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Remember that TREE?

What's tied to the branches?
Where do you put those things?
What is your cookware made of?
What happens next?

Did you come up with all those images? (If not, read them once more). It was pretty easy, wasn't it? Each image evokes the next image, which evokes the next, like a chain. Each image represents two digits of pi... now that you remember that string of five images, you know the first 10 digits of pi -- if you know the system for converting words into numbers and back.

Believe it or not, remembering 150 images (300 digits!) or more is not difficult at all if you chain them together in this fashion . . . there's a little bit of work up-front making the images and linking them together, but once that's done, you won't forget them. Further, you're not just memorizing a bunch of digits, you're memorizing a wacky fanciful tale that you invent as you go along.

Let's look at the system for changing digits into consonants... and remember, this system works for ANY numbers, not just pi.

In English, there are ten basic consonant sounds. Coincidentally, there are ten digits. We can map them as follows. (There are even mneumonics to help you remember the system!)

1 = T or D (there is one downstroke in a cursive 't')
2 = N (there are two downstrokes in a cursive 'n')
3 = M (there are three downstroke in a cursive 'm')
4 = R ('r' sounds like 'four')
5 = L (Roman numeral 50)
6 = J, Sh, Ch, Th, soft G (6 looks like a G, backwards it looks like J)
7 = K, hard G, hard C (two sevens can make a K, 7 is also hard and pointy)
8 = F, V, Ph (8 looks like a cursive 'f')
9 = P, B (9 backwards looks like a 'P', flip the 'P' and it looks a 'b')
0 = S, Z, soft C (Think of the 'Z' in 'Zero')

Work with two digits at a time, convert them to consonants, and add vowels and Ws, Hs, and Ys however you like to make a word. Let's try it with the first few digits of pi: 1415926535...

Starting with the first pair of digits, 14, we convert it to TR (or we could use DR). We could make the word TREE, or TIRE, or even something like WATER or TYRANNOSAURUS (we ignore the W, and only the first two consonants count so we can make the word a lot larger if we like).

The next two digits are 15 which equals TL. That can be TAIL or TELEPHONE or something like that.

Now we link the two images, like we did earlier, with TREE and TAIL. Think of hundreds of rat tails hanging from the branches of the tree.

Now we look at the next pair of digits, 92 which converts to PN. I use a PAN. Toss the TAILS in the PAN and the link is complete.

Continue in this fashion, next linking the PAN with SHELL (65), then SHELL with MALL (35), and so on.

Here's some words of advice and some helpful tips:

PHONETICS: The system works phonetically, according to how the consonants sound when you say the word, not how the word is spelled, so be careful with double and silent letters.

PRACTICING: Turn your name into digits. Turn your phone number into images. Practice on license plate numbers while you're driving. It may take a little work, but the system is definitely worth learning!

STRONG IMAGES: Avoid images which are not concrete, and avoid converting numbers into verbs. For example, PAIN would not be a good choice for 92, it will be tough to remember and easy to overlook. Also, use only two images per link, and resist the temptation to involve previous images. For example, after we pull the tails off of the tree, we wouldn't want to have the tree turn into a frying pan.

Make your images as ridiculous as possible. Exaggerate: imagining something really big, or having thousands of something, or making your image disgusting with be far more memorable than anything "normal". Also include yourself in the image as much as possible. Which do you think will be easier to remember: "The mall has a shop which sells vipers" or "You open the door to the mall and millions of vipers spill out of the door, crawling all over your body." If you said "The second image", you're right, and by the way, VIPER = 89, which are the next two digits of pi after the tenth.

FINAL HELP: These digit pairs were a little tricky for me to come up with images for, you might find these helpful:

00 = Seuss, think of Dr. Seuss with a hat like the Cat-in-the-Hat.
06 = Sushi, think of those lovely raw fishies.
60 = Shoes, make 'em big ones!
66 = Judge, he's got the white curly wig, of course.