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Museum of Modern Calligraphy via Wikimedia Commons

Taking notes by hand is more effective than typing them

Note-taking by hand forces you to think about what you’re writing.

PEOPLE TEND TO type faster than they can write notes by hand. Strangely, this is why you should trade your laptop for a pen and pad if you want to remember what someone is saying.

A new study published in Psychological Science shows why. Pam Mueller of Princeton and Daniel Oppenheimer of UCLA asked two groups of students to take notes while watching TED Talks. Some were given laptops, others a pen and paper. They watched the talks, and then, about half an hour later, they were quizzed on the content.

“For strictly factual questions, the note-taking method didn’t seem to matter,” American Scholar reports. ”But for more conceptual questions — ‘How do Japan and Sweden differ in their approaches to equality within their societies?’ — the typists remembered fewer correct responses than the scribblers.”

A follow-up experiment confirmed the findings. A full week after watching the videos, students were quizzed on the content. Again, the hand-writers outperformed the typists in recall tests.

Why?

When you’re typing everything down quickly, you end up spending less time with each piece of information. If you’re writing everything that the speaker says, then you don’t actually have to think about what they’re saying. But if you’re only writing selections of their speech, you have to attend to the most important points and get those down on paper.

Since the handwriting slows you down, you spend more time thinking carefully about what the speaker is saying, which leads to better recall of the information.

Another Princeton study came to a similar conclusion. It found that hard-to-read fonts (your Comic Sans, Gothic, and the like) actually lead to greater retention. When the text is more difficult to read, the authors argue, you’re subsequently forced to spend more time with each piece of information.

The business takeaway: When you’re viewing a presentation, attending a meeting, or talking to a potential hire, keep your pen in hand — and only write down the most important points.

- Drake Baer

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    Mute mickmc
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    Feb 27th 2017, 7:43 AM

    A this is getting a little bit tiring at this stage. The American people right or wrongly made their decision so the rest of us just have to get on with it and keep the finger crossed he’s kept well clear of the codes.

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    Mute Tony Daly
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    Feb 27th 2017, 8:31 AM

    @mickmc: I think that Americans are entitled to express their displeasure over the result.

    The result of the US election was procured by voter manipulation, using social media and artificial intelligence techniques to implement psychological manipulation of the electorate.

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    Mute Jason Culligan
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    Feb 27th 2017, 8:49 AM

    @Tony Daly:

    “The result of the US election was procured by voter manipulation, using social media and artificial intelligence techniques to implement psychological manipulation of the electorate.”

    In other words, he won the election.

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    Mute The Crant
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    Feb 27th 2017, 9:16 AM

    @Tony Daly: And I am entitled to express my displeasure at your displeasure

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    Mute The Crant
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    Feb 27th 2017, 9:24 AM

    @Jason Culligan: Some of the leftie ISIS sympathizers on here could do with a bit on an artificial intelligence boost. I am a coal delivery man, this is the busiest time of year as I deliver coal to customers, Some want to ban coal to save the planet, they would buy it from the North but it too dirty and too heavy for them

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    Mute Andy Wallace
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    Feb 27th 2017, 9:30 AM

    I love the Team America bit where all the stars like Sean Penn talk about Iraq then get their heads blown off and the end of the film while stupidly supporting Kim Jong. Suzanne Surandan bit it’s the best when she’s tied to a chair and Gary doesn’t by it saying “your acting skills have faded with age miss Surandan”. she response “you shall die a peasants death” haha. I believe due to that film. Film actors guild(FAG) was changed to screen actors guild.

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    Mute Keiko
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    Feb 27th 2017, 9:39 AM

    Haha great movie, hilarious.

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    Mute Jane Aelst
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    Feb 27th 2017, 9:50 AM

    @mickme You clearly don’t understand how the American presidency works. This petulant hot-headed delusional narcissistic man HAS the nuclear codes and can use them at anytime he is irked. That is what is so frightening.

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    Mute Mike
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    Feb 27th 2017, 7:19 PM

    @Jane Aelst: Jane’s off her meds…. he rats are running around the room, the monsters are coming.. Trump can go nuclear anytime he’s irked aaaaaaaggh!!!

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    Mute Simeon
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    Feb 27th 2017, 7:32 AM

    And the winner is…………Hillary Clinton! Oh wait! hang on.

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    Mute cortisola
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    Feb 27th 2017, 3:52 PM
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    Mute Alois Irlmaier
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    Feb 27th 2017, 11:24 PM

    @Simeon: She was too busy hanging around with Celebs instead of farmers while threatening to nuke Russia and Iran?

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    Mute Awkward Seal
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    Feb 27th 2017, 8:35 AM

    I would suggest that egotistical virtue signalling millionaire movie stars attacking Trump actually helps rather than hinders him

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    Mute Bairéid Rísteard
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    Feb 27th 2017, 8:46 AM

    @Awkward Seal: spot on

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    Mute Jason Culligan
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    Feb 27th 2017, 8:51 AM

    @Awkward Seal:

    Don’t forget that this virtue signalling isn’t based on some deep-seated emotional worry for illegal workers in the US. It’s entirely self-serving.

