrenaline & Cortisol   (00:49:35) Accelerating the Repetition Curve & Adrenaline  (00:53:03) Tool: Enhancing Learning & Memory - Caffeine, Alpha-GPC & Stimulant Timing (01:00:50) Tool: Enhancing Learning & Memory - Sleep, Non-Sleep Deep Rest (NSDR) (01:04:48) Tool: Enhancing Learning & Memory - Deliberate Cold Exposure, Adrenaline (01:08:42) Timing of Adrenaline Release & Memory Formation  (01:12:36) Chronically High Adrenaline & Cortisol, Impact on Learning & Memory  (01:15:12) Adrenaline Linked with Learning: Not a New Principle  (01:17:25) Amygdala, Adrenaline & Memory Formation, Generalization of Memories (01:22:20) Tool: Cardiovascular Exercise & Neurogenesis  (01:27:00) Cardiovascular Exercise, Osteocalcin & Improved Hippocampal Function (01:29:59) Load-Bearing Exercise, Osteocalcin & Cognitive Ability  (01:34:41) Tool: Timing of Exercise, Learning & Memory Enhancement (01:37:29) Photographic Memory (01:38:49) “Super Recognizers,” Facial Recognition    (01:41:46) Tool: Mental Snapshots, Photographs & Memory Enhancement (01:49:12) Déjà Vu (01:53:24) Tool: Meditation, Daily Timing of Meditation (02:02:21) How to Enhance Memory  (02:05:51) Zero-Cost Support, YouTube Feedback, Spotify & Apple Reviews, Sponsors, Momentous Supplements, Instagram, Twitter, Neural Network Newsletter Title Card Photo Credit: Mike Blabac Disclaimer

Huberman Lab discusses neuroscience: how our brain and its connections with the organs of our body control our perceptions, our behaviors, and our health. We also discuss existing and emerging tools for measuring and changing how our nervous system works. Dr. Andrew Huberman is a tenured professor of neurobiology and ophthalmology at Stanford School of Medicine. His laboratory studies neural regeneration, neuroplasticity, and brain states such as stress, focus, fear, and optimal performance. For more than 20 years, Dr. Huberman has consistently published original research findings and review articles in top-level peer-reviewed journals, including Nature, Science, Cell, Neuron, and Current Biology. He is a regular member of several National Institutes of Health review panels and a Fellow of the McKnight Foundation and the Pew Charitable Trusts. Dr. Huberman regularly consults for technology development companies, professional athletic organizations, and various units of U.S. and Canadian Special Operations.

Huberman Lab

Understand & Improve Memory Using Science-Based Tools

Understand & Improve Memory Using Science-Based Tools | Episode 72

"Do everything you have to do, but not with greed, not with ego, not with lust, not with envy but with love, compassion, humility and devotion."

"Bigger the ego, smaller the mind."

"Do your duty without thinking of it's result. Your time will teach you everything, just don't forget to learn from it."

"Talk to yourself once a day, otherwise you will not be able to talk to the most important man of the world."

"A man is made by his beliefs. As he believes, so he becomes."

motivationandinspiration

Motivation & Inspiration

Teachings of Shree Krishna

work accomplished = time spent x intensity of focus.maximizes intensity in order to minimize time.‌the ability to get work done quickly and with a minimum of wasted effort.‌to obtain the highest possible levels of intensity, you need to choose the right locations, times of day, and durations to study.

Need To Keep In Mind

#Step 1Manage Your Time in Five Minutes a Day 1. A calendar2. A listHow to apply:-(1) Jot down new tasks and assignments on your list during the day; (2) next morning, transfer these new items from your list onto your calendar; and (3) then take a couple of minutes to plan your day.‌Update Your Calendar Each Morning‌Try to label each of your to-dos for the day with a specific time period during which you are going to complete it.

Part 1 Study Basics

is to record the tasks you will have time for into the Today’s Schedule column of your list. As shown in Figure 1, label each task with its time. That’s it. You can now reference your list throughout the day to remind yourself of what you should be doing and when. ‌The main reason you break down your to-dos into time slots is to help you avoid the common student mistake of overestimating your free time. ‌if you’re completing most of what’s on your list at least five days out of seven, then you’re as productive as any student realistically needs to .

