Mnemonist

The title mnemonist (derived from the term mnemonic) refers to an individual with the ability to remember and recall unusually long lists of data, such as unfamiliar names, lists of numbers, entries in books, etc. Mnemonists may have superior innate ability to recall or remember, or may use techniques such as the method of loci.

While the innateness of mnemonists' skills is debated, the methods that mnemonists use to memorize are well-documented. Many mnemonists have been studied in psychology labs over the last century, and most have been found to use mnemonic devices. Currently, all memory champions at the World Memory Championships have said that they use mnemonic strategies, such as the method of loci, to perform their memory feats.

Skilled memory theory was proposed by K. Anders Ericsson and Bill Chase to explain the effectiveness of mnemonic devices in memory expertise. Generally, short-term memory has a capacity of seven items; however, in order to memorize long strings of unrelated information, this constraint must be overcome. Skilled memory theory involves three steps: meaningful encoding, retrieval structure, and speed-up.

In encoding, information is encoded in terms of knowledge structures through meaningful associations. This may initially involve breaking down long lists into more manageable chunks that fall within the capacity of short term memory. Verbal reports of memory experts show a consistent grouping of three or four. A digit sequence 1-9-4-5, for example, can then be remembered as "the year World War Two ended". Luria reported that Solomon Shereshevsky used synesthesia to associate numbers and words as visual images or colors to encode the information presented to him, but Luria did not clearly distinguish between synesthesia and mnemonic techniques like the method of loci and number shapes. Other subjects studied have used previous knowledge such as racing times or historical information to encode new information. This is supported by studies that have shown that previous knowledge about a subject will increase one's ability to remember it. Chess experts, for example, can memorize more pieces of a chess game in progress than a novice chess player. However, while there is some correlation between memory expertise and general intelligence, as measured by either IQ or the general intelligence factor, the two are by no means identical. Many memory experts have been shown to be average to above-average by these two measures, but not exceptional.

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