作者：Paul? N.? Edwards -School ?of ?Information?University ?of ?Michigan

How can you learn the most from a book — or any other piece of writing — when you're reading?for information, rather than for pleasure?

It’s satisfying to start at the beginning and read straight through to the end. Some books, such as?novels, have to be read this way, since a basic principle of fiction is to hold the reader in?suspense.

Your whole purpose in reading fiction is to follow the writer’s lead, allowing him or?her to spin a story bit by bit.

But many of the books, articles, and other documents you’ll read during your undergraduate?and graduate years, and possibly during the rest of your professional life, won’t be novels.

Instead, they’ll be non-fiction: textbooks, manuals, journal articles, histories, academic studies,?and so on.

The purpose of reading things like this is to gain, and retain, information. Here, finding out what?happens — as quickly and easily as possible — is your main goal.

?So unless you’re stuck in prison?with nothing else to do, NEVER read a non-fiction book or article from beginning to end.

Instead, when you’re reading for information, you should ALWAYS jump ahead, skip around, and?use every available strategy to discover, then to understand, and finally to remember what the?writer has to say.

This is how you’ll get the most out of a book in the smallest amount of time.

Using the methods described here, you should be able to read a 300-page book in six to eight?hours.

Of course, the more time you spend, the more you’ll learn and the better you’ll?understand the book. But your time is limited.

Here are some strategies to help you do this effectively. Most of these can be applied not only?to books, but also to any other kind of non-fiction reading, from articles to websites.?

Table 1, on?the next page, summarizes the techniques, and the following pages explain them in more detail.

亂入Table1.Summaryofreadingstrategiesandtechniques

策略1·Read? the? whole? thing

理由：Major? arguments? and? evidence? matter? more? than? details.?Grasping ?the ?structure ?of ?the ?whole ?is ?more ?important ?than?reading ?every ?word.

策略2·Decide? how? much? time? you?will ?spend

理由：Real--‐world? time? is? limited.? If? you? know? exactly? how? long? you

can ?actually ?spend ?on ?reading, ?you ?can ?plan ?how ?much ?time?to ?devote ?to ?each ?item.

策略3·Have? a? purpose? and? a?strategy

理由：You'll? enjoy? reading? more,? and? remember? it? better,? if? you?know ?exactly ?why ?you're ?reading.

策略4·Read? actively

理由：Never? rely? on? the? author's? structures? alone.? Move? around? in?the ?text, ?following ?your ?own ?goals.

策略5·Read? it? three? times

理由：First? time? for? overview? and? discovery.? Second? time? for?detail ?and ?understanding. Third ?time ?for ?note--‐taking ?in ?your?own ?words.

策略6·Focus? on? parts? with? high?information ?content

理由：Tables? of? contents,? pictures,? charts,? headings,? and? other?elements ?contain ?more ?information ?than ?body ?text.

策略7·Use? PTML? (personal? text?markup ?language)

理由：Mark? up? your? reading? with? your? own? notes.? This? helps? you?learn ?and ?also ?helps ?you ?find ?important ?passages ?later.

策略8·Know? the? author(s)? and?organizations

理由：Authors? are? people? with? backgrounds? and? biases.? They?work ?in ?organizations ?that ?give ?them ?context ?and ?depth.

策略9·Know? the? intellectual?context

理由：Most? academic? writing? is? part? of? an? ongoing? intellectual?conversation, ?with ?debates, ?key ?figures, ?and ?paradigmatic?concepts.

策略10·Use? your? unconscious? mind

理由：Leave? time? between? reading? sessions? for? your? mind? to?process ?the ?material.

策略11·Rehearse,? and? use? multiple?modes

理由：Talking,? visualizing,? or? writing? about? what? you've? read? helps?you ?remember ?it.

1·Read the whole thing!

In reading to learn, your goal should always be to get all the way through the assignment.

It’s much more important to have a general grasp of the arguments or hypotheses,?evidence, and conclusions than to understand every detail.

