Digital Journal Entry

by Ryan Zurrin



Understanding on A Deeper Level

What factors play a role in retaining the information we study


Understanding on A Deeper Level

Just some ideas to consider

I am realizing that I am one of them people that really like to understand things. I like to know why things work the way they work. What is underneath that outer shell, what pieces are responsible for making it move or dance or talk or walk, whatever function. Ever since I was a kid, I can remember taking apart everything. If it had a screw in it, I was stealing my Dads screwdriver and hiding away in some corner taking whatever it was apart. Flashlights, toy cars, radios, Atari’s, you name it and I was taking it apart, and if it didn’t have screws for access, I would always make my own access one way or another. Which ultimately led to me not getting expensive toys or presents and gave me a bad reputation as a destructive child, when really I was just super curious about things and I still am. I always keep fresh in my mind a saying my dad would tell me often when I was getting into trouble, he would say “curiosity killed the cat, so be careful.”

I am telling you all this because I think it is super relevant to what is going on in my life now and I can apply this to my current studies in the computer sciences.Though I was always a curious person, I never did good in school and seldom remember anything that learned in those years. I just wanted to bring to attention that even with the drive to learn and the want and hunger for information, a true deeper understanding of these things really takes so much more then jsut ripping it apart to see the insides work. To really learn something takes much much more, yes. It takes a stratetgy to approach learning and a understanding of how we learn in the first place to utilize our full potential. I have found especially this to be the case when taking on certain sub-topics in the computer sciences and the math that is involves especially takes a lot of time and attention and a sure strategy. But really this idea of deep learning doesn’t just apply to one field or study over another but is really more a way we should want to live our lives by, or a standard for learning we can come to know well if we are doing things right. The more classes and the more education you take on the more tools and techniques you begin to assimilate towards better maintaining a healthy balance of applied principles and a true understanding behind the operation of these principles or their actions thereof.

As well, “Time” is a very important topic to bring up when the discussing matters of deep knowledge or understanding (they are used interchangeably within this journal entry). The amount of deep knowledge anyone can obtain is a direct relationship to the amount of time and energy that has been dedicated to a thing. One can not read a few chapters on a topic and watch a couple YouTube videos then call themselves experts. To become an expert is to understand on a deeper level. And to understand on a deeper level is to really put in the time, and to put in the time does not necessarily equate to mastery or deep understanding on any topic unfortunately.

There are underlying factors that really come into play when trying to learn about a topic, especially anything relating to the natural sciences or things dealing with complex numbers or systems in general. Over the years I have felt a direct effect on the amount of focus I am able to maintain on a subject fluctuate while eating certain foods at certain times. When I decided to look into this topic to see if indeed the food we ate had any real relationship to our ability to learn or our being able to understand something deeply, and I was indeed reinforced in my own personal experiences that such was indeed occurring. Here is a link to a really good article written about what foods help in maintaining healthier learning practices:
Healthy Nest Nutrition
DISCLAIMER: The information provided on this website is for educational purposes. Nutrition Therapy is not intended as a diagnosis, treatment, prescription or cure for any disease, and is not intended as a substitute for regular medical care. Nutrition Therapy provides nutritional evaluation followed by personalized recommendations for foods, nutrients and lifestyle improvements to enhance health.

As well as food in helping to learn deeply there are some other things to consider, like healthy time management and not procrastinating. I know I am the king of waiting until the last minute possible to complete something and what this does is make me rushed in finishing something so instead of really taking the time and making sure I am putting out material that is fully been reviewed and checked for accuracy I let little things by that in my mind don’t seem important but to the other person either reading or demoing a product or design may say, hmm, why is that menu behave like that when it should probably do this instead and it would work that much better and it seems like common sense as well, so shy didn’t I do it like that to start? Because I was rushing in the last minutes trying to pull of something that could have been worked out so much better if I just planned it out more efficiently and used time more wisely.

What it boils down to is there is no one silver bullet to help you better understand any particular topic deeply. It is more a combination or several different factors that when properly put into practice make for a more optimized learning experience. I will leave a short video embedded below that explains a technique or two we can start putting into practice immediately to start getting that deeper understanding we all crave so much.

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