I Before E (except After C): Old-school Ways To Stuff 1f196g

The true art of memory is the art of attention.

SAMUEL JOHNSON

Revised paperback edition first published in 2011

First published in Great Britain in 2007 by Michael O’Mara Books Limited 9 Lion Yard, Tremadoc Road London SW4 7NQ

Copyright © Michael O’Mara Books Limited 2007, 2011

Illustrations © Louise Morgan 2007, 2011 for www.artmarketillustration.com

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, without the prior permission in writing of the publisher, nor be otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978-1-84317-658-9 eISBN 978-1-84317-431-8

www.mombooks.com

Extra illustration here © David Woodroffe

Revised by K DESIGN

Contents

Introduction

1. The English Language

2. To Spell or Not to Spell

3. Think of a Number

4. Geographically Speaking

5. Animal, Vegetable, Mineral

6. Time and the Calendar

7. The Sky at Night and by Day

8. The World of Science

9. Britain: A Brief History

10. World History

11. Musical Interlude

12. Foreign Tongues

13. Religious Matters

14. The Human Body

15. Life-Saving Tips

16. The World of Work

17. A Miscellany of Mnemonics

Select Bibliography

Introduction

‘Thirty days hath September, April, June and November . . .’ How many times, perhaps anxiously awaiting payday, have you muttered this saying to yourself? Or racked your brains for the name of the king who succeeded Henry II, in order to squash that bumptious, know-all guest at a dinner party? No doubt about it, memory’s a funny business. But in a happier and perhaps less hectic age, many useful, if not invaluable facts were taught by the use of mnemonics, simple memory aids which, once learned, fixed the information in the brain for ever. This book takes a nostalgic look back at the many quirky and amusing ways you were taught to ‘stuff’ at school or university, and which can still be used to solve a problem or cap an argument. Packed with clever verses, engaging acronyms, curious – and sometimes hilarious – sayings, I Before E (Except After C) includes all the mnemonics you could ever need (and some you probably won’t). From simple rhymes about spelling – ‘S is the verb and C is the noun,/That’s the rule that runs the town’ will sort out ‘practise/practice’, ‘license/licence’, and so on for you – to useful phrases for recalling important facts from history – ‘divorced, beheaded, died,/divorced, beheaded, survived’ gives, in chronological order, the fates of Henry VIII’s six wives – life-saving acronyms such as ‘ABC’ (Airway, Breathing, Circulation), or just useful bits of general knowledge – ‘There’s a little RED PORT LEFT in the bottle’ tells you the colour, name and position of navigation lights on a ship or aircraft – I Before E is an amusing collection of the many ingenious mind tricks devised to help us learn and understand.

1

The English Language

The Alphabet

Before we could read the complete works of Shakespeare, as children we first had to learn the alphabet. Some of us will have recited the letters to the tune of ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’, a method made famous by Big Bird from the TV programme Sesame Street. The song was first copyrighted in 1835 by Charles Bradlee, a Boston music publisher, who called it: ‘The ABC, a German air with variations for the flute with an easy accompaniment for the pianoforte.’

a–b–c–d–e–f–g, h–i–j–k–l–m–n–o–p, q–r–s–t–u–v, w–x–y and z. Now I know my A, B, Cs, next time won’t you sing with me?

Because the letters l–m–n–o–p have to be sung twice as fast as the rest of the letters in the rhyme, some children have mistakenly assumed that ‘elemenopee’ is a word. For the rhyme to work with the Z, you have to use the American pronunciation of ‘zee’ rather than ‘zed’. If you didn’t sing the ABC to the tune of ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’ then you might have used the tune of ‘Baa, Baa, Black Sheep’ instead, which has a very similar rhythm and melody.

The following ABC memory rhyme entitled ‘The Tragical Death of A, Apple Pie, Who Was Cut in Pieces, and Eaten By Twenty-Six Gentlemen, With Whom All Little People Ought to be Very Well Acquainted’, was a popular way of teaching the alphabet to youngsters in the nineteenth century, though it dates back at least as far as the reign of Charles II (1660–85).

A was an apple pie B bit it, C cut it, D dealt it, E eats it, F fought for it, G got it, H had it, I inspected it, J jumped for it, K kept it, L longed for it, M mourned for it, N nodded at it, O opened it, P peeped in it,

Q quartered it, R ran for it, S stole it, T took it, U upset it, V viewed it, W wanted it, X, Y and Z all wished for and had a piece in hand.