In fact, no matter how carefully?you read, you won’t remember most of the details anyway.

What you can do is remember and record the main points. And if you remember those, you?know enough to find the material again if you ever do need to recall the details.

2·Decide? how? much? time? you? will? spend

If? you? know? in? advance? that? you? have? only? six? hours? to? read,? it’ll? be? easier? to? pace? yourself.

Remember, ?you’re ?going ?to ?read ?the ?whole ?book ?(or ?the ?whole ?assignment).

In? fact,? the? more? directly? and? realistically? you? confront? your? limits,? the? more? effective? you?will ?be ?at ?practically ?everything. ?

Setting ?time ?limits ?and ?keeping ?to ?them ?(while?accomplishing ?your ?goals) ?is ?one ?of ?the ?most ?important ?life ?skills ?you ?can ?learn. ?So ?never?start ?to ?read ?without ?planning ?when ?to ?stop.

3·Have? a? purpose? and? a? strategy

Before? you? begin,? figure? out? why? you? are? reading? this? particular? book,? and? how? you? are?going ?to ?read ?it.?

?If ?you ?don’t ?have ?reasons ?and ?strategies ?of ?your ?own ?— ?not ?just ?those ?of?your ?teacher ?— ?you ?won’t ?learn ?as ?much.

As? soon? as? you? start? to? read,? begin? trying? to? find? out? four? things:

?? Who? is? the? author?

? ?What ?are ?the ?book’s ?arguments?

? ?What ?is ?the ?evidence ?that ?supports ?these?

? ?What ?are ?the ?book’s ?conclusions?

Once? you’ve? got? a? grip? on? these,? start? trying? to? determine:

?? What? are? the? weaknesses? of? these? arguments,? evidence,? and? conclusions?

? ?What ?do ?you ?think ?about ?the ?arguments, ?evidence, ?and ?conclusions?

? ?How ?does ?(or ?how ?could) ?the ?author ?respond ?to ?these ?weaknesses, ?and ?to?your ?own ?criticisms?

Keep? coming? back? to? these? questions? as? you? read.? By? the? time? you? finish,? you? should? be? able?to ?answer ?them ?all. ?Three ?good ?ways ?to ?think ?about ?this ?are:

a)? Imagine? that? you’re? going? to? review? the? book? for? a? magazine.

b) ?Imagine ?that ?you’re ?having ?a ?conversation, ?or ?a ?formal ?debate, ?with ?the?author.

c) ?Imagine ?an ?examination ?on ?the ?book. ?What ?would ?the ?questions ?be, ?and ?how?would ?you ?answer ?them?

4·Read? actively

Don’t? wait? for? the? author? to? hammer? you? over? the? head.? Instead,? from? the? very? beginning,?constantly ?generate ?hypotheses ?(“the ?main ?point ?of ?the ?book ?is ?that...”) ?and ?questions?(“How ?does ?the ?author ?know ?that...?”) ?about ?the ?book.

Making ?brief ?notes ?about ?these ?can ?help. ?As ?you ?read, ?try ?to ?confirm ?your ?hypotheses ?and?answer ?your ?questions. ?Once ?you ?finish, ?review ?these.

5·Know? the? author(s)? and? organizations

Knowing? who? wrote? a? book? helps? you? judge? its? quality? and? understand? its? full? significance.

Authors? are? people.? Like? anyone? else,? their? views? are? shaped? by? their? educations,? their? jobs,?their ?early ?lives, ?and ?the ?rest ?of ?their ?experiences. ?

Also ?like ?anyone ?else, ?they ?have?prejudices, ?blind ?spots, ?desperate ?moments, ?failings, ?and ?desires ?— ?as ?well ?as ?insights,?brilliance, ?objectivity, ?and ?successes. ?Notice ?all ?of ?it.

Most? authors? belong? to? organizations:? universities,? corporations,? governments,? newspapers,?magazines. ?These ?organizations ?each ?have ?cultures, ?hierarchies ?of ?power, ?and ?social ?norms.