Declare War on ProcrastinationProcrastination Battle Plan #1: Keep a work progress journal Buy a cheap spiral notebook, and keep it near your calendar. Each morning, when you work out your schedule for the day, quickly jot down in the notebook the date and the most important tasks that you are scheduled to get done. At the end of the day, if you’ve completed all of these tasks, simply jot down all completed. If you failed to complete some tasks, record this, along with a quick explanation.

Step 2 

Procrastination Battle Plan #2: Feed the Machine1. Drink water constantly2. Monitor your caffeine intake carefully3. Treat food as a source of energy, not satisfaction.4. Don’t skip meals. Procrastination Battle Plan #3: Make an event out of the worst tasksProcrastination Battle Plan #4: Build a routineThe idea is to build a routine in which you use the same reserved time slot each week to do the same thing, with the goal of transforming these slices of work into a habit, something you no longer have to convince yourself to do.Procrastination Battle Plan #5: Choose your hard days

Procrastination Battle Plan #2: Feed the Machine

Choose When, Where, and How Long When during the day should you study? Where should you go to study? How long should you study before taking a break? QUESTION: When is the best time to study?ANSWER: EarlyYou’re most effective between when you wake up and afternoon.try to take a book I need to read along with me all the time, in case some free time pops up while I’m doing something else. QUESTION: Where should you study?ANSWER: In isolation QUESTION: How long should you study?ANSWER: No more than one hour at a time without a break.‌study for an hour, then take a break

This is part one idea i learnt in this book , this book is useful for every student , either you in school, in university ( regular or distance)

Offers time-management strategies, tips on taking tests, techniques for writing essays better and faster, and self-assessment tests to help students analyze their study skills.

The greatest ideas are the simplest. Now there was something to be done they worked with passion”

“People don’t help much.”

“Thought was a valuable thing, that got results.”

“There is nothing in it of course. Just a feeling. But you can feel as if you’re not hunting, but – being hunted, as if something’s behind you all the time in the jungle.”

Sucks to your ass-mar!”

“If faces were different when lit from above or below — what was a face? What was anything?”

These Lord of the Flies quotes show the importance of working together toward a common goal instead of fighting.

These Lord of the Flies quotes by William Golding with page numbers show the importance of working together toward a common goal instead of fighting.

personaldevelopment

Personal Development

artificialintelligence

Artificial Intelligence

50 Lord of the Flies Quotes With Page Numbers by William Golding

Objects in motion tend to stay in motion. And that means getting started is the hardest part.

Use your ritual as an on-ramp for the bigger behavior and habits you want to build into your life. When you master the ability to mindlessly initiate the tasks that are important to you, it's not necessary to rely on motivation and willpower to make them happen.

If you focus on the ritual, the next step follows more automatically.



James Clear on How to Be Motivated Every Day

Twyla Tharp uses rituals and routines to master her motivation. You can borrow her strategies to be motivated every day with the perfect morning routine.

habits

Habits

How to Be Motivated Every Day: Lessons Learned from Twyla Tharp

By the time you finish reading, you’ll have a framework for reading at different levels that you can apply right away.How We Learn To ReadI bet you already know how to read a book. You were taught in elementary school.But do you know how to read well?There is a difference between reading for understanding and reading for information. If you’re like most people, you probably haven’t given much thought to how you read. And how you read makes a massive difference to knowledge accumulation.

The Ultimate Guide to read a book
by Mortimer Adler

A lot of people confuse knowing the name of something with understanding. While great for exercising your memory, the regurgitation of facts without solid understanding and context gains you little in the real world.A useful heuristic: Anything easily digested is reading for information. Consider the newspaper, are you truly learning anything new? Do you consider the writer your superior when it comes to knowledge of the subject? The odds are probably not. That means you’re reading for information. It means you’re likely to parrot an opinion that isn’t yours as if you had done the work.

This is how most people read. But most people aren’t really learning anything new. It’s not going to give you an edge, make you better at your job, or allow you to avoid problems. Learning something insightful requires mental work. It’s uncomfortable. If it doesn’t hurt, you’re not learning. You need to find writers who are more knowledgeable on a particular subject than you. By narrowing the gap between the author and yourself, you get smarter.

“Marking a book is literally an experience of yourdifferences or agreements with the author. It is the highest respect you can pay him.”

Mortimer Adler literally wrote the book on reading. Adler identifies four levels of reading: 1. Elementary Reading2. Inspectional Reading3. Analytical Reading4. Syntopical Reading

The Four Levels of Reading

The goal of reading determines how you read. Reading the latest Danielle Steel novel is not the same as reading Plato. If you’re reading for entertainment or information, you’re going to read a lot differently (and likely different material) than reading to increase understanding. While many people are proficient in reading for information and entertainment, few improve their ability to read for knowledge.

How You Read Matches Why You’re Reading

Before we can improve our reading skills, we need to understand the differences in the reading levels. They are thought of as levels because you can’t move to a higher level without a firm understanding of the previous one — they are cumulative.

This is the level of reading taught in our elementary schools. If you’re reading this website, you already know how to do this.

1. Elementary Reading

We’ve been taught that skimming and superficial reading are bad for understanding. That is not necessarily the case. Using these tools effectively can increase understanding. Inspectional reading allows us to look at the author’s blueprint and evaluate the merits of a deeper reading experience. There are two sub-types of inspectional reading:<ul><li>Systematic skimming</li><li>Superficial reading</li></ul>

2. Inspectional Reading

Systematic skimming — This is meant to be a quick check of the book by(1) reading the preface;(2) studying the table of contents;(3) checking the index; and(4) reading the inside jacket.This should give you sufficient knowledge to understand the chapters in the book, pivotal to the author’s argument. Dip in here and there, but never with more than a paragraph or two. Skimming helps you reach a decision point: Does this book deserve more of my time and attention? If not, you put it down.

Superficial reading — This is when you just read. Don’t ponder the argument, don’t look things up, don’t write in the margins. If you don’t understand something, move on.What you gain from this quick read will help you later when you go back and put more effort into reading. You now come to another decision point. Now that you have a better understanding of the book’s contents and its structure, do you want to understand it? Inspectional reading gives you the gist of things. Sometimes that’s all we want or need. But sometimes we want more. Sometimes we want to understand.

Francis Bacon once remarked, “some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”You can think of analytical reading as doing that chewing and digesting. This is doing the work. Analytical reading is a thorough reading. If inspectional reading is the best you can do quickly, this is the best reading you can do given time.At this point, you start to engage your mind and dig into the work required to understand what’s being said.

3. Analytical Reading

There are four rules to Analytical Reading:<ul><li>Classify the book according to kind and subject matter.</li><li>State what the whole book is about with the utmost brevity.</li><li>Enumerate its major parts in their order and relation, and outline these parts as you have outlined the whole.</li><li>Define the problem or problems the author is trying to solve.</li></ul> You’ll probably notice that while those sound pretty easy, they involve a lot of work. Luckily the inspectional reading you’ve already done has primed you for this.

After an inspectional read, you will understand the book and the author’s views. But that doesn’t mean you’ll understand the broader subject. To do that, you need to use comparative reading to synthesize knowledge from several books on the same subject.

This is also known as comparative reading, and it represents the most demanding and difficult reading of all. Syntopical Reading involves reading many books on the same subject and comparing and contrasting ideas, vocabulary, and arguments. This task is undertaken by identifying relevant passages, translating the terminology, framing and ordering the questions that need answering, defining the issues, and having a conversation with the responses. The goal is not to achieve an overall understanding of any particular book, but rather to understand the subject and develop a deep fluency.

4. Syntopical Reading

This is all about identifying and filling in your knowledge gaps. There are five steps to syntopical reading: 1. Finding the Relevant Passages — You need to find the right books and then the passages that are most relevant to filling your needs. So the first step is an inspectional reading of all the works that you have identified as relevant.

2. Bringing the Author to Terms — In analytical reading, you must identify the keywords and how they are used by the author. This is fairly straightforward. The process becomes more complicated now as each author has probably used different terms and concepts to frame their argument. Now the onus is on you to establish the terms. Rather than using the author’s language, you must use your own. In short, this is an exercise in translation and synthesis.

3. Getting the Questions Clear — Rather than focus on the problems the author is trying to solve, you need to focus on the questions that you want to be answered. Just as we must establish our own terminology, so too must we establish our own propositions by shedding light on the problems to which the authors provide answers. It’s important to frame the questions in such a way that all or most of the authors can be interpreted as providing answers. Sometimes we might not get an answer to our questions because they might not have been seen as questions by the authors.

