Anyone on here have a really great memory?

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Medstart108

Medstart108

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I'm just wondering if there are people out there with really great memories, like one where you can go through lecture slides once and remember 70-80% of the info and go through it twice and remember it all for a week. Just want to know if they exist, and how they found med school and Step 1 and 2CK
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I don't, but know a classmate who is quite exceptional memory-wise. M1 has been a breeze so far for them.
 
are you even in med school?

of course they exist. i can read a slide show 3 times and memorize it for a week....but i rarely do only that since i want to know it for more than a week obviously lol

ive always wondered what it's like to have photographic memory
 
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Medstart108 said:
I'm just wondering if there are people out there with really great memories, like one where you can go through lecture slides once and remember 70-80% of the info and go through it twice and remember it all for a week. Just want to know if they exist, and how they found med school and Step 1 and 2CK
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I'm mid-way through M1 and I barely study, to the extent that I cram everything into 3-4 days before the test. I don't even have time to make one full pass through the material, and I don't go to lecture. It's incredibly stressful and I'm trying to change, but so far I am right at class average. I guess it's because of my good memory, but it still boggles my mind to see people putting in 5 hours a day + lecture and still getting the same marks as me.
 
docterjew said:
I'm mid-way through M1 and I barely study, to the extent that I cram everything into 3-4 days before the test. I don't even have time to make one full pass through the material, and I don't go to lecture. It's incredibly stressful and I'm trying to change, but so far I am right at class average. I guess it's because of my good memory, but it still boggles my mind to see people putting in 5 hours a day + lecture and still getting the same marks as me.
Click to expand...

I'm in the exact same boat at you. I don't have the patience to look at material weeks before the exam. I barely get to view all the lectures. So far, I have found MS1 to be boring. That's why I try to fill my time up with other stuff.
 
I've got this weird memory where I can only remember things in a particular context. Like, if you ask me "What enzyme converts ornithine and carbamoyl phosphate to citrulline?" I'd have no idea. But if I see the same thing on a multiple choice exam, or I'm told a person has elevated levels of orotic acid and nitrogen in their urine and asked what is wrong with them, I know the answer is CPSI. Through college I could usually pull Bs without studying just by going to lectures, or an A if I read the chapter, went to the lectures, and studied like crazy the three days prior to an exam. Not because I knew everything exceptionally well, but because when I saw a problem, the answer would just somehow be obvious to me when looking over possible choices. Remembering long lists and pathways has always been hard for me though, as there is often little context, rhyme, or reason to them, so there is no "obvious" answer, it's just brute force memorization, which I'm terrible at.

Curious how this will translate to medical school and board performance.
 
Mad Jack said:
I've got this weird memory where I can only remember things in a particular context. Like, if you ask me "What enzyme converts ornithine and carbamoyl phosphate to citrulline?" I'd have no idea. But if I see the same thing on a multiple choice exam, or I'm told a person has elevated levels of orotic acid and nitrogen in their urine and asked what is wrong with them, I know the answer is CPSI. Through college I could usually pull Bs without studying just by going to lectures, or an A if I read the chapter, went to the lectures, and studied like crazy the three days prior to an exam. Not because I knew everything exceptionally well, but because when I saw a problem, the answer would just somehow be obvious to me when looking over possible choices. Remembering long lists and pathways has always been hard for me though, as there is often little context, rhyme, or reason to them, so there is no "obvious" answer, it's just brute force memorization, which I'm terrible at.

Curious how this will translate to medical school and board performance.
Click to expand...
You'll most likely do well without too much trouble on the multiple choice tests, which is most of the first 2 years. If you're anatomy tests are not multiple choice you'll have to really bust you ass to make good marks
 
Mad Jack said:
I've got this weird memory where I can only remember things in a particular context. Like, if you ask me "What enzyme converts ornithine and carbamoyl phosphate to citrulline?" I'd have no idea. But if I see the same thing on a multiple choice exam, or I'm told a person has elevated levels of orotic acid and nitrogen in their urine and asked what is wrong with them, I know the answer is CPSI. Through college I could usually pull Bs without studying just by going to lectures, or an A if I read the chapter, went to the lectures, and studied like crazy the three days prior to an exam. Not because I knew everything exceptionally well, but because when I saw a problem, the answer would just somehow be obvious to me when looking over possible choices. Remembering long lists and pathways has always been hard for me though, as there is often little context, rhyme, or reason to them, so there is no "obvious" answer, it's just brute force memorization, which I'm terrible at.

