How Good Is Your Memory?

When you learn any kind of new subject or skill, to see how much
you have improved, it’s good to see where you started from. So this
chapter is designed to provide you with a baseline showing how you
feel about your ability to remember now and how you perform on
different types of memory tests. Then, you can repeat the tests after
you finish this book and examine the changes. You should expect to
do better the second time.
These tests will give you a general idea of where you are now,
though they are not scientific tests. The first test depends on your
honest assessment of your memory abilities, and it depends on both
your own candor and how accurately you make your assessment. If
you approach the test with a similar attitude both times you take it
(now and after 30 days), you should be reasonably accurate in assessing
your own feelings and perceptions about your memory.
In the second set of tests, there is a problem with taking exactly
the same test as a before-and-after test, because anything you remember
about the first test will improve how you do on the second
one. I have tried to overcome this problem by giving you similar types
of tests to take before and after you read the book, so you can compare
your score. Using the techniques you have learned, you should
do better after 30 days.
Keeping those cautions in mind, here are the tests. I have drawn