A Spork in the Road

I’ve always been intrigued by how the mind works, and one of my ongoing interests is how we learn. This has professional applications, obviously: interface design requires an understanding of how a new user perceives and then learns to use a website or software application; fiction writing requires an understanding of how a new reader perceives and then learns to understand characters and plotlines.

For one of my projects, which involves both writing and research, I’ve begun keeping more up-to-date on world events by reading news feeds for The Economist and Harpers. Now, I’ve had a giant wall-poster of a world map that I finally put up in my office a few weeks ago, right beside my desk where I can easily refer to it. I find that as I read news articles — about political unrest in Zimbabwe, for example — I often know vaguely where a country is, but not exactly. Instead of breezing through the articles, though, I’ve started leaning over to the world map to locate countries. The sheer convenience of having the map right there has encouraged me to make the effort to learn the new information, and has also encouraged better retention because I can reinforce the information any time I want.

Likewise, I recently rearranged my work area so I could have more reference books at my fingertips. As small as my office is, the effort required to stand up and walk five feet to the bookshelf often overwhelms me when I’m busy, and I end up trying to muscle through a problem rather than get up and find a helpful book. Now I have shelf for whatever reference books I find myself needing most frequently during a given week.

Quite simply, convenience facilitates learning.

Of course, as a recovering Presbyterian, it’s easy for me to malign my own laziness for not wanting to get up and walk to the bookshelf or go look up a world map online. Lazy! What’s wrong with you?! But of course moralizing is not the most logical response if what you’re actually interested in is learning more, learning faster, learning better.

We’re all inclined to conserve energy, and even small impediments to learning can have a big impact. This weekend I’m going to spend half an hour looking at my workspace again, trying to find simple ways to make learning more convenient.