Curious how this will translate to medical school and board performance.
Click to expand...
:thinking:
 
docterjew said:
I'm mid-way through M1 and I barely study, to the extent that I cram everything into 3-4 days before the test. I don't even have time to make one full pass through the material, and I don't go to lecture. It's incredibly stressful and I'm trying to change, but so far I am right at class average. I guess it's because of my good memory, but it still boggles my mind to see people putting in 5 hours a day + lecture and still getting the same marks as me.
Click to expand...

#humblebrag
 
docterjew said:
I'm mid-way through M1 and I barely study, to the extent that I cram everything into 3-4 days before the test. I don't even have time to make one full pass through the material, and I don't go to lecture. It's incredibly stressful and I'm trying to change, but so far I am right at class average. I guess it's because of my good memory, but it still boggles my mind to see people putting in 5 hours a day + lecture and still getting the same marks as me.
Click to expand...

Maybe some people just don't have your awesome, super-powered, NZT-induced memory. But it's good to know you feel better about yourself because of such.
 
chasm-e-baddoor said:
are you even in med school?

of course they exist. i can read a slide show 3 times and memorize it for a week....but i rarely do only that since i want to know it for more than a week obviously lol

ive always wondered what it's like to have photographic memory
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I'm talking about literally reading it twice and basically getting near perfect or perfect on the exam. So, someone who basically doesn't need to study and still gets top of his/her class in exams. Aka, i'm talking about near photographic memory.
 
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I'm sure every school has some of these types. A buddy of mine has slowly degraded into this pattern. At the beginning of the year he was really on top of class, even working ahead, but as his grades have been so high his work ethic has dropped. This morning we took a test and he literally had not looked at a single slide until Monday, crammed these past two days, which really is just getting through stuff ~1.5 times and got a 94.
 
Southplains said:
I'm sure every school has some of these types. A buddy of mine has slowly degraded into this pattern. At the beginning of the year he was really on top of class, even working ahead, but as his grades have been so high his work ethic has dropped. This morning we took a test and he literally had not looked at a single slide until Monday, crammed these past two days, which really is just getting through stuff ~1.5 times and got a 94.
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This won't work in cardio physiology if it's your first exposure to it and you have a hard test. I can almost guarantee. It worked for me in renal. Studied 1 day (14 hours) and was class average. This was back in grad school taking physiology with med students.
 
docterjew said:
There was nothing humble about it. The OP was asking people who have good memories to come forward and I obliged.
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Here on SDN if you discuss your reality and it's a good one...you're going to have to suffer a few bitter hateful types. Pay no mind, you're not only ahead of them in what you are good at, but in personality too. Carry on.
 
CodeRedDew said:
Far from it. It was a sarcastic reply to someone who prides themselves in being average just because they study less than another student. Seems to be typical of medical students these days anyway.
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What can I say, other people's misery kinda gets me excited. It's a big part of why I chose medicine in the first place.
 
Anastomoses said:
Here on SDN if you discuss your reality and it's a good one...you're going to have to suffer a few bitter hateful types. Pay no mind, you're not only ahead of them in what you are good at, but in personality too. Carry on.
Click to expand...

lol so I'm assuming that your reality with the guy at the bar was considered a 'good one' in your context?

And I don't necessarily see how boasting about studying a few days and getting an average score puts one ahead in regards to personality, but whatever allows you to sleep at night I guess.

I honestly have no hate towards docterjew for his believed to be awesome memory. I'm in the top 5% of my class (which I NEVER post because I hate bragging, especially to an anonymous online forum), so I have no reason what-so-ever to be bitter. What I addressed was the fact that he felt the need to comment on other students' struggles to make himself feel good. In my opinion, that puts him/her 'behind' in personality if you ask me.

I'm just sick of how medical students have this preconceived notion that their dick size is somehow equivalent to how large their achievement to hours of study ratio is.
 
My memory is ok. My genetics teacher for some reason would put 9-10 chapters worth of material on 1 test. I got an A out of that class as a sophomore.
 
I think people are more amazed on how they slacked off during a semester/block then when it came down to the wire with 4-5 days before a test they cram ridiculous amount of information and then go into the test and guess 40% of their questions and then get 2%-5% and them come on SDN and start going cray, "OMG I MUST BE SO MEMORY MACHINE."

But what they don't realize is that med school tests are made that 60-70% of the questions are normally either first order or gimme questions with asinine choices, like (these A-B, D, E are 2 word answers and C is this full sentence so its obviously the right answer).

