HOW TO USE YOUR MIND

A PSYCHOLOGY OF STUDY

BEING A MANUAL FOR THE USE OF STUDENTS AND TEACHERS IN THEADMINISTRATION OF SUPERVISED STUDY

BY

HARRY D. KITSON, PH. D. 

PROFESSOR OF PSYCHOLOGY, INDIANA UNIVERSITY

1921

PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION

The kindly reception accorded to the first edition of this book hasconfirmed the author in his conviction that such a book was needed, andhas tempted him to bestow additional labor upon it. The chief changesconsist in the addition of two new chapters, "Active Imagination, " and"How to Develop Interest in a Subject"; the division into two parts ofthe unwieldy chapter on memory; the addition of readings and exercisesat the end of each chapter; the preparation of an analytical table ofcontents; the correction of the bibliography to date; the addition ofan index; and some recasting of phraseology in the interest ofclearness and emphasis. 

The author gratefully acknowledges the constructive suggestions ofreviewers and others who have used the book, and hopes that he hasprofited by them in this revision. 

H. D. K. 

April 1, 1921. 

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION

Educational leaders are seeing with increasing clearness the necessityof teaching students not only the subject-matter of study but alsomethods of study. Teachers are beginning to see that students waste avast amount of time and form many harmful habits because they do notknow how to use their minds. The recognition of this condition istaking the form of the movement toward "supervised study, " whichattempts to acquaint the student with principles of economy anddirectness in using his mind. It is generally agreed that there arecertain "tricks" which make for mental efficiency, consisting ofmethods of apperceiving facts, methods of review, devices for arrangingwork. Some are the fruits of psychological experimentation; others arederived from experience. Many of them can be imparted by instruction, and it is for the purpose of systematizing these and making themavailable for students that this book is prepared. 

The evils of unintelligent and unsupervised study are evident to allwho have any connection with modern education. They pervade the entireeducational structure from kindergarten through college. In collegethey are especially apparent in the case of freshmen, who, in additionto the numerous difficulties incident to entrance into the collegeworld, suffer peculiarly because they do not know how to attack thedifficult subjects of the curriculum. In recognition of theseconditions, special attention is given at The University of Chicagotoward supervision of study. All freshmen in the School of Commerce andAdministration of the University are given a course in Methods ofStudy, in which practical discussions and demonstrations are givenregarding the ways of studying the freshman subjects. In addition tothe group-work, cases presenting special features are given individualattention, for it must be admitted that while certain difficulties arecommon to all students, there are individual cases that presentpeculiar phases and these can be served only by personal consultations. These personal consultations are expensive both in time and patience, for it frequently happens that the mental habits of a student must bethoroughly reconstructed, and this requires much time and attention, but the results well repay the effort. A valuable accessory to suchindividual supervision over students has been found in the use ofpsychological tests which have been described by the author in amonograph entitled, "The Scientific Study of the College Student. "[1]

[Footnote 1: Princeton University Press. ]

But the college is not the most strategic point at which to administerguidance in methods of study. Such training is even more acceptablygiven in the high school and grades. Here habits of mental applicationare largely set, and it is of the utmost importance that they be setright, for the sake of the welfare of the individuals and of theinstitutions of higher education that receive them later. Anotherreason for incorporating training in methods of study into secondaryand elementary schools is that more individuals will be helped, inasmuch as the eliminative process has not yet reached itsculmination. 

In high schools where systematic supervision of study is a feature, classes are usually conducted in Methods of Study, and it is hoped thatthis book will meet the demand for a text-book for such classes, thematerial being well within the reach of high school students. In highschools where instruction in Methods of Study is given as part of acourse in elementary psychology, the book should also prove useful, inasmuch as it gives a summary of psychological principles relating tothe cognitive processes. 

In the grades the book cannot be put into the hands of the pupils, butit should be mastered by the teacher and applied in her supervising andteaching activities. Embodying, as it does, the results of researchesin educational psychology, it should prove especially suitable for usein teachers' reading circles where a concise presentation of the factsregarding the psychology of the learning process is desired. 

There is another group of students who need training in methods ofstudy. Brain workers in business and industry feel deeply the need ofgreater mental efficiency and seek eagerly for means to attain it. Their earnestness in this search is evidenced by the success of varioussystems for the training of memory, will, and other mental traits. Further evidence is found in the efforts of many corporations tomaintain schools and classes for the intellectual improvement of theiremployees. To all such the author offers the work with the hope that itmay be useful in directing them toward greater mental efficiency. 

In courses in Methods of Study in which the book is used as aclass-text, the instructor should lay emphasis not upon memorization ofthe facts in the book, but upon the application of them in study. Heshould expect to see parallel with progress through the book, improvement in the mental ability of the students. Specific problemsmay well be arranged on the basis of the subjects of the curriculum, and students should be urged to utilize the suggestions immediately. The subjects treated in the book are those which the author has foundin his experience with college students to constitute the most frequentsources of difficulty, and under these conditions, the sequence oftopics followed in the book has seemed most favorable for presentation. With other groups of students, however, another sequence of topics maybe found desirable; if so, the order of topics may be changed. Forexample, in case the chapter on brain action is found to presupposemore physiological knowledge than that possessed by the students, itmay be omitted or may be used merely for reference when enlightenmentis desired upon some of the physiological descriptions in laterchapters. Likewise, the chapter dealing with intellectual difficultiesof college students may be omitted with non-collegiate groups. 

The heavy obligation of the author to a number of writers will beapparent to one familiar with the literature of theoretical andeducational psychology. No attempt is made to render specificacknowledgments, but special mention should be made of the largedraughts made upon the two books by Professor Stiles which treat sohelpfully of the bodily relations of the student. These books containso much good sense and scientific information that they should receivea prominent place among the books recommended to students. Thanks aredue to Professor Edgar James Swift and Charles Scribner's Sons forpermission to use a figure from "Mind in the Making"; and to J. B. Lippincott Company for adaptation of cuts from Villiger's "Brain andSpinal Cord. "

The author gratefully acknowledges helpful suggestions from ProfessorsJames R. Angell, Charles H. Judd and C. Judson Herrick, who have readthe greater part of the manuscript and have commented upon it to itsbetterment. The obligation refers, however, not only to the immediatepreparation of this work but also to the encouragement which, forseveral years, the author has received from these scientists, first asstudent, later as colleague. 

THE AUTHOR. 

CHICAGO, September 25, 1916. 

CONTENTS

CHAPTER

I. INTELLECTUAL PROBLEMS OF THE COLLEGE FRESHMAN

Number. Variety. Lecture Method. Note Taking. Amount of Library Work. High Quality Demanded. Necessity for Making Schedule. A College CourseConsists in the Formation of Habits. Requires Active Effort on Part ofStudent. Importance of Good Form. 

II. NOTE TAKING

Uses of Notes. LECTURE NOTES--Avoid Verbatim Reports. Maintain Attitudeof Mental Activity. Seek Outline Chiefly. Use Notes in Preparing NextLesson. READING NOTES--Summarize Rather Than Copy. Read With Questionsin Mind. How to Read. How to Make Bibliographies. LABORATORYNOTES--Content. Form. Miscellaneous Hints. 

III. BRAIN ACTION DURING STUDY

The Organ of Mind. Gross Structure. Microscopic Structure. The Neurone. The Nervous Impulse. The Synapse. Properties of Nervous Tissue--Impressibility, Conductivity, Modifiability. Pathways Used inStudy--Sensory, Motor, Association. Study is a Process of MakingPathways in Brain. 

IV. FORMATION OF STUDY-HABITS

Definition of Habit. Examples. Inevitableness of Habits in Brain andNervous System. How to Insure Useful Habits--Choose What Shall Enter;Choose Mode of Entrance; Choose Mode of Egress; Go Slowly at First;Observe Four Maxims. Advantages and Disadvantages of Habit. EthicalConsequences. 

V. ACTIVE IMAGINATION

Nature of the Image. Its Use in Imagination. Necessity for Number, Variety, Sharpness. Source of "Imaginative" Productions. Method ofDeveloping Active Imaginative Powers: Cultivate Images in GreatNumber, Variety, Sharpness; Actively Combine the Elements of PastExperience. 

VI. FIRST AIDS TO MEMORY--IMPRESSION

Four Phases. Conditions of Impression: Care, Clearness, Choice ofFavorable Sense Avenue, Repetition, Overlearning, Primacy, Distributionof Repetitions, (Inferences Bearing Upon Theme-writing), "Whole" vs. "Part" Method, "Rote" vs. "logical" Method, Intention. 

VII. SECOND AIDS TO MEMORY--RETENTION, RECALL AND RECOGNITION

Retention. Recall. Recall Contrasted With Impression. Practise Recallin Impression. Recognition. Advantages of Review. Memory WorksAccording to Law. Possibility of Improvement. Connection With OtherMental Processes. 

VIII. CONCENTRATION OF ATTENTION

Importance in Mental Life. Analysis of Concrete Attentive State. Cross-section of Mental Stream. Focal Object, Clear; Marginal Objects, Dim. Fluctuation. Ease of Concentration Requires (1) Removal of AllMarginal Distractions Possible, (2) Ignoring Others. ConditionsFavorable for Concentration. Relation to Other Mental Processes. 

IX. HOW WE REASON

Reasoning Contrasted with Simpler Mental Operations. Illustrated byMethod of Studying Geometry. Analysis of Reasoning Act: Recognition ofProblem, Efforts to Solve It, Solution. Study in Problems. Requirementsfor Effective Reasoning: Many Ideas, Accessible, Clear. How to ClarifyIdeas: Define, Classify. Relation Between Habit and Reasoning. Summary. 

X. EXPRESSION AS AN AID IN STUDY

Expression an Inevitable Accompaniment of Nervous Activity. Extent ofExpressive Movements. Relation Between Ideas and Expressive Acts. Ethical Considerations. Methods of Expression Chiefly Used in Study:Speech, Writing, Drawing. Effects of Expression: (1) On Brain, (2) OnIdeas. Hints on Development of Freedom of Expression. 

XI. HOW TO BECOME INTERESTED IN A SUBJECT

Nature of Interest. Intellectual Interests Gained Through Experience. Many Possible Fields of Interest. Laws of Interest. 

XII. THE PLATEAU OF DESPOND

Measurement of Mental Progress. Analysis of the "Learning Curve. "Irregularity. Rapid Progress at Beginning. The Plateau. Causes. Remedies. 

XIII. MENTAL SECOND-WIND

Description: (1) Physical, (2) Mental. Hidden Sources of Energy. Retarding Effect of Fatigue. Analysis of Fatigue. How to ReduceFatigue in Study. 

XIV. EXAMINATIONS

Purposes. Continuous Effort and Cramming. Effective Methods ofReviewing. Immediate Preparation for an Examination Conduct inExamination-room. Attitude of Activity. Attitude of Confidence. 

XV. BODILY CONDITIONS FOB EFFECTIVE STUDY

FOOD: Quantity, Quality, Surroundings. SLEEP: Amount, Conditions, Avoidance of Insomnia. EXERCISE: Regularity, Emphasis. 

SUGGESTIONS FOB FURTHER READING

INDEX

HOW TO USE YOUR MIND

CHAPTER I

INTELLECTUAL PROBLEMS OF THE COLLEGE FRESHMAN

In entering upon a college course you are taking a step that maycompletely revolutionize your life. You are facing new situationsvastly different from any you have previously met. They are also ofgreat variety, such as finding a place to eat and sleep, regulatingyour own finances, inaugurating a new social life, forming newfriendships, and developing in body and mind. The problems connectedwith mental development will engage your chief attention. You are nowgoing to use your mind more actively than ever before and should surveysome of the intellectual difficulties before plunging into the fight. 

Perhaps the first difficulty you will encounter is the substitution ofthe lecture for the class recitation to which you were accustomed inhigh school. This substitution requires that you develop a new technicof learning, for the mental processes involved in an oral recitationare different from those used in listening to a lecture. The lecturesystem implies that the lecturer has a fund of knowledge about acertain field and has organized this knowledge in a form that is notduplicated in the literature of the subject. The manner ofpresentation, then, is unique and is the only means of securing theknowledge in just that form. As soon as the words have left the mouthof the lecturer they cease to be accessible to you. Such conditionsrequire a unique mental attitude and unique mental habits. You will beobliged, in the first place, to maintain sustained attention over longperiods of time. The situation is not like that in reading, in which atemporary lapse of attention may be remedied by turning back andrereading. In listening to a lecture, you are obliged to catch thewords "on the fly. " Accordingly you must develop new habits of payingattention. You will also need to develop a new technic for memorizing, especially for memorizing things heard. As a partial aid in this, andalso for purposes of organizing material received in lectures, you willneed to develop ability to take notes. This is a process with which youhave heretofore had little to do. It is a most important phase ofcollege life, however, and will repay earnest study. 

Another characteristic of college study is the vast amount of readingrequired. Instead of using a single text-book for each course, you mayuse several. They may cover great historical periods and represent theideas of many men. In view of the amount of reading assigned, you willalso be obliged to learn to read faster. No longer will you have timeto dawdle sleepily through the pages of easy texts; you will have tocover perhaps fifty or a hundred pages of knotty reading every day. Accordingly you must learn to handle books expeditiously and tocomprehend quickly. In fact, economy must be your watchword throughout. A German lesson in high school may cover thirty or forty lines a day, requiring an hour's preparation. A German assignment in college, however, may cover four or five or a dozen pages, requiring hard workfor two or three hours. 

You should be warned also that college demands not only a greaterquantity but also a higher quality of work. When you were a high schoolstudent the world expected only a high school student's accomplishmentsof you. Now you are a college student, however, and your intellectualresponsibilities have increased. The world regards you now as a personof considerable scholastic attainment and expects more of you thanbefore. In academic terms this means that in order to attain a grade of95 in college you will have to work much harder than you did for thatgrade in high school, for here you have not only more difficultsubject-matter, but also keener competition for the first place. Inhigh school you may have been the brightest student in your class. Incollege, however, you encounter the brightest students from manyschools. If your merits are going to stand out prominently, therefore, you must work much harder. Your work from now on must be of betterquality. 

Not the least of the perplexities of your life as a college studentwill arise from the fact that no daily schedule is arranged for you. The only time definitely assigned for your work is the fifteen hours aweek, more or less, spent in the class-room. The rest of your schedulemust be arranged by yourself. This is a real task and will require careand thought if your work is to be done with greatest economy of timeand effort. 

This brief survey completes the catalogue of problems of mentaldevelopment that will vex you most in adjusting your methods of studyto college conditions. In order to make this adjustment you will beobliged to form a number of new habits. Indeed, as you become more andmore expert as a student, you will see that the whole process resolvesitself into one of habit-formation, for while a college education hastwo phases--the acquisition of facts and the formation of habits--it isthe latter which is the more important. Many of the facts that youlearn will be forgotten; many will be outlawed by time; but the habitsof study you form will be permanent possessions. They will consist ofsuch things as methods of grasping facts, methods of reasoning aboutfacts, and of concentrating attention. In acquiring these habits youmust have some material upon which you may concentrate your attention, and it will be supplied by the subjects of the curriculum. You will beasked, for instance, to write innumerable themes in courses in Englishcomposition; not for the purpose of enriching the world's literature, nor for the delectation of your English instructor, but for the sake ofhelping you to form habits of forceful expression. You will be asked toenter the laboratory and perform numerous experiments, not to discoverhitherto unknown facts, but to obtain practice in scientific procedureand to learn how to seek knowledge by yourself. The curriculum and thefaculty are the means, but you yourself are the agent in theeducational process. No matter how good the curriculum or how renownedthe faculty, you cannot be educated without the most vigorous effortson your part. Banish the thought that you are here to have knowledge"pumped into" you. To acquire an education you must establish andmaintain not a passive attitude but an active attitude. When you go tothe gymnasium to build up a good physique, the physical director doesnot tell you to hold yourself limp and passive while he pumps your armsand legs up and down. Rather he urges you to put forth effort, to exertyourself until you are tired. Only by so doing can you develop physicalpower. This principle holds true of mental development. Learning is nota process of passive "soaking-in. " It is a matter of vigorous effort, and the harder you work the more powerful you become. In securing acollege education you are your own master. 

In the development of physical prowess you are well aware of theimportance of doing everything in "good form. " In such sports asswimming and hurdling, speed and grace depend primarily upon it. Thesame principle holds true in the development of the mind. The mostserviceable mind is that which accomplishes results in the shortesttime and with least waste motion. Take every precaution, therefore, torid yourself of all superfluous and impeding methods. 

Strive for the development of good form in study. Especially is thisnecessary at the start. Now is the time when you are laying thefoundations for your mental achievements in college. Keep a sharplookout, then, at every point, to see that you build into thefoundation only those materials and that workmanship which will supporta masterly structure. 

READINGS AND EXERCISES

NOTE. --Numbers in parentheses refer to complete citations inBibliography at end of book. 

Readings: Fulton (5) Lockwood (11)

Exercise 1. List concrete problems that have newly come to you sinceyour arrival upon the campus. 

Exercise 2. List in order the difficulties that confront you inpreparing your daily lessons. 

Exercise 3. Prepare a work schedule similar to that provided by theform in Chart I. Specify the subject with which you will be occupied ateach period. 

Exercise 4. Try to devise some way of registering the effectivenesswith which you carry out your schedule. Suggestions are contained inthe summary: Disposition of (1) as planned; (2) as spent. To divide thenumber of hours wasted by 24 will give a partial "index of efficiency. "

CHAPTER II

NOTE-TAKING

Most educated people find occasion, at some time or other, to takenotes. Although this is especially true of college students, they havelittle success, as any college instructor will testify. Students, as arule, do not realize that there is any skill involved in taking notes. Not until examination time arrives and they try vainly to labor througha maze of scribbling, do they realize that there must be some system innote-taking. A careful examination of note-taking shows that there arerules or principles, which, when followed, have much to do withincreasing ability in study. 

One criterion that should guide in the preparation of notes is the useto which they will be put. If this is kept in mind, many blunders willbe saved. Notes may be used in three ways: as material for directingeach day's study, for cramming, and for permanent, professional use. Thus a note-book may be a thing of far-reaching value. Notes you takenow as a student may be valuable years hence in professional life. Recognition of this will help you in the preparation of your notes andwill determine many times how they should be prepared. 

The chief situations in college which require note-taking are lectures, library reading and laboratory work. Accordingly the subject will beconsidered under these three heads. 

LECTURE NOTES. --When taking notes on a lecture, there are two extremesthat present themselves, to take exceedingly full notes or to takealmost no notes. One can err in either direction. True, on firstthought, entire stenographic reports of lectures appear desirable, butsecond thought will show that they may be dispensed with, not onlywithout loss, but with much gain. The most obvious objection is thattoo much time would be consumed in transcribing short-hand notes. Another is that much of the material in a lecture is undesirable forpermanent possession. The instructor repeats much for the sake ofemphasis; he multiplies illustrations, not important in themselves, butimportant for the sake of stressing his point. You do not need theseillustrations in written form, however, for once the point is made yourarely need to depend upon the illustrations for its retention. A stillmore cogent objection is that if you occupy your attention with thetask of copying the lecture verbatim, you do not have time to think, but become merely an automatic recording machine. Experiencedstenographers say that they form the habit of recording soautomatically that they fail utterly to comprehend the meaning of whatis said. You as a student cannot afford to have your attention sodistracted from the meaning of the lecture, therefore reduce yourclassroom writing to a minimum. 

Probably the chief reason why students are so eager to secure fulllecture notes is that they fear to trust their memory. Such fearsshould be put at rest, for your mind will retain facts if you pay closeattention and make logical associations during the time of impression. Keep your mind free, then, to work upon the subject-matter of thelecture. Debate mentally with the speaker. Question his statements, comparing them with your own experience or with the results of yourstudy. Ask yourself frequently, "Is that true?" The essential thing isto maintain an attitude of mental activity, and to avoid anything thatwill reduce this and make you passive. Do not think of yourself as avat into which the instructor pumps knowledge. Regard yourself ratheras an active force, quick to perceive and to comprehend meaning, deliberate in acceptance and firm in retention. 

After observing the stress laid, throughout this book, upon thenecessity for logical associations, you will readily see that thekey-note to note-taking is, Let your notes represent the logicalprogression of thought in the lecture. Strive above all else to securethe skeleton--the framework upon which the lecture is hung. A lectureis a logical structure, and the form in which it is presented is theoutline. This outline, then, is your chief concern. In the case of somelectures it is an easy matter. The lecturer may place the outline inyour hands beforehand, may present it on the black-board, or may giveit orally. Some lecturers, too, present their material in suchclear-cut divisions that the outline is easily followed. Others, however, are very difficult to follow in this regard. 

In arranging an outline you will find it wise to adopt some device bywhich the parts will stand out prominently, and the progression ofthought will be indicated with proper subordination of titles. Adoptsome system at the beginning of your college course, and use it in allyour notes. The system here given may serve as a model, using first theRoman numerals, then capitals, then Arabic numerals:

 I. II. A. B. 1. 2. A. B. (1) (2) (a) (b)

In concluding this discussion of lecture notes, you should be urged tomake good use of your notes after they are taken. First, glance overthem as soon as possible after the lecture. Inasmuch as they will thenbe fresh in your mind, you will be able to recall almost the entirelecture; you will also be able to supply missing parts from memory. Some students make it a rule to reduce all class-notes to typewrittenform soon after the lecture. This is an excellent practice, but israther expensive in time. In addition to this after-class review, youshould make a second review of your notes as the first step in thepreparation of the next day's lesson. This will connect up the lessonswith each other and will make the course a unified whole instead of aseries of disconnected parts. Too often a course exists in a student'smind as a series of separate discussions and he sees only the horizonof a single day. This condition might be represented by a series ofdisconnected links:

 O O O O O

A summary of each day's lesson, however, preceding the preparation forthe next day, forges new links and welds them all together into anunbroken chain:

 OOOOOOOOOO

A method that has been found helpful is to use a double-page system ofnotetaking, using the left-hand page for the bare outline, withlargest divisions, and the right-hand page for the details. This devicemakes the note-book readily available for hasty review or for moreextended study. 

