The Memory Code

The Secrets of Stonehenge, Easter Island and Other Ancient Monuments

By: Dr. Lynne Kelly

Narrated by: Louise Siverson

Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins

Publisher's summary

The discovery of a powerful memory technique used by our Neolithic ancestors in their monumental memory places - and how we can use their secrets to train our own minds.

In ancient, pre-literate cultures across the globe, tribal elders had encyclopedic memories. They could name all the animals and plants across a landscape, identify the stars in the sky, and recite the history of their people. Yet today, most of us struggle to memorize more than a short poem.

Using traditional Aboriginal Australian song lines as a starting point, Dr. Lynne Kelly has since identified the powerful memory technique used by our ancestors and indigenous people around the world. In turn, she has then discovered that this ancient memory technique is the secret purpose behind the great prehistoric monuments like Stonehenge, which have puzzled archaeologists for so long.

The henges across northern Europe, the elaborate stone houses of New Mexico, huge animal shapes in Peru, the statues of Easter Island - these all serve as the most effective memory system ever invented by humans. They allowed people in non-literate cultures to memorize the vast amounts of information they needed to survive. But how?

For the first time, Dr. Kelly unlocks the secret of these monuments and their uses as "memory places" in her fascinating book. Additionally, The Memory Code also explains how we can use this ancient mnemonic technique to train our minds in the tradition of our forbearers.

©2017 Lynne Kelly (P)2017 Audible, Inc.

Interesting, but not what I thought.

Would you try another book from Dr. Lynne Kelly and/or Louise Siverson?

I would.

How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

I imagined this book was going to discuss or teach how to use these memory stones, or memory sticks for yourself. How you could create a memory palace. It is very interesting but I was hoping for more of a guide to incorporate them in today's life, instead of knowledge of how past cultures had used them.

Do you think The Memory Code needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Yes. Because I would love to know the steps to make one for myself and use it in my everyday life. A tutorial with suggested material or guidelines is something I would be extremely interested in.

Good book, but not fantastic

First, I don't think this book is as bad as some reviews make it out to be. However, it could have been better. It starts out top notch, but it slowly goes downhill the rest of the way through the book.

I'm going to say, a few books after listening to this, I picked up, " The Extended Mind: The Power of Thinking Outside the Brain," by Annie Murphy Paul.

A lot of the holes and things I was wanting out of, "The Memory Code" are filled in by "The Extended Mind." I do think these two authors should get together. I think they could probably collaborate very well together on a project,

The bottom line is, spacial and location information can aid in forming better memories. However, if you happen to be trying to memorize things that you can't easily add spacial information to, it is less useful.

I have used "memory palace" techniques to study before and they work very well...if you have a known set of material you need to memorize. If you have a general test over a book, or a math test, it is way less useful. What do you attempt to memorize? The best you can do with math is memorize the formulas, which isn't a terrible strategy.

I do think there is a market for some educational material based on 3D gaming engines. Kind of a dungeon crawl / First person shooter setup combined with test study material. This has the possibility to make some things spacial and location based that wouldn't normally be either of those things.

I actually have some experience programming and designing study material, but I know this would take a lot of time, effort and people to pull off. Since I have never been able to find a good team of people who know how to do the things I know how to do, I'm stuck with just me, so my thoughts on this will remain just that, thoughts.

Also, I will recommend, " Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning," by Peter C. Brown. It's also a good book and the information in it is a little more useful to overall learning.

Fine

Fine enough book. The reviewers are correct that this book does not tell the reader the methods of memory.

Iit is a fine book. Read this to discover the author’s theary that prehistoric sites like StoneHenge are tools for initiates to learn and pass on their knowledge.

Use this book to learn the theory and history of the techniques then turn to Memory Craft for the methods to develop your memory.

Engaging and fascinating.

I absolutely loved this book. I have done much reading and memory methods, such as those offered by Harry lorayne and Dominic O'Brien. I'm also fascinated by ancient cultures and sacred geometry. The author really connects a lot of dots for anybody interested in the areas I have just mentioned. I did the book on audio, and I thought the narrator was exceptionally amazing. She spoke very clearly and was simply fun to listen to. I highly recommend this book for anybody interested in Higher Learning.

Excellent read

Delightful and amazingly beautiful theory on why ancient people's erected certain structures and makes so much sense. To remember.

Great Theory Bad Delivery

I am on chapter three and I feel my head in spinning. I haven’t learned much. I have learned. It just feels like the same stuff keeps coming up and up in different forms but not sure how different? Just feel like this should be grouped and more thoroughly taught. Maybe teach by one tribe at a time instead of bouncing between like 20 all over the place.....

The concept is awesome! I am totally happy to hear this idea for sure. Also upset in a sense that in the past there was these grand people who held all the wisdom and shut others out.

dry!

hard to follow, didn't hold my interest. maybe good if you are a research scientist.

Very slow and couldn’t get into this narrative.

I Couldn’t get past chapter 2. It was Not very interesting or compelling. Sounded more of subjective opinion given in an objective stance of how history was memorized and past down to future generations.

Interesting topic , uninteresting listen.

Although it is somewhat interesting it is not what I was expecting. I want to stress to anyone who thinks (like I did) that at some point in the book the author will get around to explaining how to perform this method of memorization and teach it to us, that it does not happen. I thought that the author would explain how to develop and apply the Loki method, but instead the book takes you on a very dry journey of constantly listing sites and describing items in such meticulous detail that at times it felt like I was listening to an encyclopedia being read aloud. The closest the book comes to telling you how to use the Loki method is when the author takes her dog for a walk and describes to you, every era of the earths evolution with the same amount of cataloging fervor as the rest of the book. I am happy that the author made what seems to be a great discovery for mankind. But surprisingly it did not make for a riveting listen. And NO instruction on the memory method whatsoever.