Organizations ?shape ?both ?how ?a ?work ?is ?written ?and ?the ?content ?of ?what ?it ?says.??

For?example, ?university ?professors ?are ?expected ?to ?write ?books ?and/or ?journal ?articles ?in ?order?to ?get ?tenure. ?

These ?pieces ?of ?writing ?must ?meet ?certain ?standards ?of ?quality, ?defined ?chiefly?by ?other ?professors; ?for ?them, ?content ?usually ?matters ?more ?than ?good ?writing.?

?Journalists,?by ?contrast, ?are ?often ?driven ?by ?deadlines ?and ?the ?need ?to ?please ?large ?audiences. ?

Because?of ?this, ?their ?standards ?of ?quality ?are ?often ?directed ?more ?toward ?clear ?and ?engaging ?writing?than ?toward ?unimpeachable ?content; ?their ?sources ?are ?usually ?oral ?rather ?than ?written.

The? more? you? know? about? the? author? and? his/her? organization? and/or? discipline,? the? better?you ?will ?be ?able ?to ?evaluate ?what ?you ?read. ?

Try ?to ?answer ?questions ?like ?these: ?What ?shaped?the ?author’s ?intellectual ?perspective? ?What ?is ?his ?or ?her ?profession??

?Is ?the ?author ?an?academic, ?a ?journalist, ?a ?professional ?(doctor, ?lawyer, ?industrial ?scientist, ?etc.)? ?Expertise?

Other ?books ?and ?articles? ?Intellectual ?network(s)? ?Gender? ?Race? ?Class? ?Political ?affiliation?

Why ?did ?the ?author ?decide ?to ?write ?this ?book? ?When? ?For ?what ?audience(s)? ?

Who ?paid ?for?the ?research ?work ?(private ?foundations, ?government ?grant ?agencies, ?industrial ?sponsors,?etc.)? ?Who ?wrote ?“jacket ?blurbs” ?in ?support ?of ?the ?book?

You? can? often? (though? not? always)? learn? about? much? of? this? from? the? acknowledgments,? the?bibliography, ?and ?the ?author’s ?biographical ?statement.

6·Know? the? intellectual? context

Knowing? the? author? and? his/her? organization? also? helps? you? understand? the? book’s?intellectual ?context. ?

This ?includes ?the ?academic ?discipline(s) ?from ?which ?it ?draws, ?schools ?of?thought ?within ?that ?discipline, ?and ?others ?who ?agree ?with ?or ?oppose ?the ?author’s ?viewpoint.

A? book? is? almost? always? partly? a? response? to? other? writers,? so? you’ll? understand? a? book?much ?better ?if ?you ?can ?figure ?out ?what, ?and ?whom, ?it ?is ?answering. ?

Pay ?special ?attention ?to?points ?where ?the ?author ?tells ?you ?directly ?that ?s/he ?is ?disagreeing ?with ?others:

“Conventional? wisdom? holds? that? x,? but? I? argue? instead? that? y.”? (Is? x? really? conventional?wisdom? ?Among ?what ?group ?of ?people?) ?“Famous ?Jane ?Scholar ?says ?that ?x, ?but ?I ?will ?show?that ?y.” ?(Who’s ?Famous ?Jane, ?and ?why ?do ?other ?people ?believe ?her? ?How ?plausible ?are ?x ?and?y??

?Is ?the ?author ?straining ?to ?find ?something ?original ?to ?say, ?or ?has ?s/he ?genuinely ?convinced?you ?that ?Famous ?Jane ?is ?wrong?) ?Equally ?important ?are ?the ?people ?and ?writings ?the ?author?cites ?in ?support ?of ?his/her ?arguments.

7·Read? it? three? times

This? is? the? key? technique. *注1（核心技巧知道這一啪的地位了吧粹断，請配合張五常的閱讀方法） You’ll? get? the? most? out? of? the? book? if? you? read? it? three? times? — each? time? for? a? different? purpose.

a)? Overview:? discovery? (5--‐10? percent? of? total? time)

Here? you? read? very? quickly,? following? the? principle? (described? below)? of?reading ?for ?high ?information ?content. ?Your ?goal ?is ?to ?discover ?the ?book. ?