READING NOTES. --The question of full or scanty notes arises in readingnotes as in lecture notes. In general, your notes should represent asummary, in your own words, of the author's discussion, not aduplication of it. Students sometimes acquire the habit of readingsingle sentences at a time, then of writing them down, thinking that bymaking an exact copy of the book, they are playing safe. This is apernicious practice; it spoils continuity of thought and application. Furthermore, isolated sentences mean little, and fail grossly torepresent the real thought of the author. A better way is to readthrough an entire paragraph or section, then close the book andreproduce in your own words what you have read. Next, take your summaryand compare with the original text to see that you have really graspedthe point. This procedure will be beneficial in several ways. It willencourage continuous concentration of attention to an entire argument;it will help you to preserve relative emphasis of parts; it will leadyou to regard thought and not words. (You are undoubtedly familiar withthe state of mind wherein you find yourself reading merely words andnot following the thought. ) Lastly, material studied in this way isremembered longer than material read scrappily. In short, such a methodof reading makes not only for good memory, but for good mental habitsof all kinds. In all your reading, hold to the conception of yourselfas a thinker, not a sponge. Remember, you do not need to acceptunqualifiedly everything you read. A worthy ideal for every student tofollow is expressed in the motto carved on the wall of the greatreading-room of the Harper Memorial Library at The University ofChicago: "Read not to contradict, nor to believe, but to weigh andconsider. " Ibsen bluntly states the same thought:

"Don't read to swallow; read to choose, for 'Tis but to see what onehas use for. "

Ask yourself, when beginning a printed discussion, What am I lookingfor? What is the author going to talk about? Often this will beindicated in topical headings. Keep it in the background of your mindwhile reading, and search for the answer. Then, when you have read thenecessary portion, close the book and summarize, to see if the authorfurnished what you sought. In short, always read for a purpose. Formulate problems and seek their solutions. In this way will there bedirection in your reading and your thought. 

This discussion of reading notes has turned into an essay on "How toRead, " and you must be convinced by this time that there is much tolearn in this respect, so much that we may profitably spend more timein discussing it. 

Every book you take up should be opened with some preliminary ceremony. This does not refer to the physical operation of opening a new book, but to the mental operation. In general, take the following steps:

1. Observe the title. See exactly what field the book attempts tocover. 

2. Observe the author's name. If you are to use his book frequently, discover his position in the field. Remember, you are going to accepthim as authority, and you should know his status. You may be told thison the title-page, or you may have to consult Who's Who, or thebiographical dictionary. 

3. Glance over the preface. Under some circumstances you should read itcarefully. If you are going to refer to the book very often, makefriends with the author; let him introduce himself to you; this he willdo in the preface. Observe the date of publication, also, in order toget an idea as to the recency of the material. 

4. Glance over the table of contents. If you are very familiar with thefield, and the table of contents is outlined in detail, you mightadvantageously study it and dispense with reading the book. On theother hand, if you are going to consult the book only briefly, youmight find it necessary to study the table of contents in order to seethe relation of the part you read to the entire work. 

5. Use the index intelligently; it may save you much time. 

You will have much to do throughout your college course with the makingof bibliographies, that is, with the compilation of lists of booksbearing upon special topics. You may have bibliographies given you insome of your courses, or you may be asked to compile your own. Underall circumstances, prepare them with the greatest care. Be scrupulousin giving references. There is a standard form for referring to booksand periodicals, as follows:

C. R. Henderson, Industrial Insurance (2d ed. ; Chicago: The Universityof Chicago Press, 1912), p. 321. 

S. I. Curtis, "The Place of Sacrifice, " Biblical World, Vol. XXI (1902), p. 248 _ff_. 

LABORATORY NOTES. --The form for laboratory notes varies with thescience and is usually prescribed by the instructor. Reports ofexperiments are usually written up in the order: Object, Apparatus, Method, Results, Conclusions. When detailed instructions are given bythe instructor, follow them accurately. Pay special attention toneatness. Instructors say that the greatest fault with laboratorynote-books is lack of neatness. This reacts upon the instructor, causing him much trouble in correcting the note-book. The resultingannoyance frequently prejudices him, against his will, against thestudent. It is safe to assert that you will materially increase yourchances of a good grade in a laboratory course by the preparation of aneat note-book. 

The key-note of the twentieth century is economy, the tendency in alllines being toward the elimination of waste. College students shouldadopt this aim in the regulation of their study affairs, and there ismuch opportunity for applying it in note-taking. So far, the discussionhas had to do with the _content_ of the note-book, but _its form_ isequally important. Much may be done by utilization of mechanicaldevices to save time and energy. 

First, write in ink. Pencil marks blur badly and become illegible in afew months. Remember, you may be using the notebook twenty years hence, therefore make it durable. 

Second, write plainly. This injunction ought to be superfluous, forcommon sense tells us that writing which is illegible cannot be readeven by the writer, once it has "grown cold. " Third, take care informing sentences. Do not make your notes consist simply of separate, scrappy jottings. True, it is difficult, under stress, to formcomplete sentences. The great temptation is to jot down a word hereand there and trust to luck or an indulgent memory to supply thecontext at some later time. A little experience, however, will quicklydemonstrate the futility of such hopes; therefore strive to formsensible phrases, and to make the parts of the outline cohere. Applythe principles of English composition to the preparation of yournote-book. 

A fourth question concerns size and shape of the note-book. Thesefeatures depend partly upon the nature of the course and partly uponindividual taste. It is often convenient and practicable to keep thenotes for all courses in a single note-book. Men find it advantageousto use a small note-book of a size that can be carried in the coatpocket and studied at odd moments. 

A fifth question of a mechanical nature is, Which is preferable, boundor loose-leaf note-books? Generally the latter will be found moredesirable. Leaves are easily inserted and the sections are easily filedon completion of a course. 

It goes without saying that the manner in which notes, are to be takenwill be determined by many factors, such as the nature of individualcourses, the wishes of instructors, personal tastes and habits. Nevertheless, there are certain principles and practices which areadaptable to nearly all conditions, and it is these that we havediscussed. Remember, note-taking is one of the habits you are to formin college. See that the habit is started rightly. Adopt a good plan atthe start and adhere to it. You may be encouraged, too, with thethought that facility in note-taking will come with practice. Note-taking is an art and as you practise you will develop skill. 

We have noted some of the most obvious and immediate benefits derivedfrom well-prepared notes, consisting of economy of time, ease ofreview, ease of permanent retention. There are other benefits, however, which, though less obvious, are of far greater importance. These arethe permanent effects upon the mind. Habits of correct thinking are thechief result of correct note-taking. As you develop in this particularability, you will find corresponding improvement in your ability tocomprehend and assimilate ideas, to retain and reproduce facts, and toreason with thoroughness and independence. 

READINGS AND EXERCISES

Readings:

Adams (1) Chapter VIII. 

Dearborn (2) Chapter II. 

Kerfoot (10)

Seward (17)

Exercise 1. Contrast the taking of notes from reading and fromlectures. 

Exercise 2. Make an outline of this chapter. 

Exercise 3. Make an outline of some lecture. 

CHAPTER III

BRAIN ACTION DURING STUDY

Though most people understand more or less vaguely that the brain actsin some way during study, exact knowledge of the nature of this actionis not general. As you will be greatly assisted in understanding mentalprocesses by such knowledge, we shall briefly examine the brain and itsconnections. It will be manifestly impossible to inquire into itsnature very minutely, but by means of a description you will be able tosecure some conception of it and thus will be able better to controlthe mental processes which it underlies. 

To the naked eye the brain is a large jelly-like mass enclosed in abony covering, about one-fourth of an inch thick, called the skull. Inside the skull it is protected by a thick membrane. At its baseemerges the spinal cord, a long strand of nerve fibers extending downthe spine. For most of its length, the cord is about as large around asyour little finger, but it tapers at the lower end. From it at rightangles throughout its length branch out thirty-one pairs of fibrousnerves which radiate to all parts of the body. The brain and spinalcord, with all its ramifications, are known as the nervous system. Yousee now that, though we started with the statement that the mind isintimately connected with the brain, we must now enlarge our statementand say it is connected with the entire nervous system. It is thereforeto the nervous system that we must turn our attention. 

Although to the naked eye the nervous system is apparently made up of anumber of different kinds of material, still we see, when we turn ourmicroscopes upon it, that its parts are structurally the same. Reducedto lowest terms, the nervous system is found to be composed of minuteunits of structure called nerve-cells or neurones. Each of these lookslike a string frayed out at both ends, with a bulge somewhere along itslength. The nervous system is made up of millions of these little cellspacked together in various combinations and distributed throughout thebody. Some of the neurones are as long as three feet; others measurebut a fraction of an inch in length. 

We do not know exactly how the mind, that part of us which feels, reasons and wills, is connected with this mass of cells called thenervous system. We do know, however, that every time anything occurs inthe mind, there is a change in some part of the nervous system. Applying this fact to study, it is obvious that when you are performingany of the operations of study, memorizing foreign vocabularies, makingarithmetical calculations, reasoning out problems in geometry, you aremaking changes in your nervous system. The question before us, then, is, What is the nature of these changes?

According to present knowledge, the action of the nervous system isbest conceived as a form of chemical change that spreads among thenerve-cells. We call this commotion the nervous current. It is veryrapid, moving faster than one hundred feet a second, and runs along thecells in much the same way as a "spark runs along a train ofgunpowder. " It is important to note that neurones never act singly;they always act in groups, the nervous current passing from neurone toneurone. It is thought that the most important changes in the nervoussystem do not occur within the individual neurones, but at the pointswhere they join with each other. This point of connection is called thesynapse and although we do not understand its exact nature, it may wellbe pictured as a valve that governs the passage of the nervous currentfrom neurone to neurone. At time of birth, most of the valves areclosed. Only a few are open, mainly those connected with the vegetativeprocesses such as breathing and digestion. But as the individual isplayed upon by the objects of the environment, the valves open to thepassage of the nervous current. With increased use they become more andmore permeable, and thus learning is the process of making easier thepassage of the nervous current from one neurone to another. 

We shall secure further light upon the action of the nervous system ifwe examine some of the properties belonging to nerve-cells. The firstone is _impressibility_. Nerve-cells are very sensitive to impressionsfrom the outside. If you have ever had the dentist touch an exposednerve, you know how extreme this sensitivity is. Naturally such aproperty is very important in education, for had we not the power toreceive impressions from the outside world we should not be able toacquire knowledge. We should not even be able to perceive danger andremove ourselves from harm. "If we compare a man's body to a building, calling the steel frame-work his skeleton and the furnace and powerstation his digestive organs and lungs, the nervous system wouldinclude, with other things, the thermometers, heat regulators, electricbuttons, door-bells, valve-openers, --the parts of the building, inshort, which are specifically designed to respond to influences of theenvironment. " The second property of nerve-cells which is important instudy is _conductivity_. As soon as a neurone is stimulated at one end, it communicates its excitement, by means of the nervous current, to thenext neurone or to neighboring neurones. Just as an electric currentmight pass along one wire, thence to another, and along it to a third, so the nervous current passes from neurone to neurone. As might beexpected, the two functions of impressibility and conductivity areaided by such an arrangement of the nerve-cells that the nervouscurrent may pass over definitely laid pathways. These systems ofpathways will be described in a later paragraph. 

The third property of nerve-cells which is important in study is_modifiability_. That is, impressions made upon the nerve-cells areretained. Most living tissue is modifiable to some extent. The featuresof the face are modifiable, and if one habitually assumes a peevishexpression, it becomes, after a time, permanently fixed. The nervoussystem, however, possesses the power of modifiability to a markeddegree, even a single impression sufficing to make strikingmodification. This is very important in study, being the basis for theretentive powers of the mind. 

Having examined the action of the nervous system in its simplicity, wehave now to examine the ways in which the parts of the nervous systemare combined. We shall be helped if we keep to the conception of it asan aggregation of systems or groups of pathways. Some of these we shallattempt to trace out. Beginning with those at the outermost parts ofthe body, we find them located in the sense-organs, not only withinthe traditional five, but also within the muscles, tendons, joints, and internal organs of the body such as the heart, and digestiveorgans. In all these places we find ends of neurones which converge atthe spinal cord and travel to the brain. They are called sensoryneurones and their function is to carry messages inward to the brain. Thus, the brain represents, in great part, a central receiving stationfor impressions from the outside world. The nerve-cells carryingmessages from the various parts of the body terminate in particularareas. Thus an area in the back part of the brain receives messagesfrom the eyes; another area near the top of the brain receives messagesfrom the skin. These areas are quite clearly marked out and may bestudied in detail by means of the accompanying diagram. 

There is another large group of nerve-cells which, when traced out, arefound to have one terminal in the brain and the other in the musclesthroughout the body. The area in the brain, where these neuronesemerge, is near the top of the brain in the area marked _Motor_ on thediagram. From here the fibers travel down through the spinal cord andout to the muscles. The nerve-cells in this group are called motorneurones and their function is to carry messages from the brain out tothe muscles, for a muscle ordinarily does not act without a nervouscurrent to set it off. 

So far we have seen that the brain has the two functions of receivingimpressions from the sense-organs and of sending out orders to themuscles. There is a further mechanism that must now be described. Whenmessages are received in the sensory areas, it is necessary that therebe some means within the brain of transmitting them over to the motorarea so that they may be acted upon. Such an arrangement is provided byanother group of nerve-cells in the brain, having as their function thetransmission of the nervous current from one area to another. They arecalled association neurones and transmit the nervous current fromsensory areas to motor areas or from one sensory area to another. Forexample, suppose you see a brick falling from above and you dodgequickly back. The neural action accompanying this occurrence consistsof an impression upon the nerve-cells in the eye, the conduction of thenervous current back to the visual area of the brain, the transmissionof the current over association neurones to the motor area, then itstransmission over the motor neurones, down the spinal cord, to themuscles that enable you to dodge the missile. The association neuroneshave the further function of connecting one sensory area in the brainwith another. For example, when you see, smell, taste and touch anorange, the corresponding areas in the brain act in conjunction and areassociated by means of the association neurones connecting them. Theassociation neurones play a large part in the securing and organizingof knowledge. They are very important in study, for all learningconsists in building up associations. 

From the foregoing description we see that the nervous system consistsmerely of a mechanism for the reception and transmission of incomingmessages and their transformation into outgoing messages which producemovement. The brain is the center where such transformations are made, being a sort of central switchboard which permits the sense-organs tocome into communication with muscles. It is also the instrument bymeans of which the impressions from the various senses can be unitedand experience can be unified. The brain serves further as the mediumwhereby impressions once made can be retained. That is, it is the greatorgan of memory. Hence we see that it is to this organ we must look forthe performance of the activities necessary to study. Everything thatenters it produces some modification within it. Education consists in aprocess of undergoing a selected group of experiences of such a natureas to leave beneficial results in the brain. By means of the changesmade there, the individual is able better to adjust himself to newsituations. For when the individual enters the world, he is notprepared to meet many situations; only a few of the neural connectionsare made and he is able to perform only a meagre number of simple acts, such as breathing, crying, digestion. The pathways for complex acts, such as speaking English or French, or writing, are not formed at birthbut must be built up within the life-time of the individual. It is theprocess of building them up that we call education. This process is aphysical feat involving the production of changes in physical materialin the brain. Study involves the overcoming of resistance in thenervous system. That is why it is so hard. In your early school-days, when you set about laboriously learning the multiplication table, yourunwilling protests were wrung because you were being compelled to forcethe nervous current through new pathways, and to overcome the inertiaof physical matter. Today, when you begin a train of reasoning, thetask is difficult because you are opening hitherto untravelledpathways. There is a comforting thought, however, which is derived fromthe factor of modifiability, in that with each succeeding repetition, the task becomes easier, because the path becomes worn smoothly and thenervous current seeks it of its own accord; in other words, each actand each thought tends to become habitualized. Education is then aprocess of forming habits, and the rest of the book will be devoted tothe description and discussion of habits which a student should form. 

READING AND EXERCISE

Reading: Herrick (7)

Exercise 1. Draw a picture of the brain, showing roughly what takesplace there (a) when you read a book, (6) listen to a lecture, (c) takenotes. 

CHAPTER IV

FORMATION OF STUDY-HABITS

As already intimated, this book adopts the view that education is aprocess of forming habits in the brain. In the formation of habitsthere are several principles that must be observed. Accordingly weshall devote a chapter to the consideration of habits in general beforediscussing the specific habits involved in various kinds of study. 

Habit may be defined roughly as the tendency to act time after time inthe same way. Thus defined, you see that the force of habit extendsthroughout the entire universe. It is a habit for the earth to revolveon its axis once every twenty-four hours and to encircle the sun onceevery year. When a pencil falls from your hand it has a habit ofdropping to the floor. A piece of paper once folded tends to crease inthe same place. These are examples of the force of habit in nonlivingmatter. Living matter shows its power even more clearly. If you assumea petulant expression for some time, it gets fixed and the expressionbecomes habitual. The hair may be trained to lie this way or that. These are examples of habit in living tissue. But there is oneparticular form of living tissue which is most susceptible to habit;that is nerve tissue. Let us review briefly the facts which underliethis characteristic. In nerve tissue, impressibility, conductivity andmodifiability are developed to a marked degree. The nerve-cells in thesense organs are impressed by stimulations from the outside world. Thenervous current thus generated is conducted over long nerve fibers, through the spinal cord to the brain where it is received and weexperience a sensation. Thence it pushes on, over association neuronesin the brain to motor neurones, over which it passes down the spinalcord again to muscles, and ends in some movement. In the pathway whichit traverses it leaves its impression, and, thereafter, when the firstneurone is excited, the nervous current tends to take the same pathwayand to end in the same movement. 

It should be emphasized that the nervous current, once started, alwaystends to seek outlet in movement. This is an extremely importantfeature of neural action, and, as will be shown in another chapter, isa vital factor in study. Movement may be started by the stimulation ofa sense organ or by an idea. In the latter case it starts from regionsin the brain without the immediately preceding stimulation of a senseorgan. Howsoever it starts you may be sure that it seeks a way out, andprefers pathways already traversed. Hence you see you are bound to havehabits. They will develop whether you wish them or not. Already you are"a bundle of habits"; they manifest themselves in two ways--as habitsof action and habits of thought. You illustrate the first every timeyou tie your shoes or sign your name. To illustrate the second, I needonly ask you to supply the end of this sentence: Columbus discoveredAmerica in----. Speech reveals many of these habits of thought. Certainphrases persist in the mind as habits so that when the phrase is oncebegun, you proceed habitually with the rest of it. When some one starts"in spite, " your mind goes on to think "of"; "more or" calls up "less. "When I ask you what word is called up by "black, " you reply "white"according to the principles of mental habit. Your mind is arranged insuch habitual patterns, and from these examples you readily see that alarge part of what you do and think during the course of twenty-fourhours is habitual. Twenty years hence you will be even more bound bythis overpowering despot. 

Our acts our angels are, or good, or ill, Our constant shadows that walk with us still. 

Since you cannot avoid forming habits, how important it is that youseek to form those that are useful and desirable. In acquiring them, there are several general principles deducible from the facts ofnervous action. The first is: Guard the pathways leading to the brain. Nerve tissue is impressible and everything that touches it leaves anineradicable trace. You can control your habits to some extent, then, by observing caution in permitting things to impress you. Manyunfortunate habits of study arise from neglect of this. The habit ofusing a "pony, " for example, arises when one permits oneself to dependupon a group of English words in translating from a foreign language. 

Nerve pathways should then be guarded with respect to _what_ enters. They should also be guarded with respect to the _way_ things enter. Remember, as the first pathway is cut, subsequent nervous currents willbe directed. Consequently if you make a wrong pathway, you will havetrouble undoing it. 

Another maxim which will obviously prevent undesirable pathways is, goslowly at first. This is an important principle in all learning. If, when trying to learn the date 1453, you carelessly impress it first as1435, you are likely to have trouble ever after in remembering which isright, 1453 or 1435. As you value your intellectual salvation, then, goslowly in making the first impression and be sure it is right. The nextrule is: Guard the exits of the nervous currents. That is, watch themovements you make in response to impressions and ideas. This isnecessary because the nervous current pushes on past obstructions, through areas in the brain, until it ends in some form of movement, andin finding the way out, it seeks those pathways that have been mostfrequently travelled. In study, it usually takes the form of movementsof speech or writing. You will need to guard this part of the processjust as you did the incoming pathway You must see that the movement ismade which you wish to build into a habit. In learning thepronunciation of a foreign word, for example, see that your firstpronunciation of it is absolutely right. When learning to typewritesee that you always hit the right key during the early trials. Thepoint of exit of a nervous current is the point also where precautionsare to be taken in developing good form. The path should be theshortest possible, involving only those muscles that are absolutelynecessary. This makes for economy of effort. 

The third general principle to be kept in mind is that habits are mosteasily formed in youth, for this is the period when nerve tissue ismost easily impressed and modified. With respect to habit formation, then, you see that youth is the time when emphasis should be laid uponthe formation of as many useful habits as possible. The worldrecognizes this to some extent and society is so organized that theyouth of the race are given leisure and protection so that they mayform useful habits. The world asks nothing of you during the next fouryears except that you develop yourself and form useful habits whichwill enable you in later life to take your place as a useful and stablemember of society. 

In addition to the principles just discussed, there are a number ofother maxims which have been laid down as guides in the formation ofnew habits. The first is, _make an assertion of will_. Vow to yourselfthat you will form the habit, and keep that resolve ever before you. 

The second maxim is, _make an emphatic start. _ Surround yourself withevery aid possible. Make it easy at first to perform the act anddifficult not to perform it. For example, if you desire to form thehabit of arising at six every morning, surround yourself with a numberof aids. Buy an alarm clock, and tell some one of your decision. Suchefforts at the start "will give your new beginning such a momentum thatthe temptation to break down will not occur as soon as it otherwisemight; and every day during which a breakdown is postponed adds to thechances of its not occurring at all. " Man has discovered the value ofsuch devices during the course of his long history, and has evolvedcustoms accordingly. When men decide to swear off smoking, they choosethe opening of a new year when many other new things are being started;they make solemn promises to themselves, to each other, and finally totheir friends. Such customs are precautions which help to bolster upthe determination at the time when extraordinary effort anddetermination are required. In forming the habits incidental to collegelife, take pains from the start to surround yourself with as many aidsas possible. This will not constitute a confession of weakness. It isonly a wise and natural precaution which the whole experience of therace has justified. The third maxim is, _never permit an exception tooccur_. Suppose you have a habit of saying "aint" which you wish toreplace with a habit of saying "isn't. " If the habit is deeply rooted, you have worn a pathway in the brain to a considerable depth, represented in the accompanying diagram by the line _A X B_. 