4. Defining the Issues — If you’ve asked a clear question to which there are multiple answers then an issue has been defined. Opposing answers, now translated into your terms, must be ordered in relation to one another. Understanding multiple perspectives on an issue helps you form an intelligent opinion.

5. Analyzing the Discussion — It’s presumptuous to expect we’ll find a single unchallenged truth to any of our questions. Our answer is the conflict of opposing answers. The value is the discussion you have with these authors. You can now have an informed opinion.

Reading is all about asking the right questions in the right order and seeking answers.There are four main questions you need to ask of every book:<ul><li>What is this book about?</li><li>What is being said in detail, and how?</li><li>Is this book true in whole or in part?</li><li>What of it?</li></ul> If all of this sounds like hard work, you’re right. Most people won’t do it. That’s what sets you apart :)

Becoming a Demanding Reader

This book explains not just why we should read books, but how we should read them. It's masterfully done.

How to Read a Book

When we see the Earth from space, we see ourselves as a whole. We see the unity, and not the divisions. It is such a simple image with a compelling message; one planet, one human race.

<ul><li> At the instant of the Big Bang , Time itself began 🤯.</li><li>There was no time before the Big Bang. </li><li>So there is no time for God to make the universe in.</li><li>No one created the universe and no one directs our fate. </li><li>There is probably no heaven and afterlife either. Belief in an afterlife is just wishful thinking. </li><li>When we die we return to dust.</li></ul>

IS THERE A GOD?

<ul><li>….. was a star so massive that it had collapsed in on itself.</li><li> It’s so massive that not even light can escape its gravity, which is why it’s almost perfectly black. </li><li>It’s gravitational pull is so powerful, it warps and distorts not only light but also time.</li><li>Black holes are formed when stars collapse by its own gravity.</li></ul>

What Are Black Holes ?

<ul><li> Stars supports itself against its own gravity through the creation of thermal pressure. </li><li>Inside every star, a huge amount of energy is being generated through nuclear reactions (fusion) which convert hydrogen into helium.</li><li>Eventually, a star will run out of nuclear fuel. When this happens, most stars draw all surrounding matter inward and contract to an infinitely dense, infinitely small point or singularity – this is the black hole.</li></ul>

So Why Isn’t Our Sun Currently Not Collapsing?

<ul><li>In nanoseconds, the universe went from an infinitely dense point ( maybe smaller than a proton ) to a rapidly expanding body which continues to grow today.</li><li>Evidence supporting such a theory first appeared in 1965, with the discovery of faint background microwaves in space. </li><li>These microwaves are likely leftover radiation from an initial “bang.”</li></ul>

What’s A Big Bang ?

<ul><li>Most massive objects – like black holes – can warp space-time so violently that time itself stops.</li><li>By following the “chain of causality” back to its furthest point, we can prove the Big Bang couldn’t have a cause because time didn’t exist.</li><li> There was no time for a cause to exist in.🤯</li></ul>

 What Came Before The Big Bang ?

<ul><li> Hawking discovered that black holes release particles at a steady rate ( Hawking Radiation).</li><li>His theory argues that space is filled with particles and antiparticles. They’re in a constant process of bonding, separating and then annihilating one another.</li><li>The complex interaction of these pairs with black holes – particularly when partners are separated by the event horizon – causes black holes to lose mass, shrink and eventually disappear.</li></ul>

Even Light Cannot Escape A Black Hole – But Something Can !! 🤯

“When you look at the vast size of the universe, and how insignificant and accidental human life is in it, that seems most implausible.”

<ul><li>Space and energy can materialise out of nothing. The laws of physics demand the existence of something called “negative energy.”</li></ul>Imagine a man wants to build a hill , To make this hill he digs a hole in the ground and uses that soil to dig his hill. But of course he’s not just making a hill—he’s also making a hole, a negative version of the hill. Here, The Hole is negative energy and the hill is positive energy.

What Is A Negative Energy ?

<ul><li>Space itself is a vast store of negative energy. Enough to ensure that everything adds up to zero.</li><li>The universe is like an enormous battery storing negative energy.</li><li>It means that if the universe adds up to nothing, then we don’t need a God to create it.</li><li> The universe is the ultimate free lunch.</li><li>Positive energy is the matter which has mass.</li></ul>

So Where Is All This Negative Energy Today ?

