Test-Driven Memorization

11/10/15

So, now that I'm finally setting up a testing system at home, I am reminded of an idea I had to memorize various things.

A long, long time ago, I was introduced to the idea of spaced repetition. The idea is that the best way to remember something long-term is to remind yourself of it right before you forget about it, and then also to focus on the stuff you keep forgetting instead of looking at it at about the same frequency as all the other stuff you already got down.

It has occurred to me that this could be a good way to memorize certain ways to solve problems. Like, I could have various use-cases for a certain data structure. They could all be use-cases that take a small amount of time to setup, sort of like the Quixey Challenge.

This could take spaced-repetition beyond memorization of static facts and into the territory of learning to implement code using various constructs quickly.

It's something I've wanted to do for a while, and I think soon I might be able to make my first proper prototype of it.