 A | X / \ B C

Let us suppose that you have already started the new habit, and have saidthe correct word ten times. That means you have worn another pathway_A X C_ to a considerable depth. During all this time, however, the oldpathway is still open and at the slightest provocation will attract thenervous current. Your task is to deepen the new path so that the nervouscurrent will flow into it instead of the old. Now suppose you make anexception on some occasion and allow the nervous current to travel overthe old path. This unfortunate exception breaks down the bridge whichyou had constructed at _X_ from _A_ to _C_. But this is not the onlyresult. The nervous current, as it revisits the old path, deepens itmore than it was before, so the next time a similar situation arises, the current seeks the old path with much greater readiness than before, and vastly more effort is required to overcome it. Some one has likenedthe effect of these exceptions to that produced when one drops a ballof string that is partially wound. By a single slip, more is undonethan can be accomplished in a dozen windings. 

The fourth maxim is, _seize every opportunity to act upon yourresolution_. The reason for this will be understood better if you keepin mind the fact, stated before, that nervous currents once started, whether from a sense-organ or from a brain-center, always tend to seekegress in movement. These outgoing nervous currents leave an imprintupon the modifiable nerve tissues as inevitably as do incomingimpressions. Therefore, if you wish your resolves to be firmly fixed, you should act upon them speedily and often. "It is not in the momentof their forming, but in the moment of their producing _motor effects_, that resolves and aspirations communicate the new 'set' to the brain. ""No matter how full a reservoir of _maxims_ one may possess, and nomatter how good one's _sentiments_ may be, if one has not takenadvantage of every concrete opportunity to _act_, one's character mayremain entirely unaffected for the better. " Particularly at time ofemotional excitement one makes resolves that are very good, and a glowof fine feeling is present. Beware that these resolves do not evaporatein mere feeling. They should be crystallized in some form of action assoon as possible. "Let the expression be the least thing in theworld--speaking genially to one's grandmother, or giving up one's seatin a . .. Car, if nothing more heroic offers--but let it not fail to takeplace. " Strictly speaking you have not really completed a resolve untilyou have acted upon it. You may determine to go without lunch, but youhave not consummated that resolve until you have permitted it toexpress itself by carrying you past the door of the dining-room. Thatis the crucial test which determines the strength of your resolve. Manyrepetitions will be required before a pathway is worn deep enough to besettled. Seize the very earliest opportunity to begin grooving it out, and seize every other opportunity for deepening it. 

After this view of the place in your life occupied by habit, youreadily see its far-reaching possibilities for welfare of body andmind. Its most obvious, because most annoying, effects are on the sideof its disadvantages. Bad habits secure a grip upon us that we aresometimes powerless to shake off. True, this ineradicableness need haveno terrors if we have formed good habits. Indeed, as will be pointedout in the next paragraph, habit may be a great asset. Nevertheless, itmay work positive harm, or at best, may lead to stagnation. Thefixedness of habit tends to make us move in ruts unless we exertcontinuous effort to learn new things. If we permit ourselves to movein old grooves we cease to progress and become "old fogy. "

But the advantages of habit far outweigh its disadvantages. Habit helpsthe individual to be consistent and helps people to know what to expectfrom one. It helps society to be stable, to incorporate within itselfmodes of action conducive to the common good. For example, the respectwhich we all have for the property of others is a habit, and is sofirmly intrenched that we should find ourselves unable to steal if wewished to. Habit is thus a very desirable asset and is truly called the"enormous fly-wheel of society. "

A second advantage of habit is that it makes for accuracy. Acts thathave become habitualized are performed more accurately than those nothabitualized. Movements such as those made in typewriting andpiano-playing, when measured in the psychological laboratory, are foundto copy each other with extreme fidelity. The human body is a machinewhich may be adjusted to a high degree of nicety, and habit is themechanism by which this adjustment is made. 

A third advantage is that a stock of habits makes life easier. "Thereis no more miserable human being than one in whom nothing is habitualbut indecision, for whom the lighting of every cigar, the drinking ofevery cup, the time of rising and going to bed every day and thebeginning of every bit of work, are subjects of express volitionaldeliberation. Full half the time of such a man goes to the deciding orregretting of matters which ought to be so ingrained in him aspractically not to exist for his consciousness at all. " Have you everreflected how miserable you would be and what a task living would be ifyou had to learn to write anew every morning when you go to class; orif you had to relearn how to tie your necktie every day? The burden ofliving would be intolerable. 

The last advantage to be discerned in habit is economy. Habitual actsdo not have to be actively directed by consciousness. While they arebeing performed, consciousness may be otherwise engaged. "The more ofthe details of our daily life we can hand over to the effortlesscustody of automatism, the more our higher powers of mind will be setfree for their own proper work. " While you are brushing your hair ortying your shoes, your mind may be engaged in memorizing poetry orcalculating arithmetical problems. Habit is thus a great economizer. 

The ethical consequences of habit are so striking that before leavingthe subject we must give them acknowledgment. We can do no better thanto turn to the statement by Professor James, whose wise remarks uponthe subject have not been improved upon:

"The physiological study of mental conditions is thus the most powerfulally of hortatory ethics. The hell to be endured hereafter, of whichtheology tells, is no worse than the hell we make for ourselves in thisworld by habitually fashioning our characters in the wrong way. Couldthe young but realize how soon they will become mere walking bundles ofhabits, they would give more heed to their conduct while in the plasticstate. We are spinning our own fates, good or evil, and never to beundone. Every smallest stroke of virtue or of vice leaves itsnever-so-little scar. The drunken Rip Van Winkle, in Jefferson's play, excuses himself for every fresh dereliction by saying, 'I won't countthis time!' Well! he may not count it and a kind heaven may not countit; but it is being counted none the less. Down among his nerve-cellsand fibers the molecules are counting it, registering it, and storingit up to be used against him when the next temptation comes. Nothing weever do is, in strict scientific literalness, wiped out. Of course thishas its good side as well as its bad one. As we become permanentdrunkards by so many drinks, so we become saints in the moral, andauthorities and experts in the practical and scientific, spheres, by somany separate acts and hours of work. But let no youth have any anxietyabout the upshot of his education, whatever the line of it may be. Ifhe keep faithfully busy each hour of the working day, he may safelyleave the final result to itself. He can with perfect certainty counton waking up some fine morning, to find himself one of the competentones of his generation, in whatever pursuit he has singled out. Silently, between all the details of his business, the _power ofjudging_ in all that class of matter will have built itself up withinhim as a possession that will never pass away. Young people should knowthe truth of this in advance. The ignorance of it has probablyengendered more discouragement and faintheartedness in youths embarkingon arduous careers than all other causes put together. "

EXERCISE

Exercise 1. Point out an undesirable habit that you are determined toeradicate. Describe the desirable habit which you will adopt in itsplace. Give the concrete steps you will take in forming the new habit. How long a time do you estimate will be required for the formation ofthe new habit? Mark down the date and refer back to it when you haveformed the habit, to see how accurately you estimated. 

CHAPTER V

ACTIVE IMAGINATION

A very large part of the mental life of a student consists in themanipulation of images. By images we mean the revivals of things thathave been impressed upon the senses. Call to mind for the moment yourhouse-number as it appears upon the door of your home. In so doing youmentally reinstate something which has been impressed upon your sensesmany times; and you see it almost as clearly as if it were actuallybefore you. The mental thing thus revived is called an image. 

The word image is somewhat ill-chosen; for it usually signifiessomething connected with the eye, and implies that the stuff of mentalimages is entirely visual. The true fact of the matter is, we can imagepractically anything that we can sense. We may have tactual images ofthings touched; auditory images of things heard; gustatory images ofthings tasted; olfactory images of things smelled. How these behave ingeneral and how they interact in study will engage our attention inthis chapter. 

The most highly dramatic use of images is in connection with thatmental process known as Imagination. As we study the writings of JackLondon, Poe, Defoe, Bunyan, we move in a realm almost wholly imaginary. And as we take a cross-section of our minds when thus engaged, we findthem filled with images. Furthermore, they are of great variety--imagesof colors, sounds, tastes, smells, touches, even of sensations from ourown internal organs, such as the palpitations of the heart thataccompany feelings of pride, indignation, remorse, exaltation. Afurther characteristic is that they are sharp, clean-cut, vivid. 

Note in the balcony scene from Romeo and Juliet, the number, varietyand vividness of the images:

"But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks?It is the east, and Juliet is the sun. Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon, Who is already sick and pale with griefThat thou, her maid, art far more fair than she. Be not her maid, since she is envious;Her vestal livery is but sick and green. .. . Two of the fairest stars in all the heaven, Having some business, do entreat her eyesTo twinkle in their spheres till they return. What if her eyes were there, they in her head?The brightness in her cheek would shame those stars, As daylight doth a lamp; her eyes in heavenWould through the airy regions stream so brightThat birds would sing and think it were not night. See, how she leans her cheek upon her hand!O, that I were a glove upon that hand, That I might touch that cheek!"

We may conclude, then, that three of the desirable attributes of greatworks of the imagination are _number, variety_ and _vividness_ ofmental images. 

One question that frequently arises concerning works of the imaginationis, What is their source? Superficial thinkers have loosely answered, "Inspiration, " implying, (according to the literal meaning of the word, "to breathe in"), that some mysterious external force (called by theancients, "A Muse") enters into the mind of the author with a specialrevelation. 

Psychological analysis of these imaginative works shows that thisexplanation is untrue. That the bizarre and apparently novel productsarise from the experiences of the author, revived in imagination andcombined in new ways. The horrendous incidents depicted in Dante's"Divine Comedy" never occurred within the lifetime experience of theauthor as such. Their separate elements did, however, and furnished thebasis for Dante's clever combinations. The oft-heard saying that thereis nothing new under the sun is psychologically true. 

In the light of this brief analysis of products of the imagination weare ready to develop a program which we may follow in cultivating anactive imagination. 

Recognizing that images have their source in sensory experience, we seethat the first step to take is to seek a multitude of experiences. Makeintimate acquaintance with the objects of your environment. Handlethem, tear them apart, put them together, place them next to otherobjects, noting the likenesses and differences. Thus you will acquirethe stuff out of which images are made and will stock your mind with anumber of images. Then when you wish to convey your ideas you will havea number of terms in which to do it--one of the characteristics of afree-flowing imagination. 

The second characteristic we found to be variety. To secure this, seeka variety of sensational experiences. Perceive the objects of yourexperience through several senses--touch, smell, sight, hearing, taste. By means of this variety in sensations you will securecorresponding variety in your images. 

To revive them easily sometimes requires practice. For it has beendiscovered that all people do not naturally call up images related tothe various senses with equal ease. Most people use visual and auditoryimages more freely than they do other kinds. In order to develop skillin evoking the others, practise recalling them. Sit down for an hour ofpractice, as you would sit down for an hour of piano practice. Try torecall the taste of raisins, English walnuts; the smell of hyacinths, of witch-hazel; the rough touch of an orange-skin. Though you may atfirst have difficulty you will develop, with practice, a gratifyingfacility in recalling all varieties of images. 

The third characteristic which we observed in works of the imaginationis vividness. To achieve this, pay close attention to the details ofyour sensory experiences. Observe sharply the minute but characteristicitems--the accent mark on _après_; the coarse stubby beard of thetypical alley tough. Stock your mind with a wealth of such detailedimpressions. Keep them alive by the kind of practice recommended in thepreceding paragraph. Then describe the objects of your experience interms of these significant details. 

We discovered, in discussing the source of imaginative works, that themen whom we are accustomed to call imaginative geniuses do not haveunique communication with heaven or with any external reservoir ofideas. Instead, we found their wonder-evoking creations to be merelynew combinations of old images. The true secret of their success istheir industrious utilization of past experiences according to theprogram outlined above. They select certain elements from theirexperiences and combine them in novel ways. This is the explanation oftheir strange, beautiful and bizarre productions. This is what Carlylemeant when he characterized genius as "the transcendent capacity fortaking trouble" This is what Hogarth meant when he said, "Genius isnothing but labor and diligence. " For concrete exemplification of thistruth we need only turn to the autobiographies of great writers. Inthis passage from "John Barleycorn, " Jack London describes his methods:

"Early and late I was at it--writing, typing, studying grammar, studying writing and all forms of writing, and studying the writers whosucceeded in order to find out how they succeeded. I managed on fivehours' sleep in the twenty-four, and came pretty close to working thenineteen waking hours left to me. "

By saying that the novel effects of imagination come by way ofindustry, we do not mean to imply that one should strain after noveltyand eccentricity. Unusual and happy combinations will come ofthemselves and naturally if one only makes a sufficient number. 

There are laws of combination, known as the psychological laws ofassociation, by which images will unite naturally. The number ofpossible combinations is infinite. By industriously making a largenumber, you will by the very laws of chance, stumble upon some that areespecially happy and striking. 

In summarizing this discussion, we may conclude that an active fertileimagination comes from crowding into one's life a large number ofvaried and vivid experiences; storing them up in the mind in the formof images; and industriously recalling and combining them in novelrelationships. Mental images occur in other mental processes besidesImagination. They bulk importantly in memorizing, as we shall see inChapters VI and VII; and in reasoning, as we shall see in Chapter IX. Throughout the book we shall find that as we develop ability tomanipulate mental images, we shall increase the adaptability of all themental processes. 

READING AND EXERCISES

Reading: Dearborn (2) Chapter III. 

Exercise 1. Call up in imagination the sound of your Frenchinstructor's voice as he says _étudiant_. Call up the appearance on thepage of the conjugation of _être_, present tense. 

Exercise 2. Choose some word which you have had difficulty in learning. Look at it attentively, securing a perfectly clear impression of it;then practise calling up the visual image of it, until you secureperfect reproduction. 

Exercise 3. List the different images called up by the passage from_Romeo and Juliet_. 

CHAPTER VI

FIRST AIDS TO MEMORY; IMPRESSION

Of all the mental operations employed by the student, memory isprobably the one in which the greatest inefficiency is manifested. Though we often fail to realize it, much of our life is taken up withmemorizing. Every time we make use of past experience, we rely uponthis function of the mind, but in no occupation is it quite sopractically important as in study. We shall begin our investigation ofmemory by dividing it into four phases or stages--Impression, Retention, Recall and Recognition. Any act of memory involves them all. There is first a stage when the material is being impressed; second, astage when it is being retained so that it may be revived in thefuture; third, a stage of recall when the retained material is revivedto meet present needs; fourth, a feeling of recognition, through whichthe material is recognized as having previously been in the mind. 

Impression is accomplished through the sense organs; and in theforegoing chapter we laid down the rule: Guard the avenues ofimpression and admit only such things as you wish to retain. Thisnecessitates that you go slowly at first. This is a principle of allhabit formation, but is especially important in habits of memorizing. Much of the poor memory that people complain about is due to the factthat they make first impressions carelessly. One reason why people failto remember names is that they do not get a clear impression of thename at the start. They are introduced in a hurry or the introducermumbles; consequently no clear impression is secured. Under suchcircumstances how could one expect to retain and recall the name? Goslowly, then, in impressing material for the first time. As you look upthe words of a foreign language in the lexicon, trying to memorizetheir English equivalents, take plenty of time. Obtain a clearimpression of the sound and appearance of the words. 

Inasmuch as impressions may be made through any of the sense organs, one problem in the improvement of memory concerns the choice of senseavenues. As an infant you used all senses impartially in your eagersearch after information. You voraciously put things into your mouthand discovered that some things were sweet, some sour. You bumped yourhead against things and learned that some were hard and some soft. Inyour insatiable curiosity you pulled things apart and peered into them;in short, utilized all the sense organs. In adult life, however, and ineducation as it takes place through the agency of books andinstructors, most learning depends upon the eye and ear. Even yet, however, you learn many things through the sense of touch and throughmuscle movement, though you may be unaware of it. You probably havebetter success retaining impressions made upon one sense than another. The majority of people retain better things that are visuallyimpressed. Such persons think often in terms of visual images. Whenthinking of water running from a faucet, they can see the water fall, see it splash, but have no trace of the sound. The whole event isnoiseless in memory. When they think of their instructor, they can seehim standing at his desk but cannot imagine the sound of his voice. When striving to think of the causes leading to the Civil War, theypicture them as they are listed on the page of the text-book ornote-book. Other people have not this ability to recall in visualterms, but depend to greater extent upon sounds. When asked to thinkabout their instructor, they do it in terms of his voice. When asked toconjugate a French verb, they hear it pronounced mentally but do notsee it on the page. These are extremes of imagery type, but theyillustrate preferences as they are found in many persons. Some personsuse all senses with ease; others unconsciously work out combinations, preferring one sense for some kinds of material and another for otherkinds. For example, one might prefer visual impression for rememberingdates in history but auditory impression for conjugating French verbs. You will find it profitable to examine yourself and discover yourpreferences. If you find that you have greater difficulty inremembering material impressed through the ear than through the eye, reduce things to visual terms as much as possible. Make your lecturenotes more complete or tabulate things that you wish to remember, thussecuring impression from the written form. The writer has difficulty inremembering names that are only heard. So he asks that the name bespelled, then projects the letters on an imaginary background, thusforming visual stuff which can easily be recalled. If, on the contrary, you remember best the things that you hear, you may find it a good planto read your lessons aloud. Many a student, upon the discovery of sucha preference, has increased his memory ability many fold by adoptingthe simple expedient of reading his lessons aloud. It might be pointedout that while you are reading aloud, you are making more than auditoryimpressions. By the use of the vocal organs you are making muscularimpressions, which also aid in learning, as will be pointed out inChapter X. 

After this discussion do not jump to the conclusion that just becauseyou find some difficulty in using one sense avenue for impression, itis therefore impossible to develop it. Facility in using particularsenses can be gained by practice. To improve ability to form visualimages of things, practise calling up visions of things. Try to picturea page of your history textbook. Can you see the headlines of thesections and the paragraphs? To develop auditory imagery, practisecalling up sounds. Try to image your French instructor's voice insaying _élève_. The development of these sense fields is a slow andlaborious process and one questions whether it is worth while for astudent to undertake the labor involved when another sense is alreadyvery efficient. Probably it is most economical to Arrange impressionsso as to favor the sense that is already well developed and reliable. 

Another important condition of impression is repetition. It is wellknown that material which is repeated several times is remembered moreeasily than that impressed but once. If two repetitions induce a givenliability to recall, four or eight will secure still greater liabilityof recall. Your knowledge of brain action makes this rule intelligible, because you know the pathway is deepened every time the nervous currentpasses over it. 

Experiments in the psychological laboratory have shown that it is bestin making impressions to make more than enough impressions to insurerecall. "If material is to be retained for any length of time, a simplemastery of it for immediate recall is not sufficient. It should belearned far beyond the point of immediate reproduction if time andenergy are to be saved. " This principle of learning points out the factthat there are two kinds of memory--immediate and deferred. The firstkind involves recall immediately after impression is made; the secondinvolves recall at some later time. It is a well-known fact that thingslearned a long time before they are to be recalled fade away. If youare not going to recall material until a long time after theimpression, store up enough impressions so that you can afford to losea few and still retain enough until time for recall. Another reason for"overlearning" is that when the time comes for recall you are likely tobe disturbed. If it is a time of public performance, you may beembarrassed; or you may be hurried or under distractions. Accordinglyyou should have the material exceedingly well memorized so that thesedistractions will not prove detrimental. 

The mere statement made above, that repetition is necessary inimpression, is not sufficient. It is important to know how todistribute the repetitions. Suppose you are memorizing "Psalm of Life"to be recited a month from to-day, and that you require thirtyrepetitions of the poem to learn it. Shall you make these thirtyrepetitions at one sitting? Or shall you distribute them among severalsittings? In general, it is better to spread the repetitions over aperiod of time. The question then arises, what is the most effectivedistribution? Various combinations are possible. You might rehearse thepoem once a day during the month, or twice a day for the first fifteendays, or the last fifteen days, four times every fourth day, _adinfinitum_. In the face of these possibilities is there anything thatwill guide us in distributing the repetitions? We shall get some lighton the question from an examination of the curve of forgetting--a curvethat has been plotted showing the rate at which the mind tends toforget. Forgetting proceeds according to law, the curve descendingrapidly at first and then more slowly. "The larger proportion of thematerial learned is forgotten the first day or so. After that aconstantly decreasing amount is forgotten on each succeeding day forperhaps a week, when the amount remains practically stationary. " Thisgives us some indication that the early repetitions should be closertogether than those at the end of the period. So long as you areforgetting rapidly you will need more repetitions in order tocounterbalance the tendency to forget. You might well make fiverepetitions; then rest. In about an hour, five more; within the nexttwenty-four hours, five more. By this time you should have the poemmemorized, and all within two days. You would still have fifteenrepetitions of the thirty, and these might be used in keeping the poemfresh in the mind by a repetition every other day. 

As intimated above, one important principle in memorizing is to makethe first impressions as early as possible, for older impressions havemany chances of being retained. This is evidenced by the vividness ofchildhood scenes in the minds of our grandparents. An old soldierrecalls with great vividness events that happened during the Civil War, but forgets events of yesterday. There is involved here a principle ofnervous action that you have already encountered; namely, thatimpressions are more easily made and retained in youth. It should alsobe observed that pathways made early have more chances of being usedthan those made recently. Still another peculiarity of nervous actionis revealed in these extended periods of memorizing. It has beendiscovered that if a rest is taken between impressions, the impressionsbecome more firmly fixed. This points to the presence of a surprisingpower, by which we are able to learn, as it were, while we sleep. Weshall understand this better if we try to imagine what is happening inthe nervous system. Processes of nutrition are constantly going on. Theblood brings in particles to repair the nerve cells, rebuilding themaccording to the pattern left by the last impression. Indeed, theentrance of this new material makes the impression even more fixed. Thenutritional processes seem to set the impression much as a hypo bathfixes or sets an impression on a photographic plate. This peculiarityof memory led Professor James to suggest, paradoxically, that we learnto skate in summer and to swim in winter. And, indeed, one usuallyfinds, in beginning the skating season, that after the initialstiffness of muscles wears off, one glides along with surprisingagility. You see then that if you plan things rightly, Nature will domuch of your learning for you. It might be suggested that perhapsthings impressed just before going to sleep have a better chance to"set" than things impressed at other times for the reason that sleep isthe time when the reparative processes of the body are most active. 

