The Abbey Bureau of Useful Knowledge · Est. 2005

Input ModeObservatory

Does an idea lodge more firmly in your mind when you see it or hear it? Put Jon’s hunch through a small, handsome experiment.

A painted brass and walnut memory-testing apparatus with a gramophone and twin study stations
How it works
The proposition

One mind.
Two doors.

Jon once wrote that audio and video “sink into my head better than reading.” This observatory gives you one short passage to read and another to hear, then asks the same kind of recall questions after each.

The order is randomized to reduce the unfair advantage of always doing one mode first. It is a playful personal trial, not neuroscience in a waistcoat.

Admission ledger

Prepare your attention

You’ll complete two trials of about ninety seconds. Use headphones if you can, don’t take notes, and answer from memory. The observatory keeps everything in this browser only.

This little chamber was inspired by Jon’s 33 Christian Classics - MP3 Audio Books (free), and his knack for noticing how his own mind actually learns.