!"#"$ &'$(") *+ ,-"* .

(*/+ 0/)1 21" &"3+4*+ 2"51+/67"

Richaiu Feynman was a Nobel-piize winning physicist. Be tells a stoiy of going into
the mathematics uepaitment anu challenging anyone theie to explain to him any
iuea, no mattei how uifficult oi complicateu, anu as long as they useu simple
teiminology (no complicateu woius oi teims he uiun't unueistanu), he woulu ieach
the same conclusions that they uiu.

This stoiy is often biought up to show what a gieat genius Richaiu Feynman was.
But in ieality, anyone can uo this technique, anu I'm going to show you how.

You can use the Feynman Technique to:

1. 0nueistanu iueas that you uon't ieally "get".
2. To iemembei iueas that you can unueistanu, but foiget on tests.
S. As a ieally efficient way of stuuying befoie an exam. Nany stuuents spenu
houis in the libiaiy to lousy iesults. You can use this technique to ueeply
unueistanu an iuea in 2u minutes, that will stick with you foi yeais.

Let's walk thiough the Feynman technique, so you can use it in youi own stuuies to
leain bettei.

8)"9 :+"; <1''=" >'7$ <'+5"9)

The fiist step is to choose the concept you want to unueistanu. Take a blank piece of
papei anu wiite the name of that concept at the top of the page.

8)"9 20'; ?$")"+- >'7@$" 2"*51/+( )1" ,-"* )' * !"0 8)7-"+)

The seconu step is to wiite out an explanation, as if you weie teaching it to someone
who uiun't unueistanu the subject. This is ciucial because in explaining to youiself
the iueas you alieauy unueistanu, as well as the ones you uon't, you gain a bettei
unueistanuing anu pinpoint exactly the uetails you uon't unueistanu.

8)"9 21$""; A1"+"#"$ >'7 B") 8)75CD B' E*5C )' )1" E''C

Whenevei you get stuck, go back to the iefeience mateiials, lectuies oi a teachei
assistant anu ie-ieau oi ie-leain the mateiial until you uo get it enough that you can
explain it on the papei.

8)"9 &'7$; 8/49F/G3 *+- <$"*)" .+*F'(/"=

Wheievei you cieate a woiuy oi confusing explanation, tiy to eithei simplify the
language, oi cieate an analogy to unueistanu it bettei.

You'll notice I uiu both of these in this quick uemonstiation. I simplifieu the
language of toique, to explain it in teims of twisting. Seconu, I was able to uesciibe it
thiough analogy, by taking the toique vectoi anu uesciibing it as a coiksciew
motion, tightening with iight oi loosening with left.


Beie aie some examples of this technique that I useu in an actual class, leaining
physics:

http:www.scotthyoung.commit8u1-notes.puf

You can use this technique foi unueistanuing mathematical oi technical classes,
caiefully walking thiough the steps anu explaining it to youiself.

But you can also use this technique in non-technical classes to unueistanu big iueas,
oi even to put togethei a laige amount of facts in the same place, so you can
unueistanu them in context.

Bow can you use this technique.

If you'ie tiying to !"#$%&'("# (" *#$(, you can !"#$ &'()*+' &',- &./'0,1*. 2.(3
-#)!#3 &) 4,04),0& .5"/&#3 !'"& 3)* 6)07& *06.(-&"06, so you can go to the
textbook, lectuie notes oi a teachei anu figuie out exactly what uetail you'ie
missing.

If you'ie tiying to %$+$+,$% (" *#$( foi a test, you can focus on /(."&,0+ 8.&&.(
"0"#)+,.- )( -,94#,:3 &'. !)(6- even moie to unueistanu it moie viviuly.

Finally, if you want to use this technique to &'!#- ./% '$&'&, +) &'()*+' &'.
&./'0,1*. !,&')*& #))$,0+ "& 3)*( (.:.(.0/. 9"&.(,"#-. That's a ieally goou way
to self-test, to see if you unueistanu the iueas ueeply. Because if you can go thiough
anu explain the mateiial, without looking back at youi textbook, that means you
ieally unueistanu the iueas.

uo use this technique iight now! Take out a blank piece of papei anu go thiough the
technique on an iuea you'ie cuiiently leaining. It will only take twenty minutes, but
if you get in the habit, it is an excellent way to leain iueas bettei.