Since the brain pattern requires time to "set, " it is important thatafter the first impression you refrain from introducing anythingimmediately into the mind that might disturb it. After you haveimpressed the poem you are memorizing, do not immediately follow it byanother poem. Let the brain rest for three or four minutes until afterthe first impressions have had a chance to "set. "

Now that we have regarded this "unconscious memorizing" from theneurological standpoint, let us consider it from the psychologicalstandpoint. How are the ideas being modified during the intervalsbetween impressions? Modern psychology has discovered that muchmemorizing goes on without our knowing it, paradoxical as that mayseem. The processes may be described in terms of the doctrine ofassociation, which is that whenever two things have once beenassociated together in the mind, there is a tendency thereafter "if thefirst of them recurs, for the other to come with it. " After the poem ofour illustration has once been repeated, there is a tendency for eventsin everyday experience that are like it to associate themselves withit. For example, in the course of a day or week many things might ariseand recall to you the line, "Life is real, life is earnest", and itwould become, by that fact, more firmly fixed in the mind. Thisvaluable semi-conscious recall requires that you must make the firstimpression as early as possible before the time for ultimate recall. This persistence of ideas in the mind means "that the process oflearning does not cease with the actual work of learning, but that, ifnot disturbed, this process runs on of itself for a time, and adds alittle to the result of our labors. It also means that, if it is to ouradvantage to stand in readiness with some word or thought, we shall beable to do so, if only this word or thought recur to us but once, sometime before the critical moment. So we remember to keep a promise topay a call, to make a remark at the proper time, even though we turnour mind to other work or talk for some hours between. We can do thisbecause, if not vigorously prevented, ideas and words keep onreappearing in the mind. " You may utilize this principle intheme-writing to good advantage. As soon as the instructor announcesthe subject for a theme, begin to think about it. Gather together allthe ideas you have about the subject and start your mind to work uponit. Suppose you take as a theme-subject The Value of Training in PublicSpeaking for a Business Man. The first time this is suggested to you, afew thoughts, at least, will come to you. Write them down, even thoughthey are disconnected and heterogeneous. Then as you go about yourother work you will find a number of occasions that will arouse ideasbearing upon this subject. You may read in a newspaper of a brilliantspeech made before the Chamber of Commerce by a leading business man, which will serve as an illustration to support your affirmativeposition; or you may attend a banquet where a prominent business mandisappoints his audience with a wretched speech. Such experiences, andmany others, bearing more or less directly upon the subject, will cometo you, and will call up the theme-subject, with which they will unitethemselves. Write down these ideas as they occur, and you will findthat when you start to compose the theme formally, it almost writesitself, requiring for the most part only expansion and arrangement ofideas. While thus organizing the theme you will reap even more benefitsfrom your early start, for, as you are composing it, you will find newideas crowding in upon you which you did not know you possessed, butwhich had been associating themselves in your mind with this topic evenwhen you were unaware of the fact. 

In writing themes, the principle of distribution of time may also beprofitably employed. After you have once written a theme, lay it asidefor a while--perhaps a week. Then when you take it up, read it in adetached manner and you will note many places where it may be improved. These benefits are to be enjoyed only when a theme is planned a longtime ahead. Hence the rule to start as early as possible. 

Before leaving the subject of theme-writing, which was called up by thediscussion of unconscious memory, another suggestion will be given thatmay be of service to you. When correcting a theme, employ more than onesense avenue. Do not simply glance over it with your eye. Read italoud, either to yourself or, better still, to someone else. When youdo this you will be amazed to discover how different it sounds and whata new view you secure of it. When you thus change your method ofcomposition, you will find a new group of ideas thronging into yourmind. In the auditory rendition of a theme you will discover faults ofsyntax which escaped you in silent reading. You will note duplicationof words, split infinitives, mixed tenses, poorly balanced sentences. Moreover, if your mind has certain peculiarities, you may find evenmore advantages accruing from such a practice. The author, for example, has a slightly different set of ideas at his disposal according to themedium of expression employed. When writing with a pencil, one set ofideas comes to mind; with a typewriter slightly different ideas arise;when talking to an audience, still different ideas. Three sets of ideasand three vocabularies are thus available for use on any subject. Inadopting this device of composing through several mediums, you shouldcombine with it the principle of distributing time already discussed inconnection with repetition of impressions. Write a theme one day, then lay it aside for a few days and go back to it with a fresh mind. The rests will be found very beneficial in helping you to get a newviewpoint of the subject. 

Reverting to our discussion of memory, we come upon another question:In memorizing material like the poem of our example, should one impressthe entire poem at once, or break it up into parts, impressing a stanzaeach day? Most people would respond, without thought, the latter, and, as a matter of fact, most memorizing takes place in this way. Experimental psychology, however, has discovered that this isuneconomical. The selection, if of moderate length, should be impressedas a whole. If too long for this, it should be broken up as little aspossible. In order to see the necessity for this let us examine yourexperiences with the memorization of poems in your early school days. You probably proceeded as follows: After school one day, you learnedthe first stanza, then went out to play. The next day you learned thesecond one, and so on. You thought at the end of a week that you hadmemorized it because, at the end of each day's sitting, you were ableto recite perfectly the stanza learned that day. On "speaking day" youstarted out bravely and recited the first stanza without mishap. Whenyou started to think of the second one, however, it would not come. Thememory balked. Now what was the matter? How can we explain thisdistressing blank? In psychological terms, we ascribe the difficulty tothe failure to make proper associations between stanzas. Associationwas made effectively between the lines of the single stanzas, but notbetween the separate stanzas. After you finished impressing the firststanza, you went about something else; playing ball, perhaps. When youapproached the poem the next day you started in with the second stanza. There was then no bridge between the two. There was nothing to link thelast line of the first stanza, "And things are not what they seem, "

with the first line of the next stanza, "Life is real, life is earnest. "

This makes clear the necessity of impressing the poem as a wholeinstead of by parts. 

According to another classification, there are two ways ofmemorizing--by rote and by logical associations. Rote memorizinginvolves the repetition of material just as it stands, and usuallyrequires such long and laborious drill that it is seldom economical. True, some matter must be memorized this way; such as the days of theweek and the names of the months; but there is another and gentlermethod which is usually more effective and economical than that ofbrutal repetition. That is the method of logical association, by whichone links up a new fact with something already in the mind. If, forexample, you wish to remember the date of the World's Fair in Chicago, you might proceed as follows: Ask yourself, What did the Faircommemorate? The discovery of America in 1492, the four hundredthanniversary occurring in 1892. The Fair could not be made ready in thatyear, however, so was postponed a year. Such a process of memorizingthe date is less laborious than the method of rote memory, and isusually more likely to lead to ready recall. The old fact already inmind acts as a magnet which at some later time may call up other factsthat had once been associated with it. You can easily see that this newfact might have been associated with several old facts, thus securingmore chances of being called up. From this it may be inferred that themore facts you have in your mind about a subject the more chances youhave of retaining new facts. It is sometimes thought that if a personstores so much in his memory it will soon be so full that he cannotmemorize any more. This is a false notion, involving a conception ofthe brain as a hopper into which impressions are poured until it runsover. On the contrary, it should be regarded as an interlacing offibers with infinite possibilities of inter-connection, and no one everexhausts the number of associations that can be made. 

The method of logical association may be employed with telling effectin the study of foreign languages. When you meet a new word scrutinizeit carefully for some trace of a word already familiar to you either inthat language or in another. This independent discovery of meanings isa very great aid in saving time and in fixing the meaning of new words. Opportunities for this method are especially frequent in the Germanlanguage, since so many German words are formed by compounding otherwords. "Rathausmarkt" is a long and apparently difficult German word, and one's first temptation is to look it up in the lexicon and promptlyforget it. Let us analyze it, however, and we shall see that it is onlya compound of already familiar words. "_Rat_" is already familiar asthe word for counsel ("_raten"_ to give advice); "_haus_" is equallyfamiliar. So we see that the first part of the word meanscouncil-house; the council-house of a city is called a city hall. "_Markt_" is equally familiar as market-square, so the significance ofthe entire word stands, city-hall-square. By such a method of utilizingfacts already known, you may make yourself much more independent of thelexicon and may make your memory for foreign words much more tenacious. 

We approach a phase of impression the importance of which is oftenunsuspected; namely, the intention with which memorizing is done. Thefidelity of memory is greatly affected by the intention. If, at thetime of impression, you intend to retain only until the time of recall, the material tends to slip away after that time. If, however, youimpress with the intention to retain permanently the material stays byyou better. Students make a great mistake when they study for thepurpose merely of retaining until after examination time. Intend toretain facts permanently, and there will be greater likelihood of theirpermanence. 

READINGS AND EXERCISES

Readings: Adams (1) Chapter III. Seashore (16) Chapter II. Swift (20)Chapter VII. Watt (21). 

Exercise I. Cite examples from your own experience showing the effectsof the following faults in making impressions. _a_. First impressionnot clear. _b_. Insufficient number of repetitions. _c_. Use of rotemethod instead of method of logical association. _d_. Impressions notdistributed. _e_. Improper use of "part" method. 

Exercise 2. After experimentation, state what is your most effectivesense avenue for the impression of foreign words, facts in history, thepronunciation of English words. 

Exercise 3. Make a preliminary draft of your next theme; lay it asidefor a day or two; then write another on the same subject; combine thetwo, using the best parts of each; lay this aside for a day or two;then read it aloud, making such changes as are prompted by the auditorypresentation. Can you find elements of worth in this method, which willwarrant you in adopting it, at least, in part?

CHAPTER VII

SECOND AIDS TO MEMORY: RETENTION, RECALL AND RECOGNITION

Our discussion up to this point has centred around the phase of memorycalled impression. We have described some of the conditions favorableto impression and have seen that certain and accurate memory dependsupon adherence to them. The next phase of memory--Retention--cannot bedescribed in psychological terms. We know we retain facts after theyare once impressed, but as to their status in the mind we can saynothing. If you were asked when the Declaration of Independence wassigned, you would reply instantly. When asked, however, where that factwas five minutes ago, you could not answer. Somewhere in the recessesof the mind, perhaps, but as to immediate awareness of it, there wasnone. We may try to think of retention in terms of nerve cells and saythat at the time when the material was first impressed there was somemodification made in certain nerve cells which persisted. This trait ofnerve modifiability is one factor which accounts for greater retentivepower in some persons than in others. It must not be concluded, however, that all good memory is due to the inheritance of this trait. It is due partly to observance of proper conditions of impression, andmuch can be done to overcome or offset innate difficulty ofmodification by such observance. 

We are now ready to examine the third phase of memory--Recall. This isthe stage at which material that has been impressed and retained isrecalled to serve the purpose for which it was memorized. Recall isthus the goal of memory, and all the devices so far discussed have itfor their object. Can we facilitate recall by any other means than byfaithful and intelligent impressions? For answer let us examine thestate of mind at time of recall. 

We find that it is a unique mental state. It differs from impression inbeing a period of more active search for facts in the mind accompaniedby expression, instead of a concentration upon the external impression. It is also usually accompanied by motor expressions, either talking orwriting. Since recall is a unique mental state, you ought to preparefor it by means of a rehearsal. When you are memorizing anything to berecalled, make part of your memorizing a rehearsal of it, if possible, under same conditions as final recall. In memorizing from a book, firstmake impression, then close the book and practise recall. Whenmemorizing a selection to be given in a public speaking class, intersperse the periods of impression with periods of recall. This isespecially necessary in preparation for public speaking, for facing anaudience gives rise to a vastly different psychic attitude from that ofimpression. The sight of an audience may be embarrassing or exciting. Furthermore, unforeseen distractions may arise. Accordingly, createthose conditions as nearly as possible in your preparation. Imagineyourself facing the audience. Practise aloud so that you will becomeaccustomed to the sound of your own voice. The importance of thepractice of recall as a part of the memory process can hardly beoverestimated. One psychologist has advised that in memorizingsignificant material more than half the time should be spent inpractising recall. 

There still remains a fourth phase of memory--Recognition. Whenever aremembered fact is recalled, it is accompanied by a characteristicfeeling which we call the feeling of recognition. It has been describedas a feeling of familiarity, a glow of warmth, a sense of ownership, afeeling of intimacy. As you walk down the street of a great city youpass hundreds of faces, all of them strange. Suddenly in the crowd youcatch sight of some one you know and are instantly suffused with a glowof feeling that is markedly different from your feeling toward theothers. That glow represents the feeling of recognition. It is alwayspresent during recall and may be used in great advantage in studying. It derives its virtue for our purpose from the fact that it is afeeling, and at the time of feeling the bodily activities in generalare affected. Changes occur in heart beat, breathing; various glandularsecretions are affected, the digestive organs respond. In this generalquickening of bodily activity we have reason to believe that thenervous system partakes, and things become impressed more readily. Thusthe feeling of recognition that accompanies recall is responsible forone of the benefits of reviews. At such a time material once memorizedbecomes tinged with a feelingful color different from that whichaccompanied it when new. Review, then, not merely to produce additionalimpressions, but also to take advantage of the feeling of recognition. 

We have now discussed memory in its four phases and have seen clearlythat it operates not in a blind, chaotic manner, but according to law. Certain conditions are required and when they are met memory is good. After providing proper conditions for memory, then, trust your memory. An attitude of confidence is very necessary. If, when you arememorizing, you continually tremble for fear that you will not recallat the desired moment, the fixedness of the impression will be greatlyhindered. Therefore, after utilizing all your knowledge about theconditions of memorizing, rest content and trust to the laws of Nature. They will not fail you. 

By this time you have seen that memory is not a mysterious mentalfaculty with which some people are generously endowed, and of whichothers are deprived. All people of normal intelligence can remember andcan improve their ability if they desire. The improvement does not takethe form that some people expect, however. No magic wand can transformyou into a good memorizes You must work the transformation yourself. Furthermore, it is not an instantaneous process to be accomplishedovernight. It will come about only after you have built up a set ofhabits, according to our conception of study as a process of habitformation. 

A final word of caution should be added. Some people think of memory asa separate division or compartment of the mind which can be controlledand improved by exercising it alone. Such a conception is fallacious. Improvement in memory will involve improvement in other mentalabilities, and you will find that as you improve your ability toremember, you will develop at the same time better powers toconcentrate attention, to image, to associate facts and to reason. 

READING AND EXERCISE

Reading: See readings for Chapter VI. 

Exercise I. Compare the mental conditions of impression with those ofrecall. 

CHAPTER VIII

CONCENTRATION OF ATTENTION

Nearly everyone has difficulty in the concentration of attention. Brainworkers in business and industry, students in high school and college, and even professors in universities, complain of the same difficulty. Attention seems in some way to be at the very core of mental activity, for no matter from what aspect we view the mind, its excellence seemsto depend upon the power to concentrate attention. When we examine agrowing infant, one of the first signs by which we judge the awakeningof intelligence is the power to pay attention or to "notice things. "When we examine the intellectual ability of normal adults we do so bymeans of tests that require close concentration of attention. Injudging the intelligence of people with whom we associate every day, weregard one who is able to maintain close attention for long periods oftime as a person of strong mind. We rate Thomas Edison as a powerfulthinker when we read that he becomes so absorbed in work that heneither eats nor sleeps. Finally, when we examine the insane and thefeeble-minded, we find that one form which their derangements take isan inability to control the attention. This evidence, added to our ownexperience, shows us the importance of concentration of attention instudy and we become even more desirous of investigating attention tosee how we may develop it. 

We shall be better able to discuss attention if we select for analysisa concrete situation when the mind is in a state of concentratedattention. Concentrate for a moment upon the letter O. Although you areostensibly focussing all your powers of attention upon the letter, nevertheless you are really aware of a number of things besides: ofother words on the page; of other objects in the field of vision; ofsounds in the room and on the street; of sensations from your clothing;and of sensations from your bodily organs, such as the heart and lungs. In addition to these sensations, you will find, if you introspectcarefully enough, that your mind also contains a number of ideas andimaginings; thoughts about the paragraph you just read or about one ofyour lessons. Thus we see that at a time when we apparently focus ourattention upon but one thing, we really have a large number of thingsin our mind, and they are of a great variety. The mental field might berepresented by a circle, at the centre of which is the object ofattention. It may be an object in the external world perceived throughone of the senses, or it may be an idea we are thinking about, such, for example, as the idea of infinity. But whether the thing attended tois a perception or an idea, we may properly speak of it as the objectof attention or the "focal" object. In addition to this, we mustrecognize the presence of a large number of other objects, both sensoryand ideational. These are nearer the margin of the mental field, so wecall them "marginal. "

The distinctive thing about a state of mind such as that just describedis that the focal object is much clearer than the marginal objects. Forexample, when you fixated the letter O, it was only in the vaguest sortof fashion that you were aware of the contact of your clothing or thelurking ideas of other lessons. As we examine these marginal objectsfurther, we find that they are continually seeking to crowd into thecentre of attention and to become clear. You may be helped in forming avivid picture of conditions if you think of the mind as a stream everin motion, and as it flows on, the objects in it continually shifttheir positions. A cross-section of the stream at any moment may showthe contents of the mind arranged in a particular pattern, but at thevery next moment they may be arranged in a different pattern, anotherobject occupying the focus, while the previous tenant is pushed to themargin. Thus we see that it is a tendency of the mind to be foreverchanging. If left to itself, it would be in ceaseless fluctuation, thewhim of every passing fancy. This tendency to fluctuate comes with moreor less regularity, some psychologists say every second or two. True, we do not always yield to the fluctuating tendency, nevertheless we arerecurrently tempted, and we must exercise continuous effort to keep aparticular object at the focus. The power to exert effort and toregulate the arrangement of our states of mind is the peculiar gift ofman, and is a prime function of education. Viewed in this light, then, we see that the voluntary focusing of our attention consists in theselecting of certain objects to be attended to, and the ignoring ofother objects which act as distractions. We may conveniently classifythe latter as external sensations, bodily sensations and irrelevantideas. 

Let us take an actual situation that may arise in study and see howthis applies. Suppose you are in your room studying about Charlemagne, a page of your history text occupying the centre of your attention. Themarginal distractions in such a case would consist, first, in externalsensations, such as the glare from your study-lamp, the hissing of theradiator, the practising of a neighboring vocalist, the rattle ofpassing street-cars. The bodily distractions might consist ofsensations of weariness referred to the back, the arms and the eyes, and fainter sensations from the digestive organs, heart and lungs. Theirrelevant ideas might consist of thoughts about a German lesson whichyou are going to study, visions of a face, or thoughts about somesocial engagement. These marginal objects are in the mind even when youconscientiously focus your mind upon the history lesson, and, thoughvague, they try to force their way into the focus and become clear. Thetask of paying attention, then, consists in maintaining the desiredobject at the centre of the mental field and keeping the distractionsaway. With this definition of attention, we see that in order toincrease the effectiveness of attention during study, we must devisemeans for overcoming the distractions peculiar to study. Obviously thefirst thing is to eliminate every distraction possible. Such a plan ofelimination may require a radical rearrangement of study conditions, for students often fail to realize how wretched their conditions ofstudy are from a psychological standpoint. They attempt to study inrooms with two or three others who talk and move about continually;they drop down in any spot in the library and expose themselvesneedlessly to a great number of distractions. If you wish to become agood student, you must prepare conditions as favorable as possible forstudy. Choose a quiet room to live in, free from distracting sounds andsights. Have your room at a temperature neither too hot nor too cold;68° F. Is usually considered favorable for study. When reading in thelibrary, sit down in a quiet spot, with your back to the door, so youwill not be tempted to look up as people enter the room. Do not sitnear a group of gossipers or near a creaking door. Having made theexternal conditions favorable for study, you should next addressyourself to the task of eliminating bodily distractions. The mostdisturbing of these in study are sensations of fatigue, for, contraryto the opinion of many people, study is very fatiguing work andinvolves continual strain upon the muscles in holding the body still, particularly those of the back, neck, arms, hands and, above all, theeyes. How many movements are made by your eyes in the course of anhour's study! They sweep back and forth across the page incessantly, being moved by six muscles which are bound to become fatigued. Stillmore fatigue comes from the contractions of delicate muscles within theeyeball, where adjustments are made for far and near vision and forvarying amounts of light. The eyes, then, give rise to much fatigue, and, altogether, are the source of a great many bodily distractions instudy. 

Other distractions may consist of sensations from the clothing. We arealways vaguely aware of pressure of our clothing. Usually it is notsufficiently noticeable to cause much annoyance, but occasionally itis, as is demonstrated at night when we take off a shoe with such asigh of relief that we realize in retrospect it had been vaguelytroubling us all day. 

In trying to create conditions for efficient study, many bodilydistractions can be eliminated. The study chair should be easy to sitin so as to reduce fatigue of the muscles supporting the body; thebook-rest should be arranged so as to require little effort to hold thebook; the light should come over the left shoulder. This is especiallynecessary in writing, so that the writing hand will not cast a shadowupon the work. The muscles of the eyes will be rested and fatigue willbe retarded if you close the eyes occasionally. Then in order to lessenthe general fatigue of the body, you may find it advantageous to riseand walk about occasionally. Lastly, the clothing should be loose andunconfining; especially should there be plenty of room for circulation. 

In the overcoming of distractions, we have seen that much may be doneby way of eliminating distractions, and we have pointed out the way toaccomplish this to a certain extent. But in spite of our most carefulprovisions, there will still be distractions that cannot be eliminated. You cannot, for example, chloroform the vocalist in the neighboringapartment, nor stop the street-cars while you study; you cannot ruleout fatigue sensations entirely, and you cannot build a fence aroundthe focus of your mind so as to keep out unwelcome and irrelevantideas. The only thing to do then is to accept as inevitable thepresence of some distractions, and to realise that to pay attention, itis necessary to habituate yourself to the ignoring of distractions. 