The Five Vowels

The English alphabet has five soft vowels: A E I O U. This sequence of letters generally tends to roll off the tongue quite naturally, but for anyone who has trouble ing the order of vowels, here are a couple of useful phrases:

Ann’s Egg Is On Us Anthony’s Ego Is Over Used

Parts of Speech

After learning the alphabet, the next step is to come up with coherent sentences. The rhyme below categorizes each of the parts of speech, giving a clear example of the different type of word. It dates back to 1855 and was written by David B. Tower and Benjamin F. Tweed:

Three little words you often see Are articles: a, an and the.

A noun’s the name of any thing, As: school or garden, toy or swing.

Adjectives tell the kind of noun, As: great, small, pretty, white or brown.

Verbs tell of something being done: To read, write, count, sing, jump or run.

How things are done, the adverbs tell, As: slowly, quickly, badly, well.

Conjunctions the words together, As: men and women, wind or weather.

The preposition stands before A noun as: in or through a door.

The interjection shows surprise As: ‘Oh, how pretty!’ or ‘Ah! How wise!’

The whole are called the parts of speech, Which reading, writing, speaking teach.

A different rhyme called ‘The Parts of Speech’ is similarly pithy, and serves as another useful reminder of the different components of the English language. The origin of these verses is unknown.

Every name is called a noun, As field and fountain, street and town.

In place of noun the pronoun stands, As he and she can clap their hands.

The adjective describes a thing, As magic wand and bridal ring.

The verb means action, something done – To read, to write, to jump, to run.

How things are done, the adverbs tell, As quickly, slowly, badly, well.

The preposition shows relation, As in the street, or at the station.

Conjunctions , in many ways, Sentences, words, or phrase and phrase.

The interjection cries out, ‘Hark! I need an exclamation mark!’

Through poetry, we learn how each Of these make up the Parts of Speech.

What’s a Preposition?

After the alphabet and parts of speech come more technicalities. Any word that fits in the space of this sentence is a preposition: The squirrel ran __ the tree. For example, over, under, after, around, through, up, on, to, from, by, etc. Other prepositions include: in, at, for, between, among, of.

What’s a Conjunction?

Conjunctions are words used to two independent clauses. Most of us are careless with punctuation, especially now when we often use shortcuts in emails and text messages. But this FAN BOYS mnemonic helps if you want to the co-ordinating conjunctions, of which the most important are ‘and’, ‘or’ and ‘but’:

FAN BOYS

For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yet, So

Rules of Punctuation

Cecil Hartley’s poem from Principles of Punctuation (1818) reveals the oldfashioned way that people were advised how to interpret punctuation when reading sentences out loud.

The stops point out, with truth, the time of pause A sentence doth require at ev’ry clause. At ev’ry comma, stop while one you count; At semicolon, two is the amount; A colon doth require the time of three; The period four, as learned men agree.

Though it’s not a verse that most grammarians would encourage these days, it does give an idea of the difference between each type of punctuation mark.

A Verse on Commas

A cat has claws at the ends of its paws. A comma’s a pause at the end of a clause.

On Colons

H. W. Fowler conjures up a useful visual image of the job done by the colon, which he says ‘delivers the goods that have been invoiced in the preceding words’.

A Verse on the Exclamation Mark

The following seventeenth-century rhyme appeared in Treatise of Stops, Points, or Pauses, and of Notes which are used in Writing and Print (1680):

This stop denotes our Suddain iration, Of what we Read, or Write, or giv Relation, And is always cal’d an Exclamation.

The art of punctuation is of infinite consequence in writing; as it contributes to the perspicuity, and consequently to the beauty of every composition.

JOSEPH ROBERTSON

Writing Stories

And when you put all these elements together to write your first novel, don’t forget the main elements of storytelling:

Viewpoint Mood Plot Characters Theme Setting

If the VMPCTS acronym doesn’t trip easily off the tongue, this phrase should help to keep it firmly in mind:

Very Many Pupils Come To School

Learning Lines

How do actors memorize scripts? Learning lines by repetition is the most obvious way, but many actors also refer to the beat of the script, that is, the rhythm of the words, which they literally tune into. Some plays are easier to learn than others. Shakespeare’s texts are highly memorable because they are fun and fruity; full of puns (often extremely bawdy ones), rhymes and alliterations:

Whereat, with blade, with bloody blameful blade, He bravely breach’d his boiling bloody breast.

Another mnemonic secret of the English poetic tradition is the rhythm of the iambic pentameter. An iamb is a beat with one soft syllable and one strong syllable, and a series of five iambs forms the heartbeat of English poetry: its familiarