IsabelC Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 (edited) What's the best way to improve one's general knowledge? Can you achieve a substantial improvement by strategies such as memorizing facts (eg Core Knowledge, lists of Pharaoahs;)), reading an encylopedia or requiring the kids to read books on a variety of subjects a la Jessie Wise? Is it more about life experience and talking to more different people? Reading the papers / news websites? Are some people naturally more inclined to know lots of stuff? Ie, is it related to an attitude of being interested in everything and seeking out new information rather than tending to read, watch or talk about stuff you already know a lot about? How do you figure out what to bone up on if you aren't aware of stuff you don't know? Is there such a thing as too much general knowledge? Edited September 22, 2012 by Hotdrink Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tammi K Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 Are some people naturally more inclined to know lots of stuff? Ie, is it related to an attitude of being interested in everything and seeking out new information rather than tending to read, watch or talk about stuff you already know a lot about? My personal opinion is that it is related to a general desire to KNOW everything. My husband frequently asks," How do you know that?" I read it somewhere...... Ever since I was a little kid, I loved to follow rabbit trails - first in the World Book encyclopedia now on the net. I'll start at point A and never get to point B but I cover a lot of ground learning all sorts of things. I think learning is an addiction for some people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 It's probably all of the above, but I'd say mainly an attitude of wanting to know stuff. Everything is interesting if you look at it. Several years ago, my husband and I ran into friends of ours at the bookstore. I asked the husband why he had a particular book, as I thought it kind of an odd choice for him. He answered, "Because I have to know everything!" And that sounded pretty familiar to me, because I have to know everything too. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 (edited) What's the best way to improve one's general knowledge?Can you achieve a substantial improvement by strategies such as memorizing facts (eg Core Knowledge, lists of Pharaoahs;)), reading an encylopedia or requiring the kids to read books on a variety of subjects a la Jessie Wise? Depends on learning style. I do not find memorization a way to develop actual knowledge, more a collection of trivia facts. I find reading books or watching documentaries or films a lot more effective. Is it more about life experience and talking to more different people? To a small extent, maybe. It depends on what kind of knowlegde you are talking about. Many conversations are not really extensive and deep enough to transmit actual knowledge; more often, talking to people will spark an interest, and then one goes and reads up on the related things. Reading the papers / news websites? I would consider this almost a must for a person who wants to be informed about current events. Are some people naturally more inclined to know lots of stuff? Ie, is it related to an attitude of being interested in everything and seeking out new information rather than tending to read, watch or talk about stuff you already know a lot about? Yes, absolutely, a question of attitude. I have been amazed to hear people (on these boards) say that it had never occurred to them that they should know how the human body works, how the devices surrounding them work, how the universe works. To me, it is unthinkable to go through life surrounded by mystery and unexplainable phenomena, because I consider this necessary for making informed life choices. In our family, we ask a lot of questions about stuff and we go find out the answers if there is something we don't know - it simply is a habit, an attitude. How do you figure out what to bone up on if you aren't aware of stuff you don't know? No idea. How can one not know what one does not know? Don't questions come up every single day, and would one not noctice that one does not have answers? Is there such a thing as too much general knowledge? Absolutely not. Edited September 22, 2012 by regentrude Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pawz4me Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 Some people are intellectually curious. Some people are not. And I think it's a spectrum. I have an almost burning need to know things. I like knowing things and being informed. My DH, OTOH, happily floats through life taking in as little new information as possible. It doesn't mean he's not smart (he is, and earns a very good living for us in a professional position). But he's not the kind who's going to say out of the blue during dinner "I wonder how so-and-so works? Be right back, I'm going to go Google." And I do that all the time. I do believe the very best way to increase knowledge is to read a wide variety of things, including the opinions of others about various subjects. And perhaps watching good quality documentaries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsabelC Posted September 22, 2012 Author Share Posted September 22, 2012 No idea. How can one not know what one does not know? Don't questions come up every single day, and would one not noctice that one does not have answers? Sometimes this happens, but there are lots of things that you might never pick up on. For instance, books referencing other books. If a book said, say, "It is a truth universally acknowledged that..." then my Jane Austen radar would be alerted to notice other similar allusions. But if the reference is to something I haven't read, I'm going to miss a whole heap of stuff and never realize. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OrganicAnn Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 I think it starts with a general knowledge of history and literature. The next thing is current events and science. Then you just keep adding to it. I remember knowledge explained as a folder in your brain that you keep adding information to. When it gets big, you begin dividng it into subfolder. Then if a subfolder becomes full of knowledge it gets divided. This was just a metaphor for our brains, but it is useful. My folder for sports is very slim, but for literature is thick and lots of subfolders and connections. I think someone who wants to improve their general knowledge should figure out what they are lacking in and then work on it from general to more specific. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mergath Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 I think you have to accumulate knowledge from a variety of sources, or you end up getting burned out. Straight memorization has never worked all that well for me, but I know it does for some. As far as who is more inclined to learn, I think that having a good memory is part of it. If you don't have to work as hard to retain the information you take in, it's going to be a more enjoyable experience for you, and you're going to want to do it more. If you have to struggle to remember every new fact, you're going to give up much sooner. I don't really go out of my way to figure out what to learn- it just sort of happens. I might read about a country I don't know much about in The Economist, and then go online to find out some general info about it, and then maybe check out a book on it from the library. And that book might have some info about a craft or something I've never heard of, so I have to look up more info about that... and so on. It's a vicious cycle. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jenangelcat Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 I have an almost burning need to know things. :iagree: I'm always reading something. When I was a teenager I'd go to the library every week and check out a dozen+ books on various subjects, everything from Asimov's science texts to childbirth books. I hate to uniformed about anything. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Karen in CO Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 I think there are three related keys to a curious mind - reading, doing, experiencing. I read widely and deeply. I try to alternate fiction and non-fiction. For fiction I try to read just as many "old" books as I do "new" ones. For my non-fiction reading, I try to read just as much history/biography as I do science/technology. The mix keeps me from only focusing on things I already know and like. Along with that we talk and talk around here. We also try to learn to do new things - skills, sports, hobbies. I think that being able to move from knowing things to doing things is it important and provides a lot of confidence. The third key is travel. It is the seeing/doing new things. Even if it is as small as finding a new trail in the mountains or exploring a nearby city or going to a concert - new experiences stimulate your brain too. I don't think this is the path to win Jeopardy, but it is the way that I keep curious and learning. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deacongirl Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 Being curious about the world. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jenny in Florida Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 My personal opinion is that it is related to a general desire to KNOW everything. My husband frequently asks," How do you know that?" I read it somewhere...... Exactly. I think people who know lots of things know them because they are interested in their world. Honestly, the majority of the things I know are bits of information I gleaned from reading and following up on ideas that interested me. And I don't mean scholarly reading, but just plain novels and other books I read for fun. When I was a kid, I read A Proud Taste for Scarlet and Miniver, and I fell in love with the story of Eleanor of Aquataine. So, I went to the library (no internet yet) and hit the card catalogue and pulled out every book I could find that mentioned her. And in the process, I learned not only about Eleanor's life, but about her place and time. And then I went on to the next area of interest and did the same thing. My daughter likes to tel people that everything she knows came from musical theatre. When she does a show, she researches the background. When she sees a musical number on the Tony Awards and wants to know more, she researches the show, its background, its historical context, the names and resumes of every performer . . . Around here, my husband calls it "total immersion learning." When I get interested in something, I lose myself in it. I read every book, see every movie, etc. Our kids have the names they do in large part because my husband and I were going through a shared Victorian phase when they were born. It's just life for us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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