In the accomplishment of this end it will be necessary to apply theprinciples of habit formation already described. Start out by making astrong determination to ignore all distractions. Practise ignoringthem, and do not let a slip occur. Try to develop interest in theobject of attention, because we pay attention to those things in whichwe are most interested. A final point that may help you is to use thefirst lapse of attention as a reminder of the object you desire tofixate upon. This may be illustrated by the following example: Suppose, in studying a history lesson, you come upon a reference to the royalapparel of Charlemagne. The word "royal" might call up purple, aNorthwestern University pennant, the person who gave it to you, andbefore you know it you are off in a long day-dream leading far from thehistory lesson. Such migrations as these are very likely to occur instudy, and constitute one of the most treacherous pitfalls of studentlife. In trying to avoid them, you must form habits of disregardingirrelevant ideas when they try to obtrude themselves. And the way to dothis is to school yourself so that the first lapse of attention willremind you of the lesson in hand. It can be done if you keep yourselfsensitive to wanderings of attention, and let the first slip from thetopic with which you are engaged remind you to pull yourself back. Dothis before you have taken the step that will carry you far away, forwith each step in the series of associations it becomes harder to drawyourself back into the correct channel. 

In reading, one frequent cause for lapses of attention and for theintrusion of unwelcome ideas is obscurity in the material being read. If you trace back your lapses of attention, you will often find thatthey first occur when the thought becomes difficult to follow, thesentence ambiguous, or a single word unusual. As a result, the meaninggrows hazy in your mind and you fail to comprehend it. Naturally, then, you drift into a channel of thought that is easier to follow. Thishappens because the mental stream tends to seek channels of leastresistance. If you introspect carefully, you will undoubtedly discoverthat many of your annoying lapses of attention can be traced to suchconditions. The obvious remedy is to make sure that you understandeverything as you read. As soon as you feel the thought growingdifficult to follow, begin to exert more effort; consult the dictionaryfor the meanings of words you do not understand. Probably the ordinaryfreshman in college ought to look up the meaning of as many as twentywords daily. 

Again, the thought may be difficult to follow because your previousknowledge is deficient; perhaps the discussion involves some fact whichyou never did comprehend clearly, and you will naturally fail tounderstand something built upon it. If deficiency of knowledge is thecause of your lapses of attention, the obvious remedy is to turn backand study the fundamental facts; to lay a firm foundation in yoursubjects of study. 

This discussion shows that the conditions at time of concentratedattention are very complex; that the mind is full of a number ofthings; that your object as a student is to keep some one thing at thefocus of your mind, and that in doing so you must continuously ignoreother mental contents. In our psychological descriptions we haveimplied that the mind stands still at times, permitting us to take across-section and examine it minutely. As a matter of fact, the mindnever stands still. It continually moves along, and at no two momentsis it exactly the same. This results in a condition whereby an ideawhich is at one moment at the centre cannot remain there unless ittakes on a slightly different appearance from moment to moment. Whenyou attempted to fix your attention upon the letter O, you found aconstant tendency to shift the attention, perhaps to a variation in theintensity of the type or to a flaw in the type or in the paper. In viewof the inevitable nature of these changes, you see that in spite ofyour best efforts you cannot expect to maintain any object of studyinflexibly at the centre of attention. The way to do is to manipulatethe object so that it will appear from moment to moment in a slightlydifferent light. If, for example, you are trying to concentrate upon arule of English grammar long enough to memorize it, do not read it overand over again, depending solely upon repetition. A better way, afterthoroughly comprehending it, is to think about it in several relations;compare it with other rules, noting points of likeness and difference;apply it to the construction of a sentence. The essential thing is todo something with it. Only thus can you keep it in the focus ofattention. This is equivalent to the restatement of another factstressed in a previous chapter, namely, that the mind is not a passivething that stands still, but an active thing. When you give attention, you actively select from a number of possible objects one to be clearerthan the rest. This selection requires effort under most conditions ofstudy, but you may be cheered by the thought that as you developinterest in the fields of study, and as you develop habits of ignoringdistractions, you will be able to fixate your attention with less andless effort. A further important fact is that as you develop power toselect objects for the consideration of attention, you developsimultaneously other mental processes--the ability to memorize, toeconomize time and effort and to control future thoughts and actions. In short, power to concentrate attention means power in all the mentalprocesses. 

EXERCISES

Exercise I. "Watch a small dot so far away that it can just be seen. Can you see it all the time? How many times a minute does it come andgo?" Make what inference you can from this regarding the fluctuation ofattention during study. 

Exercise 2. What concrete steps will you take in order to accommodateyour study to the fluctuations of attention?

Exercise 3. The next time you have a lapse of attention during study, retrace your steps of thought, write down the ideas from the last onein your mind to the one which started the digression. Represent thedigression graphically if you can. 

Exercise 4. Make a list of the things that most persistently distractyour attention during study. What specific steps will you take toeliminate them; to ignore the unavoidable ones?

CHAPTER IX

HOW WE REASON

If you were asked to describe the most embarrassing of your class-roomexperiences, you would probably cite the occasions when the instructorasks you a series of questions demanding close reasoning. As he pinsyou down to statement of facts and forces you to draw validconclusions, you feel in a most perplexed frame of mind. Either youfind yourself unable to give reasons, or you entangle yourself incontradictions. In short, you flounder about helplessly and feel asthough the bottom of your ship of knowledge has dropped out. And whenthe ordeal is over and you have made a miserable botch of a recitationwhich you thought you had been perfectly prepared for, you complainthat "if the instructor had followed the book, " or "if he had askedstraight questions, " you would have answered every one perfectly, having memorized the lesson "word for word. "

This complaint, so often voiced by students, reveals the fundamentalcharacteristic which distinguishes the mental operation of reasoningfrom the others we have studied. In reasoning we face a new kind ofsituation presenting difficulties not encountered in the simplerprocesses of sensation, memory, and imagery, and when we attempt tosubstitute these simple processes for reasoning, we fail miserably, forthe two kinds of processes are essentially different, and cannot besubstituted one for the other. 

Broadly speaking, the mental activities of study may be divided intotwo groups, which, for want of better names, we shall call processes ofacquisition and processes of construction. The mental attitude of thefirst is that of acquirement. "Sometimes our main business seems to beto acquire knowledge; certain matters are placed before us in books orby our teachers, and we are required to master them, to make them partof our stock of knowledge. At other times we are called upon to use theknowledge we already possess in order to attain some end that is setbefore us. " "In geography, for example, so long as we are merelylearning the bare facts of the subject, the size and contours of thedifferent continents, the political divisions, the natural features, weare at the acquisitive stage. " "But when we go on to try to find outthe reasons why certain facts that we have learned should be as theyare and not otherwise, we pass to the constructive stage. We areworking constructively when we seek to discover why it is that greatcities are so often found on the banks of rivers, why peninsulas morefrequently turn southward than northward. " You readily see that thisconstructive method of study involves the setting and solving ofproblems as its distinguishing feature, and that in the solution ofthese problems we make use of reason. 

A little reflection will show that though there is a distinctdifference between processes of acquisition and of construction, nevertheless the two must not be regarded as entirely separate fromeach other. "In acquiring new facts we must always use a little reason, while in constructive work, we cannot always rely upon having all thenecessary matter ready to hand. We have frequently to stop ourconstructive work for a little in order to acquire some new facts thatwe find to be necessary. Thus we acquire a certain number of new factswhile we are reasoning about things, and while we are engaged inacquiring new matter we must use our reason at least to some smallextent. " The two overlap, then. But there is a difference between themfrom the standpoint of the student, and the terms denote twofundamentally different attitudes which students take in study. The twoattitudes may be illustrated by contrasting the two methods often usedin studying geometry. Some students memorize the theorem and the stepsin the demonstration, reciting them verbatim at class-hour. Others donot memorize, but reason out each step to see its relation to thepreceding step, and when they see it must necessarily follow, they passon to the next and do the same. These two types of students apparentlyarrive at the same conclusions, but the mental operations leading up tothe Q. E. D. Of each are vastly different. The one student does hisstudying by the rote memory method, the other by the road of reasoning. The former road is usually considered the easier, and so we find itmost frequently followed. To memorize a table, a definition, or aseries of dates is relatively easy. One knows exactly where one is, andcan keep track of one's progress and test one's success. Some peopleare attracted by such a task and are perfectly happy to follow thisplan of study. The kind of mind that contents itself with suchphonographic records, however, must be acknowledged to be a commonplacesort of affair. We recognize its limitations in ordinary life, invariably rating it lower than the mind that can reason to newconclusions and work independently. Accordingly, if we wish to possessminds of superior quality, we see that we must develop the reasoningprocesses. 

When we examine the mental processes by which we think constructively, or, in other words, reason, we find first of all that there isrecognition of a problem to be solved. When we start to reason, we doit because we find ourselves in a situation from which we mustextricate ourselves. The situation may be physical, as when ourautomobile stops suddenly on a country road; or it may be mental, aswhen we are deciding what college to attend. In both cases, werecognize that we are facing a problem which must be solved. 

After recognition of the problem, our next step is to start vigorousefforts to solve it. In doing this, we cast about for means; we summonall the powers at our disposal. In the case of the automobile, we callto mind other accidents and the causes of them; we remember that oncethe spark-plug played out, so we test this hypothesis. At another timesome dust got into the carburetor, so we test this. So we go on, calling up possible causes and applying appropriate remedies until theright one is found and the engine is started. In bringing to bear uponthe problem facts from our past experience, we form a series ofjudgments. In the case of the problem as to what college to attend, wemight form these judgments: this college is nearer home; that one has acelebrated faculty; this one has good laboratories; that one is myfather's alma mater. So we might go on, bringing up all the factsregarding the problem and fitting each one mentally to see how itworks. Note that this utilization of ideas should not consist merely offumbling about in a vague hope of hitting upon some solution. It mustbe a systematic search, guided by carefully chosen ideas. For example, "if the clock on the mantle-piece has stopped, and we have no idea howto make it go again, but mildly shake it in the hope that somethingwill happen to set it going, we are merely fumbling. But if, on movingthe clock gently so as to set the pendulum in motion, we hear itwobbling about irregularly, and at the same time observe that there isno ticking of any kind, we come to the conclusion that the pendulum hassomehow or other escaped the little catch that connects it with themechanism, we have been really thinking. From the fact that thependulum wobbles irregularly, we infer that it has lost its propercatch. From the fact that there is no ticking, we infer the same thing, for even when there is something wrong with the clock that will preventit from going permanently, if the pendulum is set in motion by forcefrom without it will tick for a few seconds before it comes to restagain. The important point to observe is that there must be inference. This is always indicated by the word _therefore_ or its equivalent. Ifyou reach a conclusion without having to use or at any rate to imply a_therefore_, you may take it for granted that you have not been reallythinking, but only jumping to conclusions. "

This process of putting facts in the form of judgments and drawinginferences, may be likened to a court-room scene where arguments arepresented to the judge. As each bit of evidence is submitted, it issubjected to the test of its applicability to the situation or tosimilar situations in the past. It is rigidly examined and nothing isaccepted as a candidate for the solution until it is found by trial (ofcourse, in imagination) to be pertinent to the situation. 

The third stage of the reasoning process comes when some plan which hasbeen suggested as a possible solution of the difficulty proveseffective, and we make the decision; the arguments support or overthroweach other, adding to and eliminating various considerations untilfinally only one course appears possible. As we said before, thesolution comes inevitably, as represented by the word _therefore_. Little active work on our part is necessary, for if we have gonethrough these other phases properly the decision will make itself. Youcannot make a wrong decision if you have the facts before you and havegiven each the proper weight. When the solution comes, it is recognizedas right, for it comes tinged with a feeling that we call belief. 

Now that we have found the reasoning process to be one ofproblem-solving, of which the first step is to acknowledge andrecognize the difficulty, the second, to call up various methods ofsolution, and the third, to decide on the basis of one of the solutionsthat comes tinged with certainty, we are ready to apply this schema tostudy in the hope that we may discover the causes and remedies for thereasoning difficulties of students. In view of the fact that reasoningstarts out with a problem, you see at once that to make your studyeffective you must study in problems. Avoid an habitual attitude ofmere acquisition. Do not memorize facts in the same pattern as they arehanded out to you. In history, in general literature, in science, donot read facts merely as they come in the text, but seek the relationsbetween them. Voluntarily set before yourself intellectual problems. Ask yourself, _why_ is this so? In other words, in your study do notmerely acquire, but also _construct_. The former makes use mostly ofmemory and though your memorizing be done ever so conscientiously, ifit comprise the main part of your study, you fail to utilize your mindto its fullest extent. 

Let us now consider the second stage of the reasoning process as foundin study. At this stage the facts in the mind are brought forward forthe purpose of being fitted into the present situation, and theessential thing is that you have a large number of facts at yourdisposal. If you are going to reason effectively about problems inhistory, mathematics, geography, it is absolutely indispensable thatyou know many facts about the subjects. One reason why you experiencedifficulty in reasoning about certain subjects is that you do not knowenough about them. Particularly is this true in such subjects aspolitical economy, sociology and psychology. The results of suchignorance are often demonstrated in political and social movements. Whydo the masses so easily fall victims to doubtful reforms in nationaland municipal policies? Because they do not know enough about thesematters to reason intelligently. Watch ignorant people listening to ademagogue and see what unreasonable things they accept. The speakerpropounds a question and then proceeds to answer it in his own way. Hemakes it appear plausible, assuring his hearers it is the only way, andthey agree because they do not have enough other facts at their commandto refute it. They are unable, as we say, to see the situation inseveral aspects. The mistakes in reasoning which children make have asimilar basis. The child reaches for the moon, reasoning--"Here issomething bright; I can touch most bright things; therefore, I cantouch this. " His reasoning is fallacious because he does not have allthe facts. This condition is paralleled in the class-room when studentsmake what are shamefacedly looked back upon as miserable blunders. Whenone of these fiascos occurs the cause can many times be referred to thefact that the student did not have enough facts at his command. Speaking broadly, the most effective reasoning in a field can be doneby one who has had the most extensive experiences in that field. If onehad complete acquaintance with all facts, one would have perfectconditions for reasoning. Thus we see that effectiveness in reasoningdemands an extensive array of facts. Accordingly, in your courses ofstudy you must read with avidity. When you are given a list of readingsin a course, some of which are required and some optional, read bothsets, and every new fact thus secured will make you better able toreason in the field. 

But good reasoning demands more than mere quantity of ideas. The ideasmust conform to certain qualitative standards before they may beeffectively employed in reasoning. They must arise with promptness, inan orderly manner, pertinent to the matter in hand, and they must beclear. In securing promptness of association on the part of your ideas, employ the methods described in the chapter on memory. Make manylogical associations with clearness and repetition. In order to insurethe rise of ideas in an orderly manner, pay attention to the manner inwhich you acquire them. 

Remember, things will be recalled as they were impressed, so the valueof your ideas in reasoning will depend upon the manner in which youmake original impressions. A further characteristic of serviceableideas is clarity. Ideas are sometimes described as "clear" inopposition to "muddy. " You know what is meant by these distinctions, and you may be assured that one cause for your failures in reasoning isthat your ideas are not clear. This manifests itself in inability tomake clear statements and to comprehend clearly. The latter conditionis easily illustrated. When you began the study of geometry you faced amultitude of new terms; we call them technical terms, such asprojection, scalene, theory of limits. These had to be clearlyunderstood before you could reason in the subject. And when, in theprogress of your study, you experienced difficulty in reasoning outproblems, it was very likely due to the fact that you did not masterthe technical terms, and as soon as you encountered the difficulties ofthe course, you failed because your foundation laying did not involvethe acquisition of clear ideas. Examine your difficulties in reasoningsubjects and if you find them traceable to vagueness of ideas, takesteps to clarify them. 

Ideas may be clarified in two ways: by definition and byclassification. Definition is a familiar device, for you have had muchto do with it in learning. The memorization of definitions is anexcellent practice, not as an end in itself, but as a means to the endof effective reasoning. Throughout your study, then, pay much attentionto definitions. Some you will find in your texts, but others you willhave to make for yourself. In order to get practice in this, undertakethe manufacture of a few definitions, using terms such as charity, benevolence, natural selection. This exercise will reveal what anexacting mental operation definition is and will prove how vague most ofyour thinking really is. 

A large stock of definitions will help you to think rapidly. Standingas they do for a large group of experiences, definitions are a means ofmental economy. For illustration of their service in reasoning, supposeyou were asked to compare the serf, the peon and the American slave. Ifyou have a clean-cut definition of each of these terms, you can readilydifferentiate between them, but if you cannot define them, you willhardly be able to reason concerning them. 

The second means of clarifying ideas is classification. By this ismeant the process of grouping similar ideas or similar points of ideas. For example, your ideas of serf, peon and slave have some points incommon. Group the ideas, then, with reference to these points. Then inreasoning you can quickly place an idea in its proper group. 

The third stage of the reasoning process is decision, based on belief, and it comes inevitably, provided the other two processes have beenperformed rightly. Accordingly, we need say little about its place instudy. One caution should be pointed out in making decisions. Do notmake them hastily on the basis of only one or two facts. Wait until youhave canvassed all the ideas that bear importantly upon the case. Themasses that listen top eagerly to the demagogue do not err merely fromlack of ideas, but partly because they do not utilize all the facts attheir disposal. This fault is frequently discernible in impulsivepeople, who notoriously make snap-judgments, which means that theydecide before canvassing all the evidence. This trait marks thefundamental difference between superficial and profound thinkers. Theformer accept surface facts and decide immediately, while the latterrefuse to decide until after canvassing many facts. 

In the improvement of reasoning ability your task is mainly one ofhabit formation. It is necessary, first, to form the habit of statingthings in the form of problems; second, to form habits by which ideasarise promptly and profusely; third, to form habits of reservingdecisions until the important facts are in. These are all specifichabits that must be built up if the reasoning processes of the mind areto be effective. Already you have formed some habits, if not habits ofcareful looking into things, then habits of hasty, heedless, impatientglancing over the surface. Apply the principles of habit formationalready enunciated, and remember that with every act of reasoning youperform, you are moulding yourself into a careless reasoner or anaccurate reasoner, into a clear thinker or a muddy thinker. Thischapter shows that reasoning is one of the highest powers of man. It isa mark of originality and intelligence, and stamps its possessor not acopier but an originator, not a follower but a leader, not a slave, tohave his thinking foisted upon him by others, but a free andindependent intellect, unshackled by the bonds of ignorance andconvention. The man who employs reason in acquiring knowledge, findsdelights in study that are denied to a rote memorizer. When one looksat the world through glasses of reason, inquiring into the eternal_why_, then facts take on a new meaning, knowledge comes with newpower, the facts of experience glow with vitality, and one's ownrelations with them appear in a new light. 

READINGS AND EXERCISES

Readings:

Adams (1) Chapter IV. 

Dearborn (2) Chapter V. 

Dewey (3) Chapters III and VI. 

Exercise I. Illustrate the steps of the reasoning process, bydescribing the way in which you studied this chapter. 

Exercise 2. Try to define the following words without the assistance ofa dictionary: College, university, grammatical, town-meeting. 

Exercise 3. Prepare a set of maxims designed to help a student changefrom the "rote memory" method of study to the "reason-why" (or"problem") method. 

CHAPTER X

EXPRESSION AS AN AID IN STUDY

In our discussion of the nervous basis underlying study we observedthat nerve pathways are affected not only by what enters over thesensory pathways, but also by what flows out over the motor pathways. As the nerve currents travel out from the motor centres in the brain tothe muscles, they leave traces which modify future thoughts andactions. This being so, it is easy to see that what we give out isfully as important as what we take in; in other words, our_expressions_ are just as important as our _impressions_. Byexpressions we mean the motor consequences of our thoughts, and instudy they usually take the form of speech and writing of a kind to bespecified later. 

The far-reaching effects of motor expressions are too infrequentlyemphasized, but psychology forces us to give them prime consideration. We are first apprised of their importance when we study the nervoussystem, and find that every incoming sensory message pushes on and onuntil it finds a motor pathway over which it may travel and producemovement. This is inevitable. The very structure and arrangement of theneurones is such that we are obliged to make some movement in responseto objects affecting our sense organs. The extent of movement may varyfrom the wide-spread tremors that occur when we are frightened by athunderstorm to the merest flicker of an eye-lash. But whatever be itsextent, movement invariably occurs when we are stimulated by someobject. This has been demonstrated in startling ways in thepsychological laboratory, where even so simple a thing as a piece offigured wall-paper has been shown to produce measurable bodilydisturbances. Ordinarily we do not notice these because they are soslight, sometimes being merely twitches of deep-seated muscles orslight enlargements or contractions of arteries which are veryresponsive to nerve currents. But no matter how large or how small, wemay be sure that movements always occur on the excitation of a senseorgan. This led us to assert in an earlier chapter that the function ofthe nervous system is to convert incoming sensory currents intooutgoing motor currents. 

So ingrained is this tendency toward movement that we do not need evena sensory cue to start it off; an idea will do as well. In other words, the nervous current need not start at a sense organ, but may start inthe brain and still produce movement. This fact is embodied in the lawof ideo-motor action (distinguished from sensory-motor action), "everyidea in the mind tends to express itself in movement. " This motorcharacter of ideas is manifested in a most thorough-going way andrenders our muscular system a faithful mirror of our thoughts. We havein the psychological laboratory delicate apparatus which enables us tomeasure many of these slight movements. For example, we fasten arecording device to the top of a person's head, so that his slightestmovements will be recorded, then we ask him while standing perfectlystill to think of an object at his right side. After several momentsthe record shows that he involuntarily leans in the direction of theobject about which he is thinking. We find further illustration of thislaw when we examine people as they read, for they involuntarilyaccompany the reading with movements of speech, measurable in themuscles of the throat, the tongue and the lips. These facts, and manyothers, constitute good evidence for the statement that ideas seekexpression in movement. 