<ol><li>The first is matter—stuff that has mass.</li><li>The second thing we need is energy.</li><li>The third thing we need to build a universe is space.</li></ol>

What Are The Three Ingredients We Need To Cook Up A Universe?

<ul><li>Einstein realised that two of the main ingredients needed to make a universe—mass and energy—are basically the same thing.🤯</li><li>His famous equation E = mc^2 simply means that mass can be thought of as a kind of energy, and vice versa.</li><li>So instead of three ingredients, we can now say that the universe has just two: energy and space.</li></ul>

Mass And Energy Relationship 

<ul><li>The universe is a machine governed by principles or laws.</li><li>The laws of nature are a description of how things actually work in the past, present and future.</li></ul>

Forces And Laws Govern Our Universe 

Laplace argued that if we knew the positions and speeds of all the universe’s particles, we could calculate their future behavior.But Heisenberg discovered that due to the way , light waves are packaged into discrete units called quanta, “you cannot measure both the speed and position of a particle simultaneously; the more accurately you measure one, the less accurately you can measure the other”. This rule became known as the uncertainty principle.

It Might Be Possible To Predict The Future –But It’s Unlikely

In quantum mechanics, particles do not possess well-defined positions and speeds. Rather, these values are represented by something called a wave function. A wave function is a set of numbers, each one representing a different point of space. The size of the wave function predicts the probability that the particle will be found in each point of space.So, We can’t predict the future but we can make it :)

Quantum Mechanics

<ul><li>Global warming might be Earth’s most immediate threat, but we also face a greater one: nuclear annihilation.</li><li>Our planet could end up like the surface of Venus – a planet not known for its hospitable conditions (250 degree Celcius and evening showers of sulphuric acid).</li><li>In the planet’s present state, it’s almost inevitable that either nuclear war or environmental disaster will devastate Earth in the next 1,000 years.</li><li>By that point, though, humanity will hopefully have the technology to escape the planet and survive disaster.</li></ul>

To Survive On Earth, We Need To Take Immediate Action

………suggests that “computers can double their speed and capacity every 18 months. If our gadgets keep following Moore’s law, AI may surpass human intelligence within the next hundred years, making the possibility of a self-aware Skynet less remote.”

Moore’s Law

<ul><li>It’s estimated that 20 percent of all stars have Earth-like planets orbiting them in the Goldilocks Zone . ( a region capable of sustaining life because it’s not too distant from its star to be an icy wasteland, but not close enough to fry its inhabitants)</li><li>There are roughly 200 billion stars in our galaxy, the Milky Way. This potentially gives us forty billion Earth-like planets just in our cosmic neighborhood.</li><li>Other lifeforms might not have been so lucky :)</li></ul>

There’s No Easy Answer To The Question Of Alien Life

“We are inconsequential cosmic dust, bumping and milling about on a tiny blue speck. We imagine our own importance. We invent our purpose—we are nothing. Enjoy your f*cking coffee.”

“So remember to look up at the stars and not at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious. And however difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at. It matters that you don't just give up. Unleash your imagination. Shape the future.”

If time travel is possible, where are the tourists from the future?

THE NO.1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 'A beautiful little book by a brilliant mind' DAILY TELEGRAPH 'Effortlessly instructive, absorbing, up to the minute and - where it matters - witty' GUARDIAN The world-famous cosmologist and #1 bestselling author of A Brief History of Time leaves us with his final thoughts on the universe's biggest questions in this brilliant posthumous work. Is there a God? How did it all begin? Can we predict the future? What is inside a black hole? Is there other intelligent life in the universe? Will artificial intelligence outsmart us? How do we shape the future? Will we survive on Earth? Should we colonise space? Is time travel possible? Throughout his extraordinary career, Stephen Hawking expanded our understanding of the universe and unravelled some of its greatest mysteries. But even as his theoretical work on black holes, imaginary time and multiple histories took his mind to the furthest reaches of space, Hawking always believed that science could also be used to fix the problems on our planet. And now, as we face potentially catastrophic changes here on Earth - from climate change to dwindling natural resources to the threat of artificial super-intelligence - Stephen Hawking turns his attention to the most urgent issues for humankind. Wide-ranging, intellectually stimulating, passionately argued, and infused with his characteristic humour, Brief Answers to the Big Questions, the final book from one of the greatest minds in history, is a personal view on the challenges we face as a human race, and where we, as a planet, are heading next. A percentage of all royalties will go to charity.

