on notetaking, notemaking and research
by owl · 26 things on Twos
- status:
- book/ [[How to Take Smart Notes. One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking]]
- be open in research
- confirmation bias harms more than helps:
- when researching aim for *any relevant info*, indiscriminately
- especially if the source opposes your main argument or viewpoint
- supporting source is fine, but addressing opposing sources makes for stronger argument
- a linear writing process, which starts from deciding on a hypothesis first, enables confirmation bias
- dictionary/ego depletion
- "ego depletion" is a temporary reduction of willpower caused by prior use of exertion of it
- willpower is like a muscle in that it can be trained, but, like a muscle, it needs recovery
- video/ How Professional Writers Take Notes on Books | Deep Questions with Cal Newport (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T79wobxay98)
- Corner-marking method:
- if there’s something relevant in the page, slash (if digital) or bend the corner if physical. — \[bracket\] the relevant paragraph. —Underline— specific sentences. What’s most appropriate to the topic you’re researching, gets a Star, on the bracketed paragraph and page ✱
- imo, This could translate using the bookmark function on most digital reading apps, paired with notes. Bookmark, highlight, notes.
- Cal sees this (the corner-marking method) as a low friction approach that allows for quick parsing and processing. He also, like many other writers, encourages marking up the book itself without fear of defacing it. That’s what the books are for.
- “We treat books too preciously.”
- You should be in constant conversation with the author as you read. Whether that’s in the margins, or external methods like notecards or notebooks, but the point is to not worry about keeping the books precious. Mark them up!
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- video/ [This Simple Method Helps You Learn More from Podcasts (and Audiobooks!)](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KICSMLL2_g)
- activate prior knowledge - before listening, write down what you know about the topic of the podcast.
- Listen in hour chunks. After the first hour, add to your notes (fill in the gaps) using what you can recall from that first hour. Free Recall exercise.
- Do further research on unclear points and fill in those gaps.
- Consider scheduling a free recall session down the line. A few weeks or a month.
- Extend - look up related podcasts-- whether on time period or subject-- and continue elaborating.
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