Everyday Use of the Mind Palace

By Francisco Gallegoes

The mind palace has seen a re-emergence in popular culture after references in popular tv shows and entertainment such as Sherlock, The Mentalist, and others.  Formally referred to as the method of loci, the mind palace is a tool where users place or store information they want to remember in an imagined location.  Around since the time of ancient Greece, the method of loci has now been researched and studied extensively meaning scientists now have a better understanding of how the method of loci works and how you can create a mind palace of your own then ever before.

The mind palace involves visualizing a familiar location, storing information to be remembered at a spot in that location, creating associations between the information and the spot where information was stored, and then going back to that spot later to retrieve the stored information.  This technique has been shown to be one of the most effective ways to remember information due to its unique ability to take advantage of the way human memory is physically stored in the brain (Wagner et al., 2021).  Unlike other memory techniques, the method of loci is based on spatial associations or, in other words, associating a fact or detail to be remembered with a physical location.  Neuroscientists have theorized that the human brain is physically constructed to remember spatial information much more efficiently than other types of information and it is for this reason that the method of loci is so effective.

A personal memory palace does not have to be used to remember information for your next test or your siblings’ birthday.  The method of loci is flexible and has a lot of nuances.  Anything from grocery lists to trivia questions can be remembered.  The flexibility and ease of access have been major contributors to the method of loci gaining popularity.  One downside of the method of loci, however, is that it takes a decent amount of time to use.  Both learning how to use the method of loci correctly and creating a mind palace can be somewhat lengthy endeavors and therefore its practicality may come into question. Fortunately, the method of loci has found many new uses that have helped maintain its popularity.  Memory athletes across the world have taken advantage of the method of loci at competitions such as the World Memory Championships.  This is because there are almost no known techniques that can help someone remember semantic information better than the mind palace (semantic information includes factual information such as the capital of New York being the city Albany).  Alternatively, new research has also shown that the method of loci is also effective for storing and maintaining traditional episodic memories, or what is generally considered a traditional memory where one remembers specific events in their life (Dalgleish, Navrady, & Golden 2013; Dalgleish & Werner-Seidler, 2016).  This new discovery has led to fascinating new uses such as using a mind palace to help with chronic depression.  The ability to have highly accessible episodic memories has found use in people with chronic depression by maintaining self-affirming memories that can be easily visited.  While some of these new uses need more research, the method of loci still remains as one of, if not the best way to remember information.

The method of loci is highly effective and highly accessible because anybody can learn how to create their own mind palace with nothing but a little time, motivation, and practice.  There are no downsides or side effects from learning how to use the method of loci and it can be extremely fun to use as a party trick or general tool to help you in your day to day life.  If you find yourself wanting to improve your memory and have some time then you should create your own mind palace today

References

Wagner, I. C., Kinrad, B. N., Shister, P., Weisig, S., Repantis, D., Ohla, K., Kühn, S., Fernández, G., Steiger, A., Lamm, C., Czisch, M., & Dresler, M. (2021). Durable memories and efficient neural coding through mnemonic training using the method of loci. American Association for the Advancement of Science, 7(10). 10.1126/SCIADV.ABC7606

Dalgleish T., & Werner-Seidler, A. (2016). The Method of Loci Improves Longer-Term Retention of Self-Affirming Memories and Facilitates Access to Mood-Repairing Memories in Recurrent Depression. Clinical Psychological Science, 4(6), 939-1134. https://doi-org.ezproxy.mnsu.edu/10.1177/216770261562669

Dalgleish T., Navrady, L., & Golden A.-M. (2013). Method-of-Loci as a Mnemonic Device to Facilitate Access to Self-Affirming Personal Memories for Individuals With Depression. Clinical Psychological Science, 1(2), 156-162. https://doi-org.ezproxy.mnsu.edu/10.1177/2167702612468111