problemsolving

Problem Solving

#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The world-famous cosmologist and author of A Brief History of Time leaves us with his final thoughts on the biggest questions facing humankind. “Hawking’s parting gift to humanity . . . a book every thinking person worried about humanity’s future should read.”—NPR NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY Forbes • The Guardian • Wired Stephen Hawking was the most renowned scientist since Einstein, known both for his groundbreaking work in physics and cosmology and for his mischievous sense of humor. He educated millions of readers about the origins of the universe and the nature of black holes, and inspired millions more by defying a terrifying early prognosis of ALS, which originally gave him only two years to live. In later life he could communicate only by using a few facial muscles, but he continued to advance his field and serve as a revered voice on social and humanitarian issues. Hawking not only unraveled some of the universe’s greatest mysteries but also believed science plays a critical role in fixing problems here on Earth. Now, as we face immense challenges on our planet—including climate change, the threat of nuclear war, and the development of artificial intelligence—he turns his attention to the most urgent issues facing us. Will humanity survive? Should we colonize space? Does God exist? ​​These are just a few of the questions Hawking addresses in this wide-ranging, passionately argued final book from one of the greatest minds in history. Featuring a foreword by Eddie Redmayne, who won an Oscar playing Stephen Hawking, an introduction by Nobel Laureate Kip Thorne, and an afterword from Hawking’s daughter, Lucy, Brief Answers to the Big Questions is a brilliant last message to the world. Praise for Brief Answers to the Big Questions “[Hawking is] a symbol of the soaring power of the human mind.”—The Washington Post “Hawking’s final message to readers . . . is a hopeful one.”—CNN “Brisk, lucid peeks into the future of science and of humanity.”—The Wall Street Journal “Hawking pulls no punches on subjects like machines taking over, the biggest threat to Earth, and the possibilities of intelligent life in space.”—Quartz “Effortlessly instructive, absorbing, up to the minute and—where it matters—witty.”—The Guardian “This beautiful little book is a fitting last twinkle from a new star in the firmament above.”—The Telegraph

Stephen Hawking is an accomplished writer whose work has resonated with readers around the world. Stephen Hawking has published several books that explore a range of topics, from fiction to nonfiction, and has received critical acclaim for the ability to weave compelling narratives. Stephen Hawking's writing style is known for its depth and authenticity, and has earned quite a loyal following of readers.

Stephen Hawking

Brief Answers to the Big Questions

Digital marketing has a long list of marketing specialisations: social media marketing, search engine optimisation, email marketing, marketing automation and more. There are specific skills that are fundamental to all of them. The sooner you learn these universal skills, the better because those skills act as investments.

Digital Marketing Specialisations

Metrics, graphs, trends, statistics, and predictive analytics depend on data. Therefore, marketers should be able to do the following very well: <ol><li>Report on the past – For example, calculating the conversion rate from trial signups to paid subscriptions.</li><li>Analyse the present – For example, calculating the lifetime value of customers.</li><li>Predict the future – For example, what type of message can increase your chances of converting the user.</li><li>Compare with competitors – For example, what keywords your competitors target that you do not.</li></ol>

Data literacy

Even if you don't specialise in a particular marketing channel, you need to understand how they work.<ul><li>You will possibly need to work on the intersection of various digital channels.</li><li>Your target audience will most likely hang out on different websites and platforms.</li></ul> Brands need to embrace omnichannel marketing to ensure a seamless experience. It means digital marketers need to become experts at some of them but understand all of them.

Understanding different marketing channels

Only video marketing and podcast marketing don’t utilize text as the main medium but even videos and podcasts start as text. Everyone can learn to write well. This job isn’t about creating the next blockbuster novel. It’s about writing clearly and convincingly. To get you started, here’s a <a href="https://www.julian.com/guide/write/intro">great, free guide on writing by Julian Shapiro</a>.