Get a grip people, go to the Step 1 forums and see if anyone talks like this.
 
GangaMaster said:
I think people are more amazed on how they slacked off during a semester/block then when it came down to the wire with 4-5 days before a test they cram ridiculous amount of information and then go into the test and guess 40% of their questions and then get 2%-5% and them come on SDN and start going cray, "OMG I MUST BE SO MEMORY MACHINE."

But what they don't realize is that med school tests are made that 60-70% of the questions are normally either first order or gimme questions with asinine choices, like (these A-B, D, E are 2 word answers and C is this full sentence so its obviously the right answer).

Get a grip people, go to the Step 1 forums and see if anyone talks like this.
Click to expand...
So you're saying that med school test questions are generally easier than Step 1? I'm genuinely curious. My school gives us an NBME shelf along with each final and I do around average with these too. I find that some are laughably easy first order questions and others require a lot more background info and thought.
 
i have photographic memory, on my android phone .
 
CodeRedDew said:
lol so I'm assuming that your reality with the guy at the bar was considered a 'good one' in your context?

And I don't necessarily see how boasting about studying a few days and getting an average score puts one ahead in regards to personality, but whatever allows you to sleep at night I guess.

I honestly have no hate towards docterjew for his believed to be awesome memory. I'm in the top 5% of my class (which I NEVER post because I hate bragging, especially to an anonymous online forum), so I have no reason what-so-ever to be bitter. What I addressed was the fact that he felt the need to comment on other students' struggles to make himself feel good. In my opinion, that puts him/her 'behind' in personality if you ask me.

I'm just sick of how medical students have this preconceived notion that their dick size is somehow equivalent to how large their achievement to hours of study ratio is.
Click to expand...
Are you kidding? That reality at the bar was hilarious. You think I called him out so he'd fall in love with me? duh.

I'm glad you're doing well in your classes. Unlike you I don't have a problem with you saying that unless you're making it up. If someone is tall, gorgeous, brilliant and says they are...I don't really see why that brings some of you out with bats and chains. Note: I think i'm a pretty good student but when I read this OP...I realized I definitely don't qualify for the level of quick retention he's describing - I'm satisfied with the level I'm at. I'm not upset that some of these people can read through something once and pass; or read through something twice and ace the exams. Cool. It happens. And the OP gave us something to waste a little time chatting about instead of perusing pornography.

Next.
 
I think some people are. This is why the people in AOA or whatever say things like "just read BRS bro" or (even better) "just watch the lectures" (this was seriously said at a panel that AOA students put on). Their memories are so amazing that they have no idea what they do.

Asking one of these people how to study is like asking a hot buff guy how to get girls. "Just go up to them and say hi, it works every time!" Well of course that works for you, buddy.
 
Anastomoses said:
Are you kidding? That reality at the bar was hilarious. You think I called him out so he'd fall in love with me? duh.

I'm glad you're doing well in your classes. Unlike you I don't have a problem with you saying that unless you're making it up. If someone is tall, gorgeous, brilliant and says they are...I don't really see why that brings some of you out with bats and chains. Note: I think i'm a pretty good student but when I read this OP...I realized I definitely don't qualify for the level of quick retention he's describing - I'm satisfied with the level I'm at. I'm not upset that some of these people can read through something once and pass; or read through something twice and ace the exams. Cool. It happens. And the OP gave us something to waste a little time chatting about instead of perusing pornography.

Next.
Click to expand...

Very interesting.

As to the OP - I'd like to think I do but I don't think I do. One, maybe 1.5 passes through a lecture got me around class average in most classes. I didn't deal with flashcards/firecracker/firework/whatever else during pre-clinical years. Average in most of my classes MS1 and MS2 --> Average on Step 1.
 
docterjew said:
So you're saying that med school test questions are generally easier than Step 1? I'm genuinely curious. My school gives us an NBME shelf along with each final and I do around average with these too. I find that some are laughably easy first order questions and others require a lot more background info and thought.
Click to expand...

swag
 
docterjew said:
So you're saying that med school test questions are generally easier than Step 1? I'm genuinely curious. My school gives us an NBME shelf along with each final and I do around average with these too. I find that some are laughably easy first order questions and others require a lot more background info and thought.
Click to expand...

Depends on your school test questions, but the NBME shelf questions (especially from MS1 classes) won't really matter when it comes to Step 1. Like I said with my previous posts - Average MS1/MS2 grades generally means average Step 1 score. If you're OK with that, keep on keepin' on.
 
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