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8 Ways to Remember Something Right Now

By U.S. News & World Report

Losing your mind — or just your glasses?

Yesterday, it was where you parked the car. Today it’s the new co-worker’s name. If tomorrow you can’t remember an item on your mental grocery list, you may think you’re losing your mind. More likely? You’re human. “What I know about memory is how fallible it is,” says Neil Mulligan, a psychology professor at the University of North Carolina. Still, there are strategies to better find memories the moment you need them. Mulligan and others share eight:

1. Do the groundwork.

If you want to recall something right now, you’ll be most successful if you effectively committed it to memory in the first place, says Mulligan, who conducts basic memory research. For example, if you anticipate needing to remember that you’re supposed to buy an artichoke, imagine how the veggie will look when cooked with another item on your list. Creating interacting visuals is one research-backed way to store your thoughts so they’re primed for retrieval, Mulligan says.

2. Practice makes perfect.

Another way to stash a thought for later is to test yourself on it in the interim, Mulligan says. For example, if you want to remember that you parked on level 4B, don’t just repeat “4B, 4B, 4B” over and over. Instead, tell your travel companion to ask you where you parked every hour or so. Then, when the time comes to find it, answering that question will be old hat.

3. Be mindful.

Sure you’ll never forget a story because it’s so weird and funny? Common mistake, says Steven Smith, a professor of psychology at Texas A&M University who studies memory. “You do forget because it’s so weird and funny.” Instead of banking on a thought’s distinctiveness, be mindful when observing it, Smith says. “The more attention you pay to the thing you want to remember, the more likely it is that you’ll remember it later on.”

4. Set the scene.

Criminal eyewitnesses are often encouraged to mentally return to the incident’s place and time. The rest of us can take note, Smith says. “We associate our experiences with places where we had the experiences,” he says. Want to remember a recipe? Conjure up the sights, smells and feelings of when you first learned it. “That’s more useful than telling people to go back to wherever the event occurred,” Mulligan says.

5. Cheat.

Mulligan often gets the question: Does using Google decrease our ability to remember on our own? Fortunately, he says: “There’s very little evidence for this concern about our memory muscle withering away in the face of media that help us remember.” So if you’ve got a reliable smartphone, notepad or even spouse, use it to “offload” memories, Smith says. You’ll save yourself mental space for thoughts that Siri lacks.

6. Close your eyes.

There may be something behind that urge to close your eyes when trying to remember. A study published in January in the journal Legal and Criminological Psychology found eyewitnesses answered 23 percent more questions correctly when they closed their eyes. “[If] you close your eyes to shut out your immediate environment, that does free up some of your mental resources to possibly remember something,” Smith says.

7. Give up.

On the other hand, it’s quite possible to try too hard, Smith says. Say you’re trying to remember someone’s name you believe begins with “R” and has two syllables. If you’re wrong, “trying harder is counterproductive because it just gets you more and more stuck on the wrong thing,” Smith says. Instead, give it a rest. “When you do that, it at least allows for the possibility it will pop back into your mind,” Smith says.

8. Fess up.

Still can’t recall if it’s Jody or Julie? Time to admit it. “The best thing to do is just ask them right away,” Smith says. “Then, you’ll remember it the next time.” And take heart: Jody (or Julie) has been there too. Being honest, Smith says, is “an admission that you can’t always rely on the memory being there right when you need it.”

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8 Ways to Remember Something Right Now originally appeared on usnews.com

Don’t Settle for Student Loans to Pay for Online Education

By WTOP Staff
Online college programs are becoming a more popular choice for prospective students, with one study finding that more than 6 million students enrolled in at least one online course in fall 2015. The popularity of these courses can be attributed in part to their flexibility with working adults' schedules, students' ability to progress more quickly through online programs and, oftentimes, cheaper tuition. [See 10 low-cost online bachelor's programs for out-of-state students.]Online degrees can be beneficial to many college students, but some studies have shown online learners complete their programs at lower rates than students at traditional brick-and-mortar campuses. Individuals with student loans but no degree comprise two-thirds of defaulted borrowers. Though these numbers are not encouraging, just like for traditional programs, there are ways to reduce how much you'll need to borrow for an online program to ensure you won't become one of these statistics. Don't just settle on borrowing student loans to cover the whole cost of your program and living expenses. Instead, start thinking about how to cut costs and cover your balance in different ways, such as the following. -- Grants and scholarships: Even though you are taking an online course, you can still apply and receive grants and scholarships. But your first step should be to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly referred to as the FAFSA, which will allow you to receive a Pell Grant if your expected family contribution is low enough. The EFC criteria and award amounts are adjusted annually, but the 2017-2018 academic year awards range from $606 to $5,920, which could significantly lower the amount you borrow annually. Your next step is to apply for scholarships. You can start by checking online scholarship search engines, such as the Salt Scholarship Search, College Board's BigFuture and Peterson's. But don't forget to take advantage of local organizations and your school's financial aid office. Both may offer scholarships that you can't find with a national scholarship search. [Review these 10 sites to kick off your scholarship search.]For instance, organizations like the Elks Club, Knights of Columbus or the Rotary Club typically offer scholarships annually to local students. Just because you're going to school online doesn't mean you're ineligible. Visit your local library for scholarship listings, and ask around town. You might be surprised how many local organizations offer scholarships. While these scholarships typically aren't large, every little bit counts. Each dollar you receive in a scholarship is a dollar you don't have to borrow and pay interest on. -- Work-study: Another option for online students may be work-study awards. Not all students enrolled in online programs are eligible, but students at some schools -- including, for example, SUNY Empire State College and Liberty University -- are. Work-study awards are not given upfront like scholarships and grants. In most cases, they are an offer to earn up to the awarded amount if you secure an eligible work-study job. While there is a misconception that all work-study jobs must be on campus, students can work for off-campus, nonprofit or public employers as long as the work is in the public's interest. You may be able to work for a for-profit employer if the job is relevant to your course of study. No matter who the outside employer is, it will need to have an established agreement with your college for you to receive work-study funds. Remember, to be eligible for federal financial aid, you must be enrolled and pursuing a degree or certificate. If you're not working toward a credential, Pell Grants and work-study won't be option, but you may still be able to take advantage of private scholarships -- just be sure to read the eligibility criteria carefully. [Explore what to know about financial aid in online programs.]-- Pay as you go: One of the great benefits to enrolling online is the flexible schedule, which can allow you to complete your college coursework around your responsibilities. But prospective students often overlook using their part- or full-time job earnings as an option for paying for college. Almost 80 percent of college students in 2015 worked at least part time while attending classes, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. By budgeting and thinking strategically about your college costs, you can likely reduce your dependence on student loans by paying a portion out of pocket. Many -- but not all -- online programs are less expensive than traditional programs and often have shorter payment periods. Six, eight or 10 weeks are common course durations. Because of the frequency of payments in an online setting, you may be well-placed to pay as you go and possibly avoid borrowing altogether. Attending college online and avoiding student loans may be challenging, but if you are willing to put in the effort, you can limit the amount you need to borrow. More from U.S. News Q&A: Understanding Student Loan Discharge Eligibility Student Loan Refinancing Isn't Right for All Borrowers
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