Spaced repetition is not about memorization

Spaced repetition isn't about memorization: this is somewhat of a clickbait title. It's more accurate to say "Spaced repetition isn't just about memorization, or even primarily about memorization". Of course spaced repetition involves memorizing things, but for me the interesting parts are about learning how my mind works, how to explain concepts better (e.g. better modeling how your reader's minds and attention work), and how to build an engaging way of learning.

I think something like Tao Analysis Flashcards can be extremely fun to consume -- way more fun than playing Braid. And understanding how that "funness" is created is more important than actually making sure people retain all of what they've learned in real analysis.

When I think of "memorization", I think of like a complacency at having accumulated a bunch of knowledge, like "look at how many facts I know about the world" kind of ethos. But for me spaced repetition is much more future-oriented, like "what else can I learn, now that I have this prosthetic?"

Some of you may have expected a cynical Hansonian model when you saw the title, and maybe there is something like that too: people use spaced repetition software with all kinds of social motives like trying to look smart, to feed some kind of tinkering urge, etc.

See also

• Spaced proof review is not about memorizing proofs