    California’s economy relies on illegal migrants for manual labour within the state and Hollywood is no exception to this. Imagine how much it would eat into the multi-million dollar contracts for actors and actresses in Hollywood if they needed to pay all of the manual labourers in Hollywood a fair wage.

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    Mute Duncan
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    Feb 27th 2017, 7:32 AM

    Wow !!!!
    I bet Trump is on the ropes this morning!!!

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    Mute Eoin Mulhern
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    Feb 27th 2017, 7:41 AM

    Two anti Trump article’s already into the day. It’s getting quite annoying now these Trump stories.

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    Mute Daisy Daisy
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    Feb 27th 2017, 8:19 AM

    Stick to Sheitbart.

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    Mute Keiko
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    Feb 27th 2017, 9:15 AM

    Still a lot of self loathing folks around here with post US election stress disorder.

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    Mute Joe
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    Feb 27th 2017, 9:27 AM

    The loves are at it again.

    They love “diversity” except of course for diversity of opinion, in that, they prefer enforced homogeneity.

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    Mute Jamie Lyons
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    Feb 27th 2017, 9:12 AM

    Elitist celebs moralising to the commoners from high upon their pedestals.

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    Mute Alois Irlmaier
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    Feb 27th 2017, 11:24 PM

    @Jamie Lyons: And the state of their undies were?

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    Mute Zx5vZulB
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    Feb 27th 2017, 7:52 AM

    Establishment luvvies as frothy and irrelevant as ever, stick to the day jobs of pretending to be other people.

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    Mute MuckyMoo
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    Feb 27th 2017, 12:09 PM

    Thank you celebrities for always telling us how to think

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    Mute Mumpsimus
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    Feb 27th 2017, 12:59 PM

    Give me a break, a bunch of foreigners giving out about another country’s laws. Even the Iranian took the high ground. Look at the oppressive laws that country has and he is praised for his stance on trump. Where is is criticism of the Iranian government?

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    Mute Shane Murphy
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    Feb 27th 2017, 9:32 AM

    Yawn

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    Mute joe o hare
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    Feb 27th 2017, 8:13 AM

    It was these talentless millionaire morons mouthing off that got trump elected.

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    Mute James Guinan
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    Feb 27th 2017, 11:01 AM

    Sorry don’t take political advice from immoral narcissistic elitists who would sooner give a standing ovation to Roman Polanski. Trump may be awful, but he is nowhere bear as awful as these creeps.

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    Mute Liam John Bradshaw
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    Feb 27th 2017, 7:39 AM

    Gees guys, was TRump not presenting the ceremony, he loves attention! Well done Ruth a great actress whom we all knew from the Love/Hate series! You’ve done great for yourself!

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    Mute John003
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    Feb 27th 2017, 7:53 AM

    Great thing about Hollywood is the political diversity all opinions tolerated and celebrated …Example to us all

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    Mute Daisy Daisy
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    Feb 27th 2017, 8:21 AM

    Oscars are for films. Reality TV hosts stick to the Emmys.

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    Mute B9xiRspG
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    Feb 27th 2017, 8:44 AM

    @Liam John Bradshaw: I thought he was up for best Comedy!

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    Mute cortisola
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    Feb 27th 2017, 12:02 PM

    @Liam John Bradshaw: Trump is the first one coming to mind when you hear about all that Oskar farse. He got his attention without showing on.

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    Mute Tony Daly
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    Feb 27th 2017, 8:44 AM

    Historically, those in the arts, including the performing arts, tend to be more flexible, liberal, enlightened and progressive.

    Trump’s forte is the exercise of privilege, the brokering of power and the manipulation of the populace by prejudice.

    Sometimes, film and related arts can have a certain amount of cant and hyprocisy but largely these arts encourage the better angels of our better nature. In contrast Trump seeks to unify by appealing to the worst common denominators, the bad and unworthy aspects of our characters.

    Making America greatagaun is just a meaningless catch phrase for greed and authoritarianism.

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    Mute Keiko
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    Feb 27th 2017, 12:27 PM

    Likes, disturbing? Puzzy generation alive and well in Ireland also it seems.

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    Mute Stephen Hynes
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    Feb 27th 2017, 9:11 AM

    Poor trump been bullied leave him alone

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    Mute Keiko
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    Feb 27th 2017, 1:25 PM

    The White Helmets are Al Nusra, a propaganda piece. Pallywood at its worst.

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    Mute john
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    Feb 27th 2017, 4:08 PM

    I’m not a trump fan at all but Jimmy’s jibes were simply not good and seem a little pathetic.

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    Mute Ebasun Cheke
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    May 18th 2017, 6:49 PM

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    Mute Emily Williams
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    Mar 3rd 2017, 3:17 PM

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