The ethical consequences of this are so momentous that we must remarkupon them in passing. We now see the force of the biblical statement, "Not that which entereth into the mouth defileth the man; but thatwhich proceedeth out of the mouth, this defileth the man. " Think whatit means to one's character that every thought harbored in the mind isbound to come out. It may not manifest itself at once in overt action, but it affects the motor pathways and either weakens or strengthensconnections so that when the opportunity comes, some act will befurthered or hindered. In view of the proneness to permit base thoughtsto enter the mind, human beings might sometimes fear even to think. Amore optimistic idea, however, is that noble thoughts lead to nobleacts. Therefore, keep in your mind the kind of thoughts that you wishto see actualized in your character and the appropriate acts willfollow of their own accord. 

But it is with the significance of expressions in study that we are atpresent concerned, and here we find them of supreme importance. Weordinarily regard learning as a process of taking things into the mind, and regard expression as a thing apart from acquisition of knowledge. We shall find in this discussion, however, that there is no such sharpdemarcation between acquiring knowledge and expressing knowledge, butthat the two are intimately bound together, expressions being properlya part of wise and economical learning. 

When we survey the modes of expression that may be used in study, wefind them to be of several kinds. Speech is one. This is the form ofexpression for which the class-recitation is provided. If you wish togrow as a student, utilize the recitation period and welcome everychance to recite orally, for things about which you recite in class aremore effectively learned. Talking about a subject under allcircumstances will help you learn. When studying subjects likepolitical economy, sociology or psychology, seize every opportunity totalk over the questions involved. Hold frequent conferences with yourinstructor; voice your difficulties freely, and the very effort tostate them will help to clarify them. It is a good plan for twostudents in the same course to come together and talk over theproblems; the debates thus stimulated and the questions aroused bymental interaction are very helpful in impressing facts more vividlyupon the mind. 

Writing is a form of expression and is one thing that gives value tonote-taking and examinations. Its value is further recognized by therequirements of themes and term-papers. These are all mediums by whichyou may develop yourself, and they merit your earnest cooperation. 

Another medium of expression that students may profitably employ isdrawing. This is especially valuable in such subjects as geology, physiology and botany. Students in botany are compelled to do muchdrawing of the plant-forms which they study, and this is a wiserequirement, for it makes them observe more carefully, report morefaithfully and recall with greater ease. You may secure the sameadvantages by employing the graphic method in other studies. Forexample, when reading in a geology text-book about the stratificationof the earth in a certain region, draw the parts described and labelthem according to the description. You will be surprised to see howclear the description becomes and how easily it is later recalled. 

Let us examine the effects of the expressive movements of speech, writing and the like, and see the mechanism by which they facilitatethe study process. We may describe their effects in two ways:neurologically and psychologically. As may be expected from ourpreliminary study of the nervous system, we see their first effectsupon the motor pathways leading out to the muscles. Each passage of thenerve current from brain to muscle leaves traces so that the resultingact is performed with greater ease upon each repetition. This fact hasalready been emphasized by the warning, Guard the avenues ofexpression. 

Especially is it important at the first performance of an act, because this determines the path of later performances. In such studiesas piano-playing, vocalizing and pronunciation of foreign words, seethat your first performance is absolutely right, then as the expressivemovements are repeated, they will be more firmly ingrained because ofthe deepening of the motor pathways. 

The next effect of acts of expression is to be found in themodifications made in the sensory areas of the brain. You will recallthat every movement of a muscle produces nervous currents which go backto the brain and register there in the form of kinaesthetic sensations. To demonstrate kinaesthetic sensations, close your eyes and move yourindex finger up and down. You can feel the muscles contracting and thetendons moving back and forth, even into the back of the hand. Thesesensations ordinarily escape our attention, but they occupy a prominentplace in the control of our actions. For example, when ascendingfamiliar stairs in the dark, they notify us when we have reached thetop. We are still further impressed with their importance when we aredeprived of them; when we try to walk upon a foot or a leg that hasgone "to sleep"; that is, when the kinaesthetic nerves are temporarilyparalyzed we find it difficult to walk. But besides being used tocontrol muscular actions, they may be used in study, for they may bemade the source of impressions, and impressions, as we learned in thechapter on memory, are a prime requisite for learning. Each expressionbecomes, then, through its kinaesthetic results, the source of newimpressions, when, for example, you pronounce the German word, _anwenden_, with the English word "to employ, " in addition to theimpressions made through the ear, you make impressions through themuscles of speech (kinaesthetic impressions), and these kinaestheticimpressions enter into the body of your knowledge and later may serveas the means by which the word may be revived. When you write the word, you make kinaesthetic impressions which may later serve as forms ofrevival. So the movements of expression produce sensory material thatmay serve as tentacles by means of which you can later reach back intoyour memory and recall facts. 

We shall now consider another service of expressions which, thoughlittle regarded, nevertheless is of much moment. When we makeexpressive movements, much nervous energy is generated; much more thanduring passive impression. Energy is sent back to the brain over thekinaesthetic nerve cells, and the greater the extent of the movement, the greater is the amount of new energy sent to the brain. It poursinto the brain and diffuses itself especially throughout theassociation areas. Here it excites regions which could not be excitedby a more limited amount of energy. This means, in psychical terms, that new ideas are being aroused. The obvious inference from this factis that you may, by starting movements of expression, actually summonto your assistance added powers of mind. For example, when you arecalled upon to recite in class, your mind seems to be a completeblank--in a state of "deadlock. " You may break this "deadlock" andstart brain-action by some kind of movement. It may be only to clearyour throat, to ejaculate "well, " or to squirm about in the seat, butwhatever form the movement takes, it will usually be effective increating the desired nervous energy, and after the inertia is onceovercome the mental stream will flow freely. The unconsciousapplication of this device is seen when a man is called on suddenly tomake a speech for which he has not prepared. He usually starts out bytelling a story, thus liberating nervous energy to pour back into thebrain and start thinking processes. With increasing vehemence ofexpression, the ideas come more and more freely, and the result is aspeech which surpasses the expectations of the speaker himself. Thegesticulations of many speakers have this same function, beingfrequently of great service in arousing more nervous energy, which goesback to the brain and arouses more ideas. 

The device of stimulating ideas by expressive movements may be utilizedin theme- or letter-writing. It is generally recognized that thedifficult thing in such writing is to get a start, and the too commonpractice is to sit listlessly gazing into space waiting for"inspiration. " This is usually a futile procedure. The better way is tobegin to write anything about the topic in hand. What you write mayhave little merit, either of substance or form. Nevertheless, if youpersist in keeping up the activity of writing, making more and moremovements, you will find that the ideas will begin to come in greaterprofusion until they come so fast you can hardly write them down. 

Having tried to picture the neural effect of expression, we may nowtranslate them into psychological terms, asking what service theexpressions render to the conscious side of our study. First of all, wenote that the expressions help to make the acts and ideas in studyhabitual. We find ourselves, with each expression, better able toperform such acts as the pronunciation of foreign words. Second, theyfurnish new impressions through the kinaesthetic sense, thus being asource of sense-impression. Third, they give rise to a greater numberof ideas and link them up with the idea dominant at the moment. Thereis a further psychological effect of expression in the clarification ofideas. It is a well-attested fact that when we attempt to explain athing to someone else, it becomes clearer in our own minds. You candemonstrate this for yourself by attempting to explain to someone anintricate conception such as the nebular hypothesis. The effortinvolved in making the explanation makes the fact more vivid to you. The habit of thus utilizing your knowledge in conversation is anexcellent one to acquire. Indeed, expression is the only objective testof knowledge and we cannot say that we really know until we can expressour knowledge. Expression is thus the great clarification agency andthe test of knowledge. Before leaving this discussion, it might be wellto remark upon one phase of expression that is sometimes a source ofdifficulty. This is the embarrassment incident to some forms ofexpression, notably oral. Many people are deterred from utilizing thisform of expression because of shyness and embarrassment in the presenceof others. If you have this difficulty in such excess that it hindersyou from free expression, resolve at once to overcome it. Begin at thevery outset of your academic career to form habits of disregarding yourimpulses to act in frightened manner. Take a course in public speaking. The practice thus secured will be a great aid in developing habits offearless and free oral expression. 

This discussion has shown that expression is a powerful aid inlearning, and is a most important feature of mental life. Cultivateyour powers of expression, for your college education should consistnot only in the development of habits of impression, but also in thedevelopment of habits of expression. Grasp eagerly every opportunityfor the development of skill in clear and forceful expression. Devoteassiduous attention to themes and all written work, and make seriousefforts to speak well. Remember you are forming habits that willpersist throughout your life. Emphasize, therefore, at every step, methods of expression, for it is this phase of learning in which youwill find greatest growth. 

EXERCISE

Exercise I. Give an example from your own experience, showing howexpression (a) stimulates ideas, (b) clarifies ideas. 

CHAPTER XI

HOW TO BECOME INTERESTED IN A SUBJECT

"I can't get interested in Mediaeval History. " This illustrates a kindof complaint frequently made by college students. It is our purpose inthis chapter to show the fallacy of this; to prove that interest may bedeveloped in an "uninteresting" subject; and to show how. 

In order to lay a firm foundation for our psychologizing, let usexamine into the nature of interest and see what it really is. It hasbeen defined as: "the recognition of a thing which has been vitallyconnected with experience before--a thing recognized as old"; "impulseto attend"; "interest naturally arouses tendencies to act"; "the rootidea of the term seems to be that of being engaged, engrossed, orentirely taken up with some activity because of its recognized worth";"interest marks the annihilation of the distance between the person andthe materials and results of his action; it is the sign of theirorganic union. "

In addition to the characteristics just mentioned should be noted thepleasurableness that usually attends any activity in which we are"interested. " A growing feeling of pleasure is the sign which notifiesus that we are growing interested in a subject. And it is such an aidin the performance of work that we should seek earnestly to acquire itin connection with any work we have to do. 

The persons who make the complaint at the head of this chapter noticethat they take interest easily in certain things: a Jack London story, a dish of ice cream, a foot-ball game. And they take interest in themso spontaneously and effortlessly that they think these interests mustbe born within them. 

When we examine carefully the interests of man, and trace theirsources, we see that the above view is fallacious. We acquire most ofour interests in the course of our experience. Professor James asserts:"An adult man's interests are almost every one of them intenselyartificial; they have been slowly built up. The objects of professionalinterest are most of them in their original nature, repulsive; but bytheir connection with such natively exciting objects as one's personalfortune, one's social responsibilities and especially by the force ofinveterate habit, they grow to be the only things for which in middlelife a man profoundly cares. "

Since interests are largely products of experience, then, it followsthat if we wish to have an interest in a given subject, we mustconsciously and purposefully develop it. There is wide choice open tous. We may develop interest in early Victorian literature, prize-fightpromoting, social theory, lignitic rocks, history of Siam, thecollection of scarabs, mediaeval history. 

We should not be deceived by the glibness of the above statements intoassuming that the development of interest is an easy matter. Itrequires adherence to certain definite psychological laws which we maycall the laws of interest. The first may be stated as follows: _Inorder to develop interest in a subject, secure information about it_. The force of this law will be apparent as soon as we analyze one of ouralready-developed interests. Let us take one that is quite common--theinterest which a typical young girl takes in a movie star. Her interestin him comes largely from what she has been able to learn about him;the names of the productions in which he has appeared, his age, thecolor of his automobile, his favorite novel. Her interest may be saidactually to consist, at least in part, of these facts. The astute pressagent knows the force of this law, and at well-timed intervals he letsslip through bits of information about the star, which fan the interestof the fair devotee to a still whiter heat. 

The relation of information to interest is still further illustrated bythe case of the typical university professor or scientist. He isinterested in certain objects of research--infusoria, electrons, plantecology, --because he knows so much about them. His interest may besaid to _consist_ partly of the body of knowledge that he possesses. Hewas not always interested in the specific, obscure field, but bysaturating himself in facts about it, he has developed an interest init amounting to passionate absorption, which manifests itself in"absent-mindedness" of such profundity as to make him often an objectof wonder and ridicule. 

Let us demonstrate the application of the law again showing howinterest may be developed in a specific college subject. Let us chooseone that is generally regarded as so "difficult" and "abstract" thatnot many people are interested in it--philology, the study of languageas a science. Let us imagine that we are trying to interest a studentof law in this. As a first step we shall select some legal term andshow what philology can tell about it. A term frequently encountered inlaw is indenture--a certain form of contract. Philological researcheshave uncovered an interesting history regarding this word. It seemsthat in olden days when two persons made an agreement they wrote it ontwo pieces of paper, then notched the edges so that when placedtogether, the notches on the edge of one paper would just match thoseof the other. This protected both parties against substitution of afraudulent contract at time of fulfillment. 

Still earlier in man's development, before he could write, it wascustomary to record such agreements by breaking a stick in two piecesand leaving the jagged ends to be fitted together at time offulfillment. Sometimes a bone was used this way. Because its criticalfeature was the saw-toothed edge, this kind of contract was calledindenture (derived from the root _dent_--tooth, the same one from whichwe derive our word dentist). 

The formal, legal-looking document which we today call an indenturegives us no hint of its humble origin, but the word when analyzed bythe technique of philology tells the whole story, and throws much lightupon the legal practices of our forbears. Having discovered one suchvaluable fact in philology, the student of law may be led toinvestigate the science still further and find many more. As a resultstill he will become interested in philology. 

By this illustration we have demonstrated the first psychological lawof interest, and also its corollary which is: _State the new in termsof the old_. For we not only gave our lawyer new information culledfrom philological sources; we also introduced our fact in terms of anold fact which was already "interesting" to the lawyer. This isrecognized as such an important principle in education that it hasbecome embodied in a maxim: Proceed from the known to the unknown. 

A classic example of good educational practice in this connection isthe way in which Francis W. Parker, a progressive educator of a formergeneration, taught geography. When he desired to show how water runningover hard rocky soil produced a Niagara, he took his class down to thecreek behind the school house, built a dam and allowed the water toflow over it. When he wished to show how water flowing over soft groundresulted in a deltoid Nile, he took the class to a low, flat portion ofthe creek bed and pointed out the effect. The creek bed constituted anold familiar element in the children's experience. Niagara and the Niledescribed in terms of it were intelligible. 

Naturally in modern educational practice it is not always possible tohave miniature waterfalls and river bottoms at hand, still it ispossible to follow this principle. When, in studying Mediaeval History, you read a description of the guilds, do not regard them as distant, cold, inert institutions devoid of significance in your life. Rather, think of them in terms of things you already know: modern Labor Unions, technical schools, in so far as the comparison holds good. Then tracetheir industrial descendants down to the present time. By thus thinkingabout the guilds, hitherto distant and uninteresting, you will begin tosee them suffused with meaning, alight with significance, a real partof yourself. In short, you will have achieved interest. 

There is still another psychological law of interest: _In order todevelop interest in a subject, exert activity toward it_. We see theforce of this law when we observe a man in the process of developing aninterest in golf. At the start he may have no interest in it whatever;he may even deride it. Yielding to the importunities of his friends, however, he takes his stick in hand and samples the game. Then hebegins to relent; admits that perhaps there may be somethinginteresting about the game after all. As he practises with greaterfrequency he begins to develop a warmer and still warmer interest untilfinally he thinks of little else; neglecting social and professionalobligations and boring his friends _ad nauseum_ with recitals ofgolfing incidents. The methods by which the new-fledged golfer developsan interest in golf will apply with equal effectiveness in the case ofa student. In trying to become interested in Mediaeval History, keepactively engaged in it. Read book after book dealing with the subject. Apply it to your studies in Political Economy, English, and AmericanHistory. Choose sub-topics in Mediaeval History as the subjects forthemes in English composition courses. Try to help some other studentin the class. Take part in class discussions and talk informally withthe instructor outside of the classroom. Use your ingenuity to devisemethods of keeping active toward the subject. Presently you willdiscover that the subject no longer appears cold and forbidding; butthat it glows warm with virility; that it has become interesting. 

It will readily be noticed that the two laws of interest here set forthare closely interrelated. One can hardly seek information about asubject without exerting activity toward it; conversely, one cannotmaintain activity on behalf of a subject without at the same timeacquiring information about it. These two easily-remembered andeasily-applied rules of study will go far toward solving some of themost trying conditions of student life. Memorize them, apply them, andyou will find yourself in possession of a power which will stay withyou long after you quit college walls; one which you may apply withprofit in many different situations of life. 

We have shown in this chapter the fallacy of the assumption that astudent cannot become genuinely interested in a subject which at firstseems uninteresting. 

We have shown that he may develop interest in any subject if he butemploys the proper psychological methods. That he must obey thetwo-fold law--secure information about the subject (stating the new interms of the old) and exert activity toward it. That when he has thuslighted the flame of interest, he will find his entire intellectuallife illuminated, glowing with purpose, resplendent with success. 

In concluding this discussion we should note the wide differencebetween the quality of study which is done with interest and that donewithout it. Under the latter condition the student is a slave, adrudge; under the former, a god, a creator. Touched by the galvanicspark he sees new significance in every page, in every line. As hisvision enlarges, he perceives new relations between his study and hisfuture aims, indeed, between his study and the progress of theuniverse. And he goes to his educational tasks not as a prisonerweighted down by ball and chain, but as an eager prospector infatuatedby the lust for gold. Encouraged by the continual stores of new thingshe uncovers, intoxicated by the ozone of mental activity, he delvescontinually deeper until finally he emerges rich with knowledge andfull of power--the intellectual power that signifies mastery over asubject. 

READINGS AND EXERCISES

Readings: James (8) Chapters X and XI. Dewey (3)

Exercise I. Show how your interest in some subject, for example, thegame of foot-ball, has grown in proportion to the number of facts youhave discovered about it and the activity you have exerted toward it. 

Exercise 2. Choose some subject in which you are not at presentinterested. Make the statement:--"I am determined to develop aninterest in--. I will take the following specific steps toward thisend. "

CHAPTER XII

THE PLATEAU OF DESPOND

In our investigation of the psychology of study we have so far directedour attention chiefly toward the subjective side of the question, seeking to discover the _contents_ of mind during study. We shall nowtake an objective view of study, examining not the contents of mind normethods of study, but the objective results of study. In doing this, wechoose certain units of measurement, the number of minutes required forlearning a given amount or the amount learned in a stated period oftime. We may do this for the learning of any material, whether it beGreek verbs or typewriting. All that is necessary is to decide uponsome method by which progress can be noted and expressed in numericalunits. This, you will observe, constitutes a statistical approach tothe processes of study, such as is employed in science; and just as thestatistical method has been useful in science, so it may be of value ineducation, and by means of statistical investigations of learning wemay hope to discover some of the factors operative in good learning. 

Progress in learning is best observable when we represent ourmeasurements graphically, when they take the form of a curve, variouslycalled "the curve of efficiency, " "practice curve, " "learning curve. "We shall take a sample curve for the basis of our discussion, showingthe progress of a beginner in the Russian language for sixty-five days(indicated in the figure by horizontal divisions). The student studiedindustriously for thirty minutes each day and then translated asrapidly as possible for fifteen minutes, the number of words translatedbeing represented by the vertical spaces on the chart. Thus, on thetenth day, twenty-five words were translated, on the twentieth day, forty-five words. 

[Illustration (graph): STUDY OF RUSSIAN]

In making an analysis of this typical curve, we note immediately anexceeding irregularity. At one time there is extraordinaryimprovement, but a later measurement registers pronounced loss. Thisirregularity is very common in learning. Some days we do a great amountof work and do it well, but perhaps the very next day shows markeddiminution in our work. 

The second characteristic we note is that there is extremely rapidprogress at the beginning, the curve slanting up quite sharply. This iscommon in learning, and may be accounted for in several ways. In thefirst place, the easiest things come first. For example, when you arebeginning the study of German, you are given mostly monosyllabic wordsto learn. These are easily remembered, hence progress is rapid. Asecond reason is that at the beginning there are many differentrespects in which progress can be made. For example, the beginner inGerman must learn nouns, case endings, declension of adjectives, daysof the week; in short, a vast number of new things all at once. At alater period however, the number of new things to be learned is muchsmaller and improvement cannot be so rapid. A third reason why learningproceeds more rapidly at first is that the interest is greater at thistime. You have doubtless many times experienced this fact, and you knowthat when a thing has the interest of novelty you work harder upon it. 

If you will examine the learning curve closely, you will note thatafter the initial spurt, there is a slowing up. The curve at this pointresembles a plateau and indicates cessation of progress if notretrogression. This period of no progress is regarded as acharacteristic of the learning curve and is a time of greatdiscouragement to the conscientious student, so distressing that we maydesignate it "the plateau of despond. " Most people describe it as atime when they feel unable to learn more about a subject; the mindseems to be sated; new ideas cannot be assimilated, and old ones seemto be forgotten. The plateau may extend for a long or a short time, depending upon the nature of the subject-matter and the length of timeover which the learning extends. In the case of professional training, it may extend over a year or more. In the case of growing children inschool, it sometimes happens that an entire year elapses during whichthe learning of an apparently bright student is retarded. In a courseof study in high school or college, it may come on about the third weekand extend a month or more. Something akin to the plateau may come inthe course of a day, when we realize that our efficiency is greatlydiminished and we seem, for an hour or more, to make no progress. 

Inasmuch as the plateau is such a common occurrence in human activity, we should analyze it and see what factors operate to influence it. Itis interesting to note that the plateau generally occurs just before anabrupt rise in efficiency. This is significant, for it may mean thatthe plateau is necessary in learning, especially just before reachingthe really advanced stages of proficiency. Accordingly, when you areexperiencing a plateau in the mastery of some accomplishment, you mayperhaps derive some comfort from the prospect of an approaching rise inefficiency. On the theory that it is a necessary part of learning, ithas been regarded as a resting place. We are so constituted by naturethat we cannot run on indefinitely; nature sometimes must call a halt. Consequently, the plateau may be a warning that we cannot learn morefor the present and that the proper remedy is to refrain for a littlewhile from further efforts in that line. We have possible justificationfor this interpretation when we reflect that a vacation does us muchgood, and though we begin it feeling stale, we end it feeling muchfresher and more efficient. 

But to stop work temporarily is not the only way to meet a plateau, andfatigue or ennui is probably not the sole or most compellingexplanation. It may be that we should not regard the objective resultsas the true measure of learning; perhaps learning is going on eventhough the results are not apparent. We discovered something in thenature of unconscious learning in our discussion of memory, and it maybe that a period of little objective progress marks a period of activeunconscious learning. 