You?want ?a ?quick--‐and--‐dirty, ?unsophisticated, ?general ?picture ?of ?the ?writer’s

purpose, ?methods, ?and ?conclusions.

Mark ?— ?without ?reading ?carefully ?— ?headings, ?passages, ?and ?phrases ?that?seem ?important ?(you’ll ?read ?these ?more ?closely ?the ?second ?time ?around.)

Generate ?questions ?to ?answer ?on ?your ?second ?reading: ?what ?does ?term ?or?phrase ?X ?mean? ?Why ?doesn’t ?the ?author ?cover ?subject ?Y? ?Who ?is ?Z?

b)? Detail:? understanding? (70--‐80? percent? of? total? time)

Within? your? time? constraints,? read? the? book? a? second? time.? This? time,? your?goal ?is ?understanding: ?to ?get ?a ?careful, ?critical, ?thoughtful ?grasp ?of ?the ?key?points, ?and ?to ?evaluate ?the ?author’s ?evidence ?for ?his/her ?points.

Focus ?especially ?on ?the ?beginnings ?and ?ends ?of ?chapters ?and ?major ?sections.?Pay ?special ?attention ?to ?the ?passages ?you ?marked ?on ?the ?first ?round. ?Try ?to?answer ?any ?questions ?you ?generated ?on ?the ?first ?round.

c)? Notes:? recall? and? note--‐taking? (10--‐20? percent? of? total? time)

The? purpose? of? your? third? and? final? reading? is? to? commit? to? memory? the?most ?important ?elements ?of ?the ?book. ?

This ?time, ?make ?brief ?notes ?about ?the?arguments, ?evidence, ?and ?conclusions. ?This ?is ?not ?at ?all ?the ?same ?thing ?as?text ?markup;?

?your ?goal ?here ?is ?to ?process ?the ?material ?by ?translating ?into?your ?own ?mental ?framework, ?which ?means ?using ?your ?own ?words ?as ?much?as ?possible. ?

Cutting ?and ?pasting ?segments ?of ?text ?from ?the ?book ?will ?not ?do?as ?much ?for ?you ?as ?summarizing ?very ?briefly ?in ?your ?own ?words.?

?Include ?the?bare ?minimum ?of ?detail ?to ?let ?you ?remember ?and ?re--‐locate ?the ?most?important ?things. ?

1--‐3 ?pages ?of ?notes ?per ?100 ?pages ?of ?text ?is ?a ?good ?goal ?to?shoot ?for; ?more ?than ?that ?is ?often ?too ?much. ?

Use ?some ?system ?that ?lets ?you?easily ?find ?places ?in ?the ?book ?(e.g., ?start ?each ?note ?with ?a ?page ?number.)

Notebooks,? typed? pages,? or? handwritten? sheets? tucked? into? the? book? can? all?work. ?

However, ?notes ?will ?be ?useless ?unless ?you ?can ?easily ?find ?them ?again.

?A ?very ?good ?system ?— ?the ?one ?I ?use ?— ?is ?to ?type ?notes ?directly ?into?bilbiography ?entries ?using ?citation ?manager ?software ?such ?as ?Endnote,?Zotero, ?or ?Bookends. ?See ?below ?for ?more ?on ?citation ?managers.

8·On? time? and? timing

First,? because? human? attention? fades? after? about? an? hour,? you’ll? get? more? out? of? three? one--‐?hour ?readings ?than ?you ?could ?ever ?get ?out ?of ?one ?three--‐hour ?reading. ?But ?be ?careful: ?to ?get?one ?full ?hour ?of ?effective ?reading, ?you ?need ?to ?set ?aside ?at ?least ?one ?hour ?and ?fifteen?minutes, ?since ?distraction ?is ?inevitable ?at ?the ?beginning ?(settling ?in) ?and ?end ?(re--‐arousal ?for?your ?next ?task) ?of ?any ?reading ?period.