Copywriting

Marketing technology, or martech, makes digital marketing possible. Better tools can make you more effective. Many essential marketing tools have free trials or free versions. In addition, they often have certification programs. For example,<ul><li>Doing SEO with zero budget, you can get <a href="https://ahrefs.com/webmaster-tools">Ahrefs Webmaster Tools</a> for free.</li><li>Google Analytics has a <a href="https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/6367342?hl=en#zippy=%2Cin-this-article">demo account</a> with prefilled data and a <a href="https://analytics.google.com/analytics/academy/">free certification program</a>.</li><li>You'll also need to be acquainted with Google Sheets. Browse through <a href="https://sheetsformarketers.com/">Sheets for Marketers</a> to see what kinds of reports you can build with this free tool.</li></ul>

Getting around essential digital marketing tools

Design can show the user where to click or convey what your brand is about. To get better at it, you should:<ul><li>Understand the basic <a href="https://www.smashingmagazine.com/2008/01/10-principles-of-effective-web-design/">web design principles</a>.</li><li>Learn how you can create better experiences for your users with <a href="https://www.uxpin.com/studio/ebooks/ux-design-for-startups/">UX design</a>.</li><li>Follow <a href="https://designmodo.com/web-design-trends-2022/">web design trends</a>. </li><li>Start experimenting with design software such as Canva, Genially, UXPin, Figma and Webflow. Marketers design graphics for content, ads, infographics, presentations,  wireframes, and, sometimes, entire landing pages.</li></ul>

Basic design skills

Assertiveness is the ability to express your opinions and know how to stand up for your beliefs. It’s the art of saying “no” in the workplace without being hostile or aggressive. Start practising assertiveness in some typical, everyday life situations.<ul><li>Speak up when you’d rather watch a movie at home instead of going out.</li><li>Let your partner know you won’t be able to do a specific errand without offering a detailed backstory.</li><li>Visit a new restaurant and ask for a table that’s in a quieter area or near a window.</li></ul>

Assertiveness

Work on these skills:<ul><li>Active listening – Be open-minded and empathetic toward others.</li><li>Fostering positive feelings – S<a href="https://hbr.org/2008/09/social-intelligence-and-the-biology-of-leadership">tudies</a> have shown that this is crucial to effective leadership.</li><li>Observe managers in your workplace and try to identify how their actions and words affected others – Did they inspire people to do better work? Do people feel comfortable sharing opinions around them? What would you do differently?</li></ul>

Social intelligence

Critical thinking can be seen as healthy skepticism. It's about not accepting things at face value when they lead to important decisions. To develop an objective and independent opinion, you need to be able to question ideas to uncover<ul><li>the kind of argument or evidence that supports an idea and</li><li>what a given idea leads to.</li></ul>

Critical thinking

There’s always something new to learn. You'll need to stay up to date with new technologies, new tactics, new philosophies, Google’s algorithm updates, industry regulations, etc. Optimise information gathering by following content curations, e.g., newsletters curated by industry pros.

Curiosity (Continuous learning)

The market and your goals may frequently change in marketing. You may work on a blog post one day and be doing conversion optimisation experiments on the next. Acknowledge that things can change quite fast in this type of work. Reacting to change is part of the game.

Adaptability

Ethics is an area where a person should make conscious decisions. It is a marathon. No one will want to work with you if you're not reliable, honest and respectful.

Strong work ethic

The recent popularity of growth marketing - a <a href="https://ahrefs.com/blog/types-of-marketing/">type of marketing</a> - is characterised mainly by prioritising data over opinions. The source of that data is often experimentation. Performing experiments involves devising hypotheses and designing experiments to validate them. A useful framework to perform marketing experiments:<ul><li>Analyze – Uncover areas of growth opportunities.</li><li>Ideate – Generate ideas on how to improve the focus area and turn them into an idea pipeline</li><li>Prioritize ideas by using the <a href="https://www.productplan.com/glossary/ice-scoring-model/">ICE scoring model</a> </li><li>Test – Conduct the experiment and analyze the results</li></ul>

Performing experiments

Developing skills needs time. Developing these skills is time well spent.

14 Universal Digital Marketing Skills You Can’t Ignore

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Read like a Pro.

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Understand & Improve Memory Using Science-Based Tools | Episode 72

Teachings of Shree Krishna

How to Become a Straight-A Student

50 Lord of the Flies Quotes With Page Numbers by William Golding

How to Be Motivated Every Day: Lessons Learned from Twyla Tharp

How to Read a Book

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It's time to Read like a Pro.

It's time to
Read like a Pro.