Another meaning which the plateau may have is simply to mark places ofgreater difficulty. As already remarked, the early period is a stage ofcomparative ease, but as the work becomes more difficult, progress isslower. It is also quite likely that the plateau may indicate that someof the factors operative at the start are operative no longer. Thus, although the learning was rapid at the beginning because the materiallearned at that time was easy, the plateau may come because the thingsto be learned have become difficult. Or, whereas the beginning wasattacked with considerable interest, the plateau may mean that theinterest is dying down, and that less effort is being exerted. 

If these theories are the true explanation of the plateau, we see thatit is not to be regarded as a time of reduction in learning, to becontemplated with despair. The appropriate attitude may be one ofresignation, with the determination to make it as slightly disturbingas possible. But though the reasons just described may have somethingto do with the production of the plateau, as yet we have no evidencethat the plateau cannot be dispensed with. It is practically certainthat the plateau is not caused entirely by necessity for rest orunconscious learning. It frequently is due, we must regretfully admit, to poor early preparation. If at the beginning of a period of learningan insecure foundation is laid, it cannot be expected to support theburden of more difficult subject-matter. 

We have enumerated a number of the explanations that have been advancedto account for the plateau, and have seen that it may have severalcauses, among which are necessity for rest, increased difficulty ofsubject-matter, loss of interest and insufficient preparation. Intrying to eliminate the plateau, our remedy should be adapted to thecause. In recognition of the fact that learning proceeds irregularly, we see that it is rational to expect the amount of effort to be exertedthroughout a period of learning, to vary. It will vary partly with thedifficulty of subject-matter and partly with fluctuations in bodily andmental efficiency which are bound to occur from day to day. Since thisirregularity is bound to occur, you may well make your effort vary fromone extreme to the other. At times, perhaps your most profitable movemay be to take a complete vacation. The vacation might cover severalweeks, a week-end, or if the plateau is merely a low period in theday's work, then ten minutes may suffice for a vacation. As an adjunctto such rest periods, some form of recreation should usually beplanned, for the essential thing is to permit the mind to rest from thetiresome activity. 

If your plateau represents greater difficulty of subject-matter andloss of interest, your duty is plainly to work harder. In exerting moreeffort, make some changes in your methods of study. For example, if youhave been accustomed to study a certain subject by silent reading, begin to read your lessons aloud. Change your method of taking notes, or change the hour of day in which you prepare your lesson. In short, try any of the methods described in this book, and use your owningenuity, and the change in method may overcome the plateau. 

If a plateau is due to our last-mentioned cause, insufficientpreparation, the remedy must be drastic. To make new resolutions and toput forth additional effort is not enough; you must go back and relaythe foundation. Make a thorough review of the work which you coveredslightingly, making sure that every step is clear. This process wasdescribed in an earlier chapter as the clarification of ideas and isabsolutely essential in building up a structure of knowledge that willstand. Indeed, as you take various courses you will find that yourstudy will be much improved by periodical reviews. The benefits cannotall be enumerated here, but we may reasonably claim that a review willbe very likely to remove a plateau, and used with the other remediesherein suggested, will help you to rid yourself of one of the mostdiscouraging features of student life. 

READING AND EXERCISE

Reading: Swift (20) Chapter IV. 

Exercise I. Describe one or more plateaus that you have observed inyour own experience. What do you regard as the causes?

CHAPTER XIII

MENTAL SECOND-WIND

Did you ever engage in any exhausting physical work for a long periodof time? If so, you probably remember that as you proceeded, you becamemore and more fatigued, finally reaching a point when it seemed thatyou could not endure the strain another minute. You had just decided togive up, when suddenly the fatigue seemed to diminish and new energyseemed to come from some source. This curious thing, which happensfrequently in athletic activities, is known as second-wind, and isdescribed, by those who have experienced it, as a time of increasedpower, when the work is done with greater ease and effectiveness andwith a freshness and vigor in great contrast to the staleness thatpreceded it. It is as though one "tapped a level of new energy, "revealing hidden stores of unexpected power. And it is commonlyreported that with persistence in pushing one's self farther andfarther, a third and fourth wind may be uncovered, each one leading togreater heights of achievement. 

This phenomenon occurs not alone on the physical plane; it isdiscernible in mental exertion as well. True, we seldom experience itbecause we are mentally lazy and have the habit of stopping our work atthe first signs of fatigue. Did we persist, however, disregardingfatigue and ennui, we should find ourselves tapping vast reserves ofmental power and accomplishing mental feats of astonishing brilliancy. 

The occasional occurrence of the phenomenon of second-wind gives groundfor the statement that we possess more energy than we ordinarily use. There are several lines of evidence for this statement. One is to befound in the energizing effects of emotional excitement. Under theimpetus of anger, a man shows far greater strength than he ordinarilyuses. Similarly, a mother manifests the strength of a tigress when heryoung is endangered. A second line of evidence is furnished by theeffect of stimulants. Alcohol brings to the fore surprising reserves ofphysical and psychic energy. Lastly, we have innumerable instances ofaccession of strength under the stimulus of an idea. Under thedomination of an all-absorbing idea, one performs feats ofextraordinary strength, utilizing stores of energy otherwise out ofreach. We have only to read of the heroic achievements of little Joanof Arc for an example of such manifestation of reserve power. 

When we examine this accession of energy we find it to be describablein several ways--physiologically, neurologically and psychologically. The physiological effects consist in a heightening of the bodilyfunctions in general. The muscles become more ready to act, thecirculation is accelerated, the breathing more rapid. Curious thingstake place in various glands throughout the body. One, the adrenalgland, has been the object of special study and has been shown, uponthe arousal of these reserves of energy, to produce a secretion of theutmost importance in providing for sudden emergencies. This littlegland is located above the kidney, and is aroused to intense activityat times, pouring out into the blood a fluid that goes all over thebody. Some of its effects are to furnish the blood with chemicals thatact as fuel to the muscles, assisting them to contract more vigorously, to make the lungs more active in introducing oxygen into the system, tomake the heart more active in distributing the blood throughout thebody. Such glandular activity is an important physiological conditionof these higher levels of energy. In neurological terms, the increasein energy consists in the flow of more nervous energy into the brain, particularly into those areas where it is needed for certain kinds ofcontrolled thought and action. An abundance of nervous energy is veryadvantageous, for, as has been intimated in a former chapter, nervousenergy is diffused and spread over all the pathways that are easilypermeable to its distribution. This results in the use of considerableareas of brain surface, and knits up many associations, so that oneidea calls up many other ideas. This leads us to recognize thepsychological conditions of increased energy, which are, first, thepresence of more ideas, second, the more facile flow of ideas; thewhole accompanied by a state of marked pleasurableness. Pleasure is anotable effect of increased energy. When work progresses rapidly andsatisfactorily, it is accomplished with great zest and a feeling almostakin to exaltation. These conditions describe to some degree theconditions when we are doing efficient work. 

Since we are endowed with the energy requisite for such efficient work, the obvious question is, why do we not more frequently use it? Theanswer is to be found in the fact that we have formed the habit ofgiving up before we create conditions of high efficiency. You will notethat the conditions require long-continued exertion and resolutepersistence. This is difficult, and we indulgently succumb to the firstsymptoms of fatigue, before we have more than scratched the surface ofour real potentialities. 

Because of the prominent place occupied by fatigue in thus beingresponsible for our diminished output, we shall briefly consider itsplace in study. Everyone who has studied will agree that fatigue is analmost invariable attendant of continuous mental exertion. We shall laydown the proposition at the start, however, that the awareness offatigue is not the same as the objective fatigue in the organs of thebody. Fatigue should be regarded as a twofold thing--a state of mind, designated its subjective aspect, and a condition of various parts ofthe body, designated its objective aspect. The former is observable byintrospection, the latter by analysis of bodily secretions and bymeasurement of the diminution of work, entirely without reference tothe way the mind regards the work. Fatigue subjectively, or fatigue aswe _feel_ it, is not at all the same as fatigue as manifested in thebody. If we were to make two curves, the one showing the advancement ofthe _feeling_ of fatigue, and the other showing the advancement ofimpotence on the part of the bodily processes, the two curves would notat all coincide. Stated another way, fatigue is a complex thing, aproduct of ideas, feelings and sensations, and sometimes the ideasoverbalance the sensations and we think we are more tired then we areobjectively. It is this fact that accounts for our too rapid giving upwhen we are engaged in hard work. 

A psychological analysis of the subjective side of fatigue will makeits true nature more apparent. Probably the first thing we find in themind when fatigued is a large mass of sensations. They are referred tovarious parts of the body, mostly the part where muscular activity hasbeen most violent and prolonged. Not all of the sensations, however, are intense enough to be localizable, some being so vague that wemerely say we are "tired all over. " These vague sensations are oftenoverlooked; nevertheless, as will be shown later, they may beexceedingly important. 

But sensations are not the only contents of the mind at time offatigue. Feelings are present also, usually of a very unpleasant kind. They are related partly to the sensations mentioned above, which areessentially painful, and they are feelings of boredom and ennui. Wehave yet to examine the ideas in mind and their behavior at time offatigue. They come sluggishly, associations being made slowly andinaccurately, and we make many mistakes. But constriction of ideas isnot the sole effect of fatigue. At such a time there are usually otherideas in the mind not relevant to the fatiguing task of the moment, and exceedingly distracting. Often they are so insistent in forcingthemselves upon our attention that we throw up the work without furthereffort. It is practically certain that much of our fatigue is due, notto real weariness and inability to work, but to the presence of ideasthat appear so attractive in contrast with the work in hand that we saywe are tired of the latter. What we really mean is that we would ratherdo something else. These obtruding ideas are often introduced into ourminds by other people who tell us that we have worked long enough andought to come and play, and though we may not have felt tired up tothis point, still the suggestion is so strong that we immediately beginto feel tired. Various social situations can arouse the samesuggestion. For example, as the clock nears quitting time, we feel thatwe ought to be tired, so we allow ourselves to think we are. 

Let us now examine the bodily conditions to see what fatigue isobjectively. "Physiologically it has been demonstrated that fatigue isaccompanied by three sorts of changes. First, poisons accumulate in theblood and affect the action of the nervous system, as has been shown bydirect analysis. Mosso . .. Selected two dogs as nearly alike aspossible. One he kept tied all day; the other, he exercised until bynight it was thoroughly tired. Then he transfused the blood of thetired animal into the veins of the rested one and produced in him allthe signs of fatigue that were shown by the other. There can be nodoubt that the waste products of the body accumulate in the blood andinterfere with the action of the nerve cells and muscles. It isprobable that these accumulations come as a result of mental as well asof physical work. 

"A second change in fatigue has been found in the cell body of theneurone. Hodge showed that the size of the nucleus of the cell in thespinal cord of a bee diminished nearly 75 per cent, as a result of theday's activity, and that the nucleus became much less solid. A thirdchange that has been demonstrated as a result of muscular work is theaccumulation of waste products in the muscle tissue. Fatigued musclescontain considerable percentages of these products. That they areimportant factors in the fatigue process has been shown by washing themfrom a fatigued muscle. As a result the muscle gains new capacity forwork. The experiments are performed on the muscles of a frog that havebeen cut from the body and fatigued by electrical stimulation. Whenthey will no longer respond, their sensitivity may be renewed bywashing them in dilute alcohol or in a weak salt solution that willdissolve the products of fatigue. It is probable that these productsstimulate the sense-organs in the muscles and thus give some of thesensations of fatigue. Of these physical effects of fatigue, theaccumulation of waste products in the blood and the effects upon thenerve cells are probably common both to mental and physical fatigue. The effect upon the muscles plays a part in mental fatigue only so faras all mental work involves some muscular activity. "

By this time you must be convinced that the subject of fatigue isexceedingly complicated; that its effects are manifested differently inmind and body. In relieving fatigue the first step to be taken is torest properly. Man cannot work incessantly; he must rest sometimes, andit is just as important to know how to rest efficiently as to know howto work efficiently. By this is not meant that one should rest as soonas fatigue begins to be felt. Quite the reverse. Keep on working allthe harder if you wish the second-wind to appear. Perhaps two hourswill exhaust your first supply of energy and will leave you greatlyfatigued. Do not give up at this time, however. Push yourself fartherin order to uncover the second layer of energy. Before entering uponthis, however, it will be possible to secure some advantage by restingfor about fifteen minutes. Do not rest longer than this, or you maylose the momentum already secured and your two hours will have gone fornaught. If one indulges in too long a rest, the energy seems to rundown and more effort is required to work it up again than wasoriginally expended. It is also important to observe the proper mentalconditions during rest. Do not spend the fifteen minutes in gettinginterested in some other object; for that will leave distracting ideasin the mind which will persist when you resume work. Make the rest atime of physical and mental relief. Move cramped muscles, rest youreyes and let your thoughts idly wander; then come back to work in tenor fifteen minutes and you will be amazed at the refreshed feeling withwhich you do your work and at the accession of new energy that willcome to you. Keep on at this new plane and your work will take on allthe attributes of the second-wind level of efficiency. 

Besides planning intelligent rests, you may also adjust yourself tofatigue by arranging your daily program so as to do your hardest workwhen you are fresh, and your easiest when your efficiency is low. Inother words, you are a human dynamo, and should adjust yourself to thedifferent loads you carry. When carrying a heavy load, employ your bestenergies, but when carrying only a light load, exert a proportionateamount of energy. Every student has tasks of a routine nature which donot require a high degree of energy, such as copying material. Plan toperform such work when your stock of energy is lowest. 

One of the best ways to insure the attainment of a higher plane ofmental efficiency is to assume an attitude of interestedness. This isan emotional state and we have seen that emotion calls forth greatenergy. 

A final aid in promoting increase of energy is that gained throughstimulating ideas. Other things being equal, the student who isanimated by a stimulating idea works more diligently and effectivelythan one without. The idea may be a lofty professional ideal; it may bea desire to please one's family, a sense of duty, or a wish to excel. Whatever it is, an idea may stimulate to extraordinary achievements. Adopt some compelling aim if you have none. A vocational aim oftenserves as a powerful incentive throughout one's student life. An ideamay operate for even more transient purposes; it may make one obliviousto present discomfort to a remarkable degree. This is accomplishedthrough the aid of suggestion. When feelings of fatigue approach, youmay ward them off by resolutely suggesting to yourself that you arefeeling fresh. 

Above all, the will is effective in lifting one to higher levels ofefficiency. It is notorious that a single effort of the will, "such assaying 'no' to some habitual temptation or performing some courageousact, will launch a man on a higher level of energy for days and weeks, will give him a new range of power. 'In the act of uncorking thewhiskey bottle which I had brought home to get drunk upon, ' said a manto me, 'I suddenly found myself running out into the garden, where Ismashed it on the ground. I felt so happy and uplifted after this act, that for two months I wasn't tempted to touch a drop. '" But the resultsof exertions of the will are not usually so immediate, and you mayaccept it as a fact that in raising yourself to a higher level ofenergy you cannot do it by a single effort. Continuous effort isrequired until the higher levels of energy have _formed the habit_ ofresponding when work is to be done. In laying the burden upon Nature'smechanism of habit, you see you are again face to face with theproposition laid down at the beginning of the book--that educationconsists in the process of forming habits of mind. The particular habitmost important to cultivate in connection with the production ofsecond-wind is the habit of resisting fatigue. Form the habit ofpersisting in spite of apparent obstacles and limitations. Though theyseem almost unsurmountable, they are really only superficial. Burieddeep within you are stores of energy that you yourself are unaware of. They will assist you in accomplishing feats far greater than you thinkyourself capable of. Draw upon these resources and you will findyourself gradually living and working upon a higher plane ofefficiency, improving the quality of your work, increasing the quantityof your work and enhancing your enjoyment in work. 

READINGS AND EXERCISE

Readings: James (9) Seashore (14) Chapter III. Swift (20) Chapter V. 

Exercise I. Describe conditions you have observed at time ofsecond-wind in connection with prolonged (a) physical exertion, (b)intellectual exertion. 

CHAPTER XIV

EXAMINATIONS

One of the most vexatious periods of student life is examination time. This is almost universally a time of great distress, giving rise inextreme cases to conditions of nervous collapse. The reason for this isnot far to seek, for upon the results of examinations frequently dependmomentous consequences, such as valuable appointments, diplomas, degrees and other important events in the life of a student. In view ofthe importance of examinations, then, it is natural that they beregarded with considerable fear and trepidation, and it is importantthat we devise what rules we can for meeting their exactious demandswith greatest ease and effectiveness. 

Examinations serve several purposes, the foremost of which is to informthe examiner regarding the amount of knowledge possessed by thestudent. In discovering this, two methods may be employed; first, totest whether or not the student knows certain things, plainly areproductive exercise; second, to see how well the student can applyhis knowledge. But this is not the only function of an examination. Italso shows the student how much he knows or does not know. Again theexamination often serves as an incentive to harder work on the part ofthe student, for if one knows there will be an examination in asubject, one usually studies with greater zeal than when an examinationis not expected. Lastly, an examination may help the student to link upfacts in new ways, and to see them in new relationships. In thisaspect, you readily see that examinations constitute a valuable devicein learning. 

But students are not very patient in philosophizing about the purposeof examinations, declaring that if examinations are a necessary part ofthe educational process, they wish some advice that will enable them topass examinations easily and with credit to themselves. So we shallturn our attention to the practical problems of passing examinations. 

Our first duty in giving advice is to call attention to the necessityfor faithful work throughout the course of study. Some students seem tothink that they can slight their work throughout a course, and byvigorous cramming at the end make up for slighted work and pass theexamination. This is an extremely dangerous attitude to take. It mightwork with certain kinds of subject-matter, a certain type ofstudent-mind and a certain kind of examiner, but as a general practiceit is a most treacherous method of passing a course. The greatestobjection from a psychological standpoint is that we have reason tobelieve that learning thus concentrated is not so permanently effectiveas that extended over a long period of time. For instance, a Germancourse extending over a year has much to commend it over a course withthe same number of recitation-hours crowded into two months. We alreadydiscussed the reasons for this in Chapter VI, when we showed thebeneficial results coming from the distribution of impressions over aperiod of time. 

Against cramming it may further be urged that the hasty impression of amass of new material is not likely to be lasting; particularly is thistrue when the cramming is made specifically for a certain examination. As we saw in the chapter on memory, the intention to remember affectsthe firmness of retention, and if the cramming is done merely withreference to the examination, the facts learned may be forgotten andnever be available for future use. So we may lay it down as a rule thatfeverish exertions at the end of a course cannot replace conscientiouswork throughout the course. In spite of these objections, however, wemust admit that cramming has some value, if it does not take the formof new acquisition of facts, but consists more of a manipulation offacts already learned. As a method of review, it has an eminentlyproper place and may well be regarded as indispensable. Some students, it is true, assert that they derive little benefit from apre-examination review, but one is inclined to question their methods. We have already found that learning is characteristically aided byreviews, and that recall is facilitated by recency of impression. Reviewing just before examination serves the memory by providingrepetition and recency, which, as we learned in the chapter on memory, are conditions for favorable impression. 

A further value of cramming is that by means of such a summarizingreview one is able to see facts in a greater number of relations thanbefore. It too often happens that when facts are taken up in a coursethey come in a more or less detached form, but at the conclusion of thecourse a review will show the facts in perspective and will disclosemany new relations between them. 

Another advantage of cramming is that at such a time, one usually worksat a high plane of efficiency; the task of reviewing in a few hours thework of an entire course is so huge that the attention is closelyconcentrated, impressions are made vividly, and the entire mentality istuned up so that facts are well impressed, coordinated and retained. These advantages are not all present in the more leisurely learning ofa course, so we see that cramming may be regarded as a useful device inlearning. 

We must not forget that many of the advantages secured by cramming aredependent upon the methods pursued. There are good methods and poormethods of cramming. One of the most reprehensible of the latter is toget into a flurry and scramble madly through a mass of facts withoutregard to their relation to each other. This method is characterized bybreathless haste and an anxious fear lest something be missed orforgotten. Perhaps its most serious evil is its formlessness and lackof plan. In other words the facts should not be seized upon singly butshould be regarded in the light of their different relations with eachother. Suppose, for example, you are reviewing for an examination inmediaeval history. The important events may be studied according tocountries, studying one country at a time, but that is not sufficient;the events occurring during one period in one country should becorrelated with those occurring in another country at the same time. Likewise the movements in the field of science and discovery should becorrelated with movements in the fields of literature, religion andpolitical control. Tabulate the events in chronological order andcompare the different series of events with each other. In this way thefacts will be seen in new relations and will be more firmly impressedso that you can use them in answering a great variety of questions. 

Having made preparation of the subject-matter of the examination, thenext step is to prepare yourself physically for the trying ordeal, forit is well known that the mind acts more ably under physicallyhealthful conditions. Go to the examination-room with your body restedafter a good night's sleep. Eat sparingly before the examination, formental processes are likely to be clogged if too heavy food is taken. 

Having reached the examination-room, there are a number ofconsiderations that are requisite for success. Some of the advice heregiven may seem to be superfluous but if you had ever correctedexamination papers you would see the need of it all. Let your firststep consist of a preliminary survey of the examination questions; readthem all over slowly and thoughtfully in order to discover the extentof the task set before you. A striking thing is accomplished by thispreliminary reading of the questions. It seems as though during theexamination period the knowledge relating to the different questionsassembles itself, and while you are focusing your attention upon theanswer to one question, the answers to the other questions areformulating themselves in your mind. It is a semi-conscious operation, akin to the "unconscious learning" discussed in the chapter on memory. In order to take advantage of it, it is necessary to have the questionsin mind as soon as possible; then it will be found that relevantassociations will form and will come to the surface when you reach theparticular questions. 

During the examination when some of these associations come intoconsciousness ahead of time, it is often wise to digress from thequestion in hand long enough to jot them down. By all means preservethem, for if you do not write them down they may leave you and be lost. Sometimes very brilliant ideas come in flashes, and inasmuch as theyare so fleeting, it is wise to grasp them and fix them while they arefresh. 

In writing the examination, be sure you read every question carefully. Each question has a definite point; look for it, and do not startanswering until you are sure you have found it. Discover theimplications of each question; canvass its possible interpretations, and if it is at all ambiguous seek light from the instructor if he iswilling to make any further comment. 