Second,? make? a? realistic? plan? that? includes? how? much? time? you? will? devote? to? each? of? the?three ?stages. ?

For ?a ?250--‐page ?book, ?I ?might ?spend ?15 ?minutes ?on ?overview, ?4 ?hours ?on?detailed ?reading, ?and ?20--‐30 ?minutes ?making ?notes ?— ?but ?I'd ?adjust ?these ?periods ?up ?or?down ?depending ?on ?how ?difficult ?the ?text ?is, ?how ?important ?it ?is ?to ?me, ?and ?how ?much ?time ?I?have.

9·Focus? on? the? parts? with? high? information? content

Non--‐fiction? books? very? often? have? an? “hourglass”? structure? that? is? repeated? at? several? levels?of ?organization. ?

More ?general ?(broader) ?information ?is ?typically ?presented ?at ?the ?beginnings?and ?ends ?of:

?? the? book? or? article? as? a? whole? (abstract,? introduction,? conclusion)

? ?each ?chapter

? ?each ?section ?within ?a ?chapter

? ?each ?paragraph

More? specific? (narrower)? information? (supporting? evidence,? details,? etc.)? then? appears? in? the?middle ?of ?the ?hourglass.

You? can? make? the? hourglass? structure? of? writing? do? a? lot? of? work? for? you.? Focus? on? the?following ?elements, ?in ?more ?or ?less ?the ?following ?order:

?? Front? and? back? covers,? inner? jacket? flaps

? ?Table ?of ?contents

? ?Index: ?scan ?this ?to ?see ?which ?are ?the ?most ?important ?terms

? ?Bibliography: ?tells ?you ?about ?the ?book’s ?sources ?and ?intellectual ?context

? ?Preface ?and/or ?Introduction ?and/or ?Abstract

? ?Conclusion

? ?Pictures, ?graphs, ?tables, ?figures: ?images ?contain ?more ?information ?than ?text

? ?Chapter ?introductions ?and ?conclusions

? ?Section ?headings

? ?Special ?type ?or ?formatting: ?boldface, ?italics, ?numbered ?items, ?lists

10·Use? PTML? (personal? text? markup? language)

Always,? always,? always? mark? up? your? reading.? This? is? a? critical? part? of? active? reading.??

Do? this?from ?the ?very ?beginning ?— ?even ?on ?your ?first, ?overview ?reading. ?Why? ?Because ?when ?you?come ?back ?to ?the ?book ?later, ?your ?marks ?reduce ?the ?amount ?you ?have ?to ?look ?at ?and ?help?you ?see ?what’s ?most ?significant.

Don’t? mark? too? much.? This? defeats? the? purpose? of? markup;? when? you? consult? your? markup?later, ?heavy ?markup ?will ?force ?you ?to ?re--‐read ?unimportant ?information.?

?As ?a ?rule, ?you ?should?average ?no ?more ?than ?two ?or ?three ?short ?marks ?per ?page. ?Rather ?than ?underline ?whole?sentences, ?underline ?words ?or ?short ?phrases ?that ?capture ?what ?you ?most ?need ?to?remember. ?

The ?point ?of ?this ?is ?to ?distill, ?reduce, ?eliminate ?the ?unnecessary. ?Write ?words ?and?phrases ?in ?the ?margins ?that ?tell ?you ?what ?paragraphs ?or ?sections ?are ?about. ?Use ?your ?own?words.

11·Page? vs.? screen

Printed? material? has? far? higher? resolution? (~600? dpi)? than? even? the? best? computer? screens?(~100 ?dpi); ?see ?the ?illustration ?of ?300 ?vs. ?600 ?dpi, ?below.?

?For ?this ?reason ?you ?will ?read ?more?accurately, ?and ?with ?less ?fatigue, ?if ?you ?stick ?with ?the ?paper ?version.?

?Still, ?we ?inevitably ?read?much ?more ?screen--‐based ?material ?now.

