Learning stuff

Shoving knowledge into my brain

2020-06-15 — 2025-10-08

Wherein an Account Is Presented of Self‑directed Pedagogy, AI Tutors and Spaced‑repetition Flashcards Are Surveyed, and Sleep and Supplements Are Noted as Adjuncts to Deliberate Practice.

faster pussycat
language
learning
mind
utility
Figure 1

Teaching, but for myself.

Edward Kmett’s Learning to Learn seems popular. Maybe Scott H Young’s pop-psychology life-hacks approach is useful? Ozy Brennan’s notionally teaching-oriented article, Evidence-Based Learning Strategies For Homeschoolers, has tips that also apply to self-learning for my inner schoolchild.

Also useful: sleep, performance-enhancing supplements, Flashcard repetition…

1 AI-augmented

See AI tutoring.

2 The problem of experts

Rules for Noobs!:

If you ask someone who’s good at dating for dating advice they’ll often tell you to “just be yourself”. Since they themselves are good at dating, being themselves serves them well. But if your self isn’t good at dating, you should probably be less yourself and more like the self of one of those people who are good at dating.

3 Spaced repetition/flashcards

See flashcards.

4 Incoming

5 References

Ainsworth. 1999. “The Functions of Multiple Representations.” Computers & Education.
Bernacki, and Walkington. 2018. “The Role of Situational Interest in Personalized Learning.” Journal of Educational Psychology.
Clark, and Paivio. 1991. “Dual Coding Theory and Education.” Educational Psychology Review.
Dunlosky, Rawson, Nathan, et al. 2013. “What Works, What Doesn’t.” Scientific American.
Eames, Brunskill, Yamkovenko, et al. 2026. “Computer-Assisted Learning in the Real World: How Khan Academy Influences Student Math Learning.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Freeman, Eddy, McDonough, et al. 2014. “Active Learning Increases Student Performance in Science, Engineering, and Mathematics.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Friston. 2010. “The Free-Energy Principle: A Unified Brain Theory?” Nature Reviews Neuroscience.
Gopnik. 2020. “Childhood as a Solution to Explore–Exploit Tensions.” Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.
Gurung, Lin, Gutterman, et al. 2025. “Human Tutoring Improves the Impact of AI Tutor Use on Learning Outcomes.” In Artificial Intelligence in Education.
Hattan, Alexander, and Lupo. 2024. “Leveraging What Students Know to Make Sense of Texts: What the Research Says About Prior Knowledge Activation.” Review of Educational Research.
Kelly. 2017. The Memory Code.
———. 2020. Memory Craft: Improve Your Memory with the Most Powerful Methods in History.
Kestin, Miller, Klales, et al. 2025. “AI Tutoring Outperforms in-Class Active Learning: An RCT Introducing a Novel Research-Based Design in an Authentic Educational Setting.” Scientific Reports.
Lovett, Meyer, and Thille. 2008. “JIME - The Open Learning Initiative: Measuring the Effectiveness of the OLI Statistics Course in Accelerating Student Learning.” Journal of Interactive Media in Education.
Squire. 2007. “Rapid Consolidation.” Science (New York, N.Y.).
Tenenbaum, Kemp, Griffiths, et al. 2011. “How to Grow a Mind: Statistics, Structure, and Abstraction.” Science.
Wieman. 2014. “Large-Scale Comparison of Science Teaching Methods Sends Clear Message.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Young. 2024. Get Better at Anything: 12 Maxims for Mastery.