It is well to have scratch paper handy and make outlines for youranswers to long questions. It is a good plan, also, when dealing withlong questions, to watch the time carefully, for there is danger thatyou will spend too much time upon some question to the detriment ofothers equally important, though shorter. 

One error which students often commit in taking examinations is towaste time in dreaming. As they come upon a difficult question they sitback and wait for the answer to come to them. This is the wrong plan. The secret of freedom of ideas lies in activity. Therefore, at suchtimes, keep active, so that the associative processes will operatefreely. Stimulate brain activity by the method suggested in Chapter X, namely, by means of muscular activity. Instead of idly waiting forflashes of inspiration, begin to write. You may not be able to writedirectly upon the point at issue, but you can write something about it, and as you begin to explore and to express your meagre fund ofknowledge, one idea will call up another and soon the correct answerwill appear. 

After you have prepared yourself to the extent of your ability, youshould maintain toward the examination an attitude of confidence. Believe firmly that you will pass the examination. Make strongsuggestions to yourself, affirming positively that you have therequisite amount of information and the ability to express itcoherently and forcefully. Fortified by the consciousness of faithfulapplication throughout the work of a course, reinforced by a thorough, well-planned review, and with a firm conviction in the strength of yourown powers, you may approach your examinations with comparative easeand with good chances of passing them creditably. 

READINGS AND EXERCISE

Readings:

Adams (1) Chapter X. 

Dearborn (2) Chapter II. 

Exercise I. Make a schedule of your examinations for the nextexamination week. Show exactly what preparatory steps you will take (a)before coming to the examination room, (6) after entering it. 

CHAPTER XV

BODILY CONDITIONS FOR EFFECTIVE STUDY

It is a truism to say that mental ability is affected by bodilyconditions. A common complaint of students is that they cannot studybecause of a headache, or they fail in class because of loss of sleep. So patent is the interrelation between bodily condition and study thatwe cannot consider our discussion of study problems complete withoutrecognition of the topic. We shall group our discussions about three ofthe most important physical activities, eating, sleeping andexercising. These make up the greater part of our daily activities andif they are properly regulated our study is likely to be effective. 

FOOD. --It is generally agreed that the main function of food is torepair the tissues of the body. Other effects are present, such aspleasure and sociability, but its chief benefit is reparative, so wemay well regard the subject from a strictly utilitarian standpoint andinquire how we may produce the highest efficiency from our eating. Someof the important questions about eating are, how much to eat, what kindof food to eat, when to eat, what are the most favorable conditions foreating?

The quantity of food to be taken varies with the demands of theindividual appetite and the individual powers of absorption. Ingeneral, one who is engaged in physical labor needs more, because ofincreased appetite and increased waste of tissues. So a farm-hand needsmore food than a college student, whose work is mostly indoors andsedentary. Much has been said recently about the ills of overeating. One of the most enthusiastic defenders of a decreased diet is Mr. Horace Fletcher, who, by the practice of protracted mastication, "contrives to satisfy the appetite while taking an exceptionally smallamount of food. Salivary digestion is favored and the mechanicalsubdivision of the food is carried to an extreme point. Remarkablycomplete digestion and absorption follow. By faithfully pursuing thissystem Mr. Fletcher has vastly bettered his general health, and is arare example of muscular and mental power for a man above sixty yearsof age. He is a vigorous pedestrian and mountain-climber and holdssurprising records for endurance tests in the gymnasium. 

"The chief gain observed in his case, as in others which are more orless parallel, is the acquiring of immunity to fatigue, both muscularand central. It is not claimed that the sparing diet confers greatstrength for momentary efforts--'explosive strength, ' as the termgoes--but that moderate muscular contractions may be repeated manytimes with far less discomfort than before. The inference appears to bethat the subject who eats more than is best has in his circulation andhis tissues by-products which act like the muscular waste which isnormally responsible for fatigue. According to this conception he isnever really fresh for his task, but is obliged to start with ahandicap. When he reduces his diet the cells and fluids of his bodyfree themselves of these by-products and he realizes a capacity quiteunguessed in the past. 

"The same assumption explains the fact mentioned by Mr. Fletcher, thatthe hours of sleep can be reduced decidedly when the diet is cut down. It would seem as though a part of our sleep might often be due toavoidable auto-intoxication. If one can shorten his nightly sleepwithout feeling the worse for it this is an important gain. "

But the amount of food is probably not so important as the kind. Foodscontaining much starch, as potatoes and rice, may ordinarily be takenin greater quantities than foods containing much protein, such as meatsand nuts. So our problem is not so much concerned with quantity as withthe choice of kinds of food. Probably the most favorable distributionof foods for students is a predominance of fruits, coarse cereals, starch and sugar and less prominence to meats. Do not begin the day'sstudy on a breakfast of cakes. They are a heavy tax upon the digestivepowers and their nutritive value is low. The mid-day meal is also acrucial factor in determining the efficiency of afternoon study, andmany students almost completely incapacitate themselves for afternoonwork by a too-heavy noon meal. Frequently an afternoon course isrendered quite valueless because the student drowses through thelecture soddened by a heavy lunch. One way of overcoming thisdifficulty is by dispensing with the mid-day meal; another way is todrink a small amount of coffee, which frequently keeps people awake;but these devices are not to be universally recommended. 

The heavy meal of a student may well come at evening. It should consistof a varied assortment of foods with some liquids, preferably clearsoup, milk and water. Meat also forms a substantial part of this meal, though ordinarily it should not be taken more than once a day. Much isheard nowadays about the dangers of excessive meat-eating and theobjections are well-founded in the case of brain-workers. Theundesirable effects are "an unprofitable spurring of the metabolism--more particularly objectionable in warm weather--and the menace ofauto-intoxication. " Too much protein, found in meat, lays a burden uponthe liver and kidneys and when the burden is too great, wastes, whichcannot be taken care of, gather and poison the blood, giving rise tothat feeling of being "tired all over" which is so inimical to mentaland physical exertion. When meat is eaten, care should be taken tochoose right kinds. "Some kinds of meat are well known to occasionindigestion. Pork and veal are particularly feared. While we may notknow the reason why these foods so often disagree with people, it seemsprobable that texture is an important consideration. In both thesemeats the fibre is fine, and fat is intimately mingled with the lean. Aclose blending of fat with nitrogenous matter appears to give a fabricwhich is hard to digest. The same principle is illustrated byfat-soaked fried foods. Under the cover of the fat, thorough-goingbacterial decomposition of the proteins may be accomplished with thefinal release of highly poisonous products. Attacks of acuteindigestion resulting from this cause are much like the so-calledptomaine poisoning. "

Much of the benefit of meat may be secured from other foods. Fat, forexample, may be obtained from milk and butter freed from theobjectionable qualities of the meat-fibre. In this connection it isimportant to call attention to the use of fried fat. Avoid fat that ismixed with starch particles in such foods as fried potatoes andpie-crust. 

The conditions during meals should always be as pleasant as possible. This refers both to physical surroundings and mental condition. "Theprocesses occurring in the alimentary canal are greatly subject toinfluences radiating from the brain. It is especially striking thatboth the movements of the stomach and the secretion of the gastricjuice may be inhibited as a result of disturbing circumstances. Intestinal movements may be modified in similar fashion. "

"Cannon has collected various instances of the suspension of digestionin consequence of disagreeable experiences, and it would be easy foralmost anyone to add to his list. He tells us, for example, of the caseof a woman whose stomach was emptied under the direction of aspecialist in order to ascertain the degree of digestion undergone by aprescribed breakfast. The dinner of the night before was recovered andwas found almost unaltered. Inquiry led to the fact that the woman hadpassed a night of intense agitation as the result of misconduct on thepart of her husband. People who are seasick some hours after a mealvomit undigested food. Apprehension of being sick has probablyinhibited the gastric activities. 

"Just as a single occasion of painful emotion may lead to a passingdigestive disturbance, so continued mental depression, worry, or griefmay permanently impair the working of the (alimentary) tract andundermine the vigor and capacity of the sufferer. Homesickness is notto be regarded lightly as a cause of malnutrition. Companionship is apowerful promoter of assimilation. The attractive serving of food, apleasant room, and good ventilation are of high importance. The lack ofthese, so commonly faced by the lonely student or the young man makinga start in a strange city, may be to some extent counteracted by thecultivation of optimism and the mental discipline which makes itpossible to detach one's self from sordid surroundings. "

Almost as important as eating is drinking, for liquids constitute the"largest item in the income" of the body. Free drinking is recommendedby physiologists, the beneficial results being, "the avoidance ofconstipation, and the promotion of the elimination of dissolved wasteby the kidneys and possibly the liver. " In regard to the use of waterwith meals, a point upon which emphatic cautions were formerly offered, recent experiments have failed to show any bad effects from this, andthe advice is now given to drink "all the water that one chooses withmeals. " Caution should be observed, however, about introducing hot andcold liquids into the stomach in quick succession. 

Other liquids have been much discussed by dietitians, especially teaand coffee. "These beverages owe what limited food value they have tothe cream and sugar usually mixed with them. They give pleasure bytheir aroma, but they are given a peculiar position among articles ofdiet by the presence in them of the compound caffein, which isdistinctly a drug. It is a stimulant to the heart, the kidneys, and thecentral nervous system. "

"Individual susceptibility to the action of caffein varies greatly. Where one person notices little or no reaction after a cup of coffee, another is exhilarated to a marked degree and hours later may findhimself lying sleepless with tense or trembling muscles, a dry, burningskin, and a mind feverishly active. Often it is found that a moreprotracted disturbance follows the taking of coffee with cream than iscaused by black coffee. 

"It is too much to claim that the use of tea and coffee is altogetherto be condemned. Many people, nevertheless, are better without them. For all who find themselves strongly stimulated it is the part ofwisdom to limit the enjoyment of these decoctions to real emergencieswhen uncommon demands are made upon the endurance and when for a timehygienic considerations have to be ignored. If young people willpostpone the formation of the habit they will have one more resourcewhen the pressure of mature life becomes severe. "

Before concluding this discussion a word might be added concerning therelation between fasting and mental activity. Prolonged abstinence fromfood frequently results in highly sharpened intellectual powers. Numerous examples of this are found in the literature of history andbiography; many actors, speakers and singers habitually fast beforepublic performances. There are some disadvantages to fasting, especially loss of weight and weakness, but when done under thedirection of a physician, fasting has been known to produce verybeneficial effects. It is mentioned here because it has such markedeffects in speeding up the mental processes and clearing the mind; andthe well-nourished student may find the practice a source of mentalstrength during times of stress such as examinations. 

SLEEP. --"About one-third of an average human life is passed in thefamiliar and yet mysterious state which we call sleep. From one pointof view this seems a large inroad upon the period in which ourconsciousness has its exercise; a subtraction of twenty-five years fromthe life of one who lives to be seventy-five. Yet we know that theefficiency and comfort of the individual demand the surrender of allthis precious time. It has often been said that sleep is a moreimperative necessity than food, and the claim seems to be wellfounded. " It is quite likely that some students indulge in too muchsleep. This may sometimes be due to laziness, but frequently it is dueto actual intoxication, from an excess of food which results in thepresence of poisonous "narcotizing substances absorbed from theburdened intestine". This theory is rendered tenable by the fact thatwhen the diet is reduced the hours of sleep may be reduced. If one isin good health, it seems right to expect that one should be able toarise gladly and briskly upon awaking. By all means do not indulgeyourself in long periods of lying in bed after a good night's rest. Ifwe examine the physical and physiological conditions of sleep we shallbetter understand its hygiene. Sleep is a state in which the tissues ofthe body which have been used up may be restored. Of course somerestoration of broken-down tissue takes place as soon as it begins towear out, but so long as the body keeps working, the one process cannever quite compensate for the other, so there must be a periodiccessation of activity so that the energies of the body may be devotedto restoration. Viewing sleep as a time when broken-down bodily cellsare restored, we see that we tax the energies of the body less if we goto sleep each day before the cells are entirely depleted. That is thesignificance of the old teaching that sleep before midnight is moreefficacious than sleep after midnight. It is not that there is anymystic virtue in the hours before twelve, but that in the early part ofthe evening the cells are not so nearly exhausted as they are later inthe evening, and it is much easier to repair them in the partiallyexhausted stage than it is in the completely exhausted stage. For thisreason, a mid-day nap is often effective, or a short nap after theevening dinner. By thus catching the cells at an early stage of theirexhaustion, they can be restored with comparative ease, and more energywill be available for use during the remainder of the working hours. 

A problem that may occasionally trouble a student is sleeplessness andwe may properly consider here some of the ways of avoiding it. Oneprime cause of sleeplessness is external disturbance. The disturbancemay be visual. Although it is ordinarily thought that if the eyes areclosed, no visual disturbances can be sensed, nevertheless, as a matterof fact the eye-lids are not wholly opaque. Sight may be obtainedthrough them, as you may prove by closing your eyes and moving yourfingers before them. The lids transmit light to the retina and it isquite likely that you are frequently awakened by a beam of lightfalling upon your closed eye-lids. For this reason, one who is inclinedto be wakeful should shut out from the bed-room all avenues wherebylight may enter as a distraction. 

The temperature sense is also a source of distraction in sleep, and itis a common experience to be awakened by extreme cold. The ears, too, may be the source of disturbance in sleep; for even though we areasleep, the tympanic membrane is always exposed to vibrations of air. In fact, stimuli are continually playing upon the sense-organs and arearousing nervous currents which try to break over the boundaries ofsleep and impress themselves upon the brain. 

For this reason, one who wishes to have untroubled sleep should removeall possible distractions. 

But apart from external distractions, wakefulness may still be causedby distractions from within. Troublesome ideas may be present andpersist in keeping one awake. This means that brain activity has beenstarted and needs suppression. Various devices have been suggested. Oneis to eat something very light, just enough to draw the surplus blood, which excites the brain, away from the brain to the digestive tract. This advice should be taken with caution, however, for eating justbefore retiring may use up in digestion much of the energy needed inrepairing the body, and may leave one greatly fatigued in the morning. 

One way to relieve the mind of mental distractions is to fill it withnon-worrisome, restful thoughts. Read something light, a restful essayor a non-exciting story, or poetry. Another device is to bathe the headin cold water so as to relieve congestion of blood in the brain. Atepid or warm bath is said to have a similar effect. 

Dreams constitute one source of annoyance to many, and while they arenot necessarily to be avoided, still they may disturb the night's rest. We may avoid them in some measure by creating conditions free fromsensory distractions, for many of our dreams are direct reflections ofsensations we are experiencing at the moment. A dream with an arcticsetting may be the result of becoming uncovered on a cold night. To usean illustration from Ellis: "A man dreams that he enlists in the army, goes to the front, and is shot. He is awakened by the slamming of adoor. It seems probable that the enlistment and the march to the fieldare theories to account for the report which really caused the wholetrain of thought, though it seemed to be its latest item. " Such dreamsmay be partially eliminated by care in arranging conditions so thatthere will be few distractions. Especially should they be guardedagainst in the later hours of the sleep, for we do not sleep so soundlyafter the first two hours as we do before, and stimuli can more easilyimpress themselves and affect the brain. 

Before leaving the subject of sleep, we should note the benefit to bederived from regularity in sleep. All Nature seems to move rhythmicallyand sleep is no exception. Insomnia may be treated by means ofhabituating one's self to get sleepy at a certain time, and there is noquestion that the rising process may be made easier if one forms thehabit of arising at the same time every morning. To rhythmize thisimportant function is a long step towards the efficient life. 

EXERCISE. --Brain workers do not ordinarily get all the exercise theyshould. Particularly is this true of some conscientious students whofeel they must not take any time from their study. But this denotes afalse conception of mental action. The human organism needs exercise. Man is not a disembodied spirit; he must pay attention to the claims ofthe body. Indeed it will be found that time spent in exercise willresult in a higher grade of mental work. This is recognized by collegesand universities by the requirement of gymnasium work, and theopportunity should be welcomed by the student. Inasmuch as institutionsgenerally give instruction in this subject, we need not go specificallyinto the matter of exercises. Perhaps the only caution that need beurged is that against the excessive participation in such exhaustinggames as foot-ball. It is seriously to be questioned whether thestrenuous grilling that a foot-ball player must undergo does notactually impair his ability to concentrate upon his studies. 

If you undertake a course of exercise, by all means have it regular. Little is gained by sporadic exercising. Adopt the principle ofregularity and rhythmize this important phase of bodily activity aswell as all other phases. 

In concluding our discussion of physical hygiene for the student, wecannot stress too much the value of relaxation. The life of a studentis a trying one. It exercises chiefly the higher brain centres andkeeps the organism keyed up to a high pitch. These centres becomefatigued easily and ought to be rested occasionally. Therefore, thestudent should relax at intervals, and engage in something remote fromstudy. To forget books for an entire week-end is often wisdom; to havea hobby or an avocation is also wise. A student must not forget that heis something more than an intellectual being. He is a physical organismand a social being, and the well-rounded life demands that all phasesreceive expression. We grant that it is wrong to exalt the physical andstunt the mental, but it is also wrong to develop the intellectual andneglect the physical. We must recognize with Browning that, all good thingsAre ours, nor soul helps flesh more, now, than flesh helps soul. 

READINGS AND EXERCISE

Readings:

Patrick (14) Chapters I, II and VII. Stiles (18) and (19). 

Swift (20) Chapter X. 

Exercise 1. With the help of a book on dietetics prepare an ideal day'sbill of fare for a student. 

SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER READING

Besides the standard texts in general and educational psychology, thefollowing books bear with especial intimacy upon the topics treated inthis book:

1. Adams, John, Making the Most of One's Mind, New York: George H. Doran Co. , 1915. 

2. Dearborn, George V. , How to Learn Easily, Boston: Little, Brown &Co. , 1918. 

3. Dewey, John, How we Think, Boston: D. C. Heath & Co. , 1910. 

4. Dewey, John, Interest and Effort in Education, Boston: Houghton, Mifflin Co. , 1913. 

5. Fulton, Maurice (ed. ), College Life, Its Conditions and Problems, The Macmillan Co. , 1915. 

6. Hall-Quest, Alfred L. , Supervised Study, New York: The MacmillanCo. , 1916. 

7. Herrick, C. Judson, An Introduction to Neurology, Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders Co. , 1915. 

8. James, William, Talks to Teachers on Psychology, and to Students onSome of Life's Ideals, New York. 1899. 

9. James, William, The Energies of Men, New York: Moffatt, Yard & Co. , 1917. 

10. Kerfoot, John B. , How to Read, Boston: Houghton, Mifflin & Co. , 1916. 

11. Lockwood, Francis (comp. ), The Freshman and His College, Boston:D. C. Heath & Co. , 1913. 

12. Lowe, John Adams, Books and Libraries, Boston: The Boston Book Co. , 1917. 

13. McMurry, Frank M. , How to Study, Boston: Houghton, Mifflin & Co. , 1909. 

14. Patrick, George T. W. , The Psychology of Relaxation, Boston:Houghton, Mifflin & Co. , 1916. 

15. Sandwick, Richard L. , How to Study and What to Study, Boston: D. C. Heath & Co. , 1915. 

16. Seashore, Carl E. , Psychology in Daily Life, New York: D. Appleton& Co. , 1918. 

17. Seward, S. , Note-taking, Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 1910. 

18. Stiles, Percy G. , Nutritional Physiology Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders Co. , 1912. 

19. Stiles, Percy G. , The Nervous System and Its Conservation, Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders Co. , 1914. 

20. Swift, Edgar J. , Psychology and the Day's Work, New York: C. Scribner's Sons, 1919. 

21. Watt, Henry J. , The Economy and Training of Memory, New York:Longmans, Green & Co. , 1909. 

22. Whipple, Guy M. , How to Study Effectively, Bloomington, Ill. :Public School Publishing Co. , 1916. 

INDEX

Acquisition, vs. "construction"Activity, mentalAssociation, laws of; in memory; in reasoning; in examinationAttention; fluctuation of; resistance of distractions; lapses of

BibliographiesBodily activities, in recognition; distractions in attentionBrain, description of; elementary cells; tissue, properties of; tracts; areas

CharlemagneClarification of ideas, through definition and classification; through expressionClassification of ideasClass roomCollege, difficulties; demands ofConstructive studyCramming

Day dreamingDecision, in reasoningDefinitionDistractions, in attention; in sleepDreamsDrinking

EnnuiEthical, consequences, of habit; of expressionExaminations, importance; purposes of; preparation forExerciseExpression; neural basis

FastingFatigueFeelings, pleasurable; unpleasantFletcher, HoraceFood

Geometry

Golf

Graphic methods; in measuring learning

Habit, defined; maxims for forming; advantages of; disadvantages of; in reasoning; of resisting fatigue

Ideas in reasoning how to clarify in fatigue stimulus of

Idea-motor action law of

Image defined kinds of

Imagination made of images works of sources how to develop visual, auditory, etc. 

Impression guard avenues of clearness essential through various senses vs. Expression

Indenture

Intention in memorizing

Insomnia see Sleeplessness

Inspiration

Interest defined sources development of laws of

Judgment

Kinaesthetic impressions

Lecture method notes

Logical associations in memorizing in reasoning

Mediaeval history

Memory importance in study stages of "unconscious" "whole" vs. "part" works according to law "rote" vs. "logical" intention

Mental second wind see second wind

Nervous current energy system in expression

Neurone

Note-taking lecture laboratory reading full vs. Scanty form of notebook a habit

Obscurity in meaning

Outlines

Overlearning

Parker, Francis W. 

Philology

Plateau remedies for

Pleasure in interest

Practice of recall curve of

Problem solving

Psalm of life

Public speaking overcoming embarrassment

_Rathausmarkt_

Read how to

Reason contrasted with rote learning as problem solving stages purposive thinking requirements for and habit

Recall

Recognition

Repetition, distribution of

Retention

Review, from notes

Romeo and Juliet

Schedule, daily

Second wind, physical mental sources of

Sensation, as impression bodily external in fatigue

Sleep

Sleeplessness

Stream of thought

Suggestion

Synapse

Theme writing

"Unconscious" learning see memory

Will

Writing a form of expression