Markup? on? the? screen:? It? remains? difficult? to? mark? up? screen--‐based? materials? effectively.

The ?extra ?steps ?involved ?are ?distracting, ?as ?is ?the ?temptation ?to ?check ?email ?or ?websurf.

Also, ?with ?screen--‐based ?markup ?you ?often ?have ?to ?click ?on ?a ?note ?in ?order ?to ?read ?it, ?which?means ?you’re ?less ?likely ?to ?do ?it ?later. ?It ?remains ?far ?easier ?to ?mark ?up ?a ?printed ?copy!

However,? if? you’re? disciplined,? recent? versions? of? Acrobat,? Apple? Preview,? and? third--‐party?PDF ?viewers ?such ?as ?PDFpen, ?iAnnotate, ?and ?Goodreader ?allow ?you ?to ?add ?comments,?highlighting, ?and ?so ?on ?to ?PDFs. ?Voice ?recognition ?can ?make ?this ?a ?lot ?easier. ?

Today, ?I?routinely ?read ?and ?annotate ?PDFs ?on ?an ?iPad, ?using ?voice ?recognition ?when ?I ?want ?to ?make ?a?note. ?

Some ?of ?these ?readers, ?as ?well ?as ?ebook ?readers ?such ?as ?Kindle, ?allow ?you ?to ?export?only ?your ?highlights ?and ?notes. ?

This ?is ?a ?great ?way ?to ?make ?yourself ?a ?condensed ?version ?of ?a?document. ?

Paste ?it ?into ?the ?notes ?field ?of ?your ?citation ?manager ?and ?it’ll ?always ?be ?at ?your?fingertips. ?

Hunt ?around ?on ?the ?web ?for ?ways ?to ?do ?this ?kind ?of ?thing ?on ?an ?industrial ?scale?(especially ?with ?Kindle ?books).

When? taking? notes? about? something? you're? reading? (as? opposed? to? marking? up? the? text),?you'll ?be ?tempted ?to ?cut ?and ?paste ?the ?original ?text ?in ?lieu ?of ?making ?your ?own ?notes ?in ?your?own ?words. ?

Cut--‐and--‐paste ?can ?sometimes ?work ?well, ?especially ?for ?things ?you ?might ?want ?to?quote ?later. ?

However: ?in ?general ?it ?defeats ?the ?two ?main ?purposes ?of ?note--‐taking: ?(a)?learning ?and ?remembering ?(by ?rephrasing ?in ?your ?own ?terms), ?and ?(b) ?condensing ?into ?a ?very?short ?form. ?

The ?same ?is ?true ?of ?links: ?though ?useful ?for ?keeping ?track ?of ?sources, ?keeping ?a?URL ?will ?not ?by ?itself ?help ?you ?remember ?or ?understand ?what's ?there, ?even ?though ?it ?may?feel ?that ?way.

12·Use? a? citation? manager

It’s? hard? to? overemphasize? the? huge? advantages? of? citation? manager? software? such? as?Endnote, ?Bookends, ?Zotero, ?Mendeley, ?CiteULike, ?etc. ?

They ?let ?you ?keep ?track ?of ?your?growing ?library, ?easily ?enter ?and ?format ?citations ?in ?your ?word ?processor ?(saving ?you ?the?incredible ?irritation ?of ?doing ?it ?yourself).?

?Most ?of ?them ?can ?pull ?in ?citations ?directly ?from ?the?web, ?record ?web ?links, ?find ?DOI’s, ?and ?so ?on. ?Some ?have ?their ?own ?web ?search ?tools ?built ?in.

Some, ?such ?as ?Bookends ?(Mac ?only), ?will ?automatically ?rename ?documents ?with ?Author--‐?Date--‐Title, ?a ?huge ?help ?with ?the ?extremely ?annoying ?problem ?of ?uninformative ?filenames.

None? of? these? packages? are? perfect.? All? have? both? advantages? and ?disadvantages,? and? the?more ?sophisticated ?ones ?have ?steep ?learning ?curves.

