Loci Expansion within Palaces

General Memory Chat
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So I would like to start by providing context.

I have been memorizing for months now and have been successful with imagery. When I was newer to mnemonics, I heard that it was possible to use shapes at stations within a palace in order to extend the number of loci available. I was immediately thrilled by the idea and started using cubes. I would imagine images at each of the 8 corners of a cube in order. I still have the imagery from these early cubes that I reviewed, a lot of this was months ago before I had a proper review schedule and has degraded significantly. However, at some point I switched away from cubes and back to using loci normally.

One of the shapes I had used previously alongside the cube was a d8 (anyone who doesn’t understand, this is dnd terminology for an 8 sided die). I used its six corners and the imagery stuck well; I still have the associated meanings of everything in that station. Then, more recently, I started to play around with shapes again.

Recently I have been using d8s again. What I have found is strange. The imagery fades particularly quickly (I mean like after a single hour, not a few days) and I am left with maybe the first image in a sequence of maybe 5-6, and I am also left with the meaning memorized. However, there is a caveat. I have to drill through the information more times (than a regular loci) in order to be left with its meaning at the corners of the d8. The images don’t stick particularly well to the shape on the first run, but once I look at whatever it is I’m encoding, I will remember my images. So the meanings do eventually stick and maybe one of the images, but it takes longer than simply using a loci by itself.

My question is this: Is there a way to implement some kind of extender for loci to get more out of them that is universally applicable to all loci and that works in practice instead of being a nice theory? This shape system does work, but it takes more effort than regular loci, and for the upcoming projects I have in mind, I will need thousands of loci that I just don’t have access to even with every single childhood building I can remember.

Sincerely,
Zellion

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Hi, read my article. It describes the basis of mnemonics for long-term, not sports memorisation (Simonides/Cicero/Loki are the same).

Connections are erased I’ll assume because:

  1. Poorly distinguishable cube corners, worth checking.
  2. No consolidation in the form of representation to automaticity (4-7 days)
  3. If something is forgotten in an hour, it means you need to strengthen the connection or create a new one. If it remains, then access to it is weakened. If you don’t remember it at all, you need to make a new one - it has disintegrated.
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Ah the famous childhood houses recommendation… I’m going to say something quite obvious but… Towns didn’t stop to have libraries and parks and all sorts of amenities, and you didn’t stop having friends just because you grew up. :wink:

I have a 1000 loci memory palace in the village I grew up in (for my 000-999 PAO). And I could’ve fitted more. BUT, it was only possible because I went back there to walk around in person and choose loci/stations on site. No matter how strong/emotional your memories are, I find nothing beats being there in person, so concentrate on places you can actually go to now. You easily get ten times more stations that way (and this is not an exaggeration).

My suggestion would be to take a map and choose places you can go to. Then make a network of 100-stations memory palaces: 100 in a park, then 100 in the street after this, then 100 in the museum, …
It’s a doable number and if you go to any town of a respectable size you’ll find plenty of places.

If you want to expand your memory palaces to get more stations you may find other ideas by searching this forum with “expand memory palace” and “nested memory palace”.

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Thank you both for the suggestions. I have noticed that physically being in a location works wonders for using it as a palace. For example, I will commonly use the joints of my hands to store reminders for myself, which works when I can see my hands, but if I were to try to do that purely based on visualization I wouldn’t be able to.

As for using objects inside of objects, I can’t do this beyond a single layer. However I am playing around with this to see what remains distinct enough for imagery to stick to. So far I can have a chair with 8 distinct locations on it, and at each location I would put a simple item that I can use as two loci. For example a tooth brush (using the head of it as one loci and the base as another) and a tube of hair gel (using the cap as a loci and the base as another) and I simply go back and forth on the stations of the chair alternating which of the two objects I place there. Far from the thousands of loci I will need, but this is a start that I’ve found that to be a pretty effective so far, so I do appreciate the suggestions.

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In my opinion, the problem with the cube or d8 is that there’s really nothing to distinguish between different ones. They’re all the same so you can’t really attach an image to each one of them.

The key to getting more spaces in a single building or room is to zoom in and then out again. You’re sort of doing this with your toothbrush and hair gel example. Find smaller things that you can attach images to, then zoom in on them.

Let’s say your building has a bedroom. You might have a dresser, a bed, a desk, a chair, and a window. So it seems like you only have spots for about a dozen loci. But imagine yourself walking over to the dresser. Maybe there’s a snow globe sitting in the left side. Imagine yourself shrinking down to a third of the size of the snow globe. Now look at it. Maybe there’s a boy with a sled. He’s by a pine tree, his sister is there holding a cup of hot chocolate. There’s a little house with a wreath on the door. You see these things as life size because you’re small. And you have 6 or 7 loci.

Zoom back out. In the middle to the dresser there’s a couple of toy cars. Zoom in. Maybe there’s a race car, a fire truck, and an ambulance. They’re all life size to you. You get another 10 or so loci there.

Zoom back out. On the right there is a picture frame. Zoom in. The picture is you and your parents at the zoo. Put a couple of loci around your father and a couple of more around your mother. Behind them is the polar bear exhibit. Add some to the polar bear, the water, etc.

Zoom back out. Open the dresser drawer. What was in your top drawer? Maybe jeans. Add a couple loci there. Next drawer, underwear. Maybe as a kid you had character underwear. Captain America underwear is one locus. Hulk underwear is another one. Next drawer tee shirts. Same thing.

Now you’ve taken a dresser that you could maybe put 4 loci on and turned it into 30 or more. Repeat with the bed. Zoom in on the pillows, the stuffed animals, the comforter. Pull back the blanket, pull back the sheets.

The desk has a pen holder, a laptop, mouse pad, writing pad, fidget spinner, lamp, etc. all of these can be zoomed in on for multiple loci.

Just make sure not to duplicate. Like you can’t have the dresser drawers be empty. If you have 5 dresser drawers sometime it seems like you should just have them empty and put one thing in each corner for 20 loci. But if there’s nothing to distinguish them, the images will overrun each other. I think that’s what happened to you with your shapes. Things need to be uniquely pictured.

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