Bits of Brain

When on holiday in Christ Church, Oxford, I attended the course ‘Human Memory and the Brain’, tutored by professor Gillie McNeill, who did an excellent job in making the subject matter both digestible and enjoyable. I drew a whole bunch of cartoons during class – something I would be chided for in high school but which is encouraged now, fortunately!

When we memorize things, for example a telephone number, our brain can use a variety of strategies.

It may visualize the thing it wants to remembe...