??Look ?for ?one ?that ?can ?handle ?all ?major?document ?formats, ?including ?books, ?journal ?articles, ?newspaper ?articles, ?online ?sources,?interviews, ?and ?so ?on. ?

Be ?wary ?of ?managers ?that ?only ?handle ?PDFs, ?since ?so ?many ?other?formats ?are ?still ?important.

If? you? use? the? notes? field? of? your? citation? manager? in? a? disciplined? way,? your? notes? will?always ?be ?easy ?to ?find. ?When ?your ?library ?starts ?reaching ?into ?the ?thousands ?of ?items, ?this ?is?a ?godsend.

13·Use? your? unconscious? mind

An? awful? lot? of? thinking? and? mental? processing? goes? on? when? you’re? not? aware? of? it.??

Just? as?with ?writing ?or ?any ?other ?creative ?thought ?process, ?full ?understanding ?of ?a ?book ?takes ?time?to ?develop.

Like? the? body,? the? mind? suffers? from? fatigure? when? doing? just? one? thing? for? many? hours.

Your ?ability ?to ?comprehend ?and ?retain ?what ?you ?read ?drops ?off ?dramatically ?after ?an ?hour ?or?so. ?

Therefore, ?you ?should ?read ?a ?book ?in ?several ?short ?sessions ?of ?one ?to ?two ?hours ?apiece,?rather ?than ?one ?long ?marathon.

In? between,? your? unconscious? mind? will? process? some? of? what? you’ve? read.? When? you? come?back ?for ?the ?next ?session, ?start ?by ?asking ?yourself ?what ?you ?remember ?from ?your ?previous?reading, ?what ?you ?think ?of ?it ?so ?far, ?and ?what ?you ?still ?need ?to ?learn.

14·Rehearse,? and? use? multiple? modes

Reading? is? exactly? like? martial? arts,? baseball,? or? cooking? in? the? sense? that? learning? and?memory ?depend ?crucially ?on ?rehearsal.

So? —? after? you’ve? read? the? book,? rehearse? what? you’ve? learned.? Quiz? yourself? on? its?contents. ?Argue ?with ?the ?author. ?Imagine ?how ?you ?would ?defend ?the ?author’s ?position ?in?your ?own ?writing.

Reading,? writing,? speaking,? listening,? and? visualizing? all? engage? different? parts? of? the? brain.

For ?this ?reason, ?the ?best ?forms ?of ?rehearsal ?use ?multiple ?modes ?of ?thinking ?and ?action.

Don’t ?just ?contemplate ?privately. ?Instead, ?talk ?about ?the ?book ?with ?others. ?Bring ?it ?up ?in?classes. ?Write ?about ?it. ?Visualize ?anything ?that ?can ?be ?visualized ?about ?its ?contents.?

?All ?of ?this?helps ?fix ?your ?memory ?and ?integrate ?your ?new ?learning ?into ?the ?rest ?of ?your ?knowledge.

15·Hang? in? there!

When? I? give? presentations? on? these? ideas,? students? often? tell? me? a? few? weeks? later? that? they?“tried ?it ?a ?few ?times ?and ?just ?couldn’t ?do ?it,” ?so ?they ?stopped.

You? will? have? to? practice? these? techniques? for? a? considerable? length? of? time? —? at? least? a? few?months ?— ?before ?they ?come ?to ?seem ?natural, ?and ?they ?will ?never ?be ?easier ?than ?the?comfortable, ?passive ?way ?we’ve ?all ?been ?reading ?for ?many ?years.

Hang? in? there.? The? rewards? of? these? techniques? are? great,? or? so? say? the? hundreds? of?students ?who’ve ?told ?me ?so ?years ?later. ?

Learning ?to ?read ?like ?this ?can ?be ?a ?critical ?key ?to ?a?successful ?career ?as ?a ?student, ?scholar, ?or ?professional ?in ?almost ?any ?field.

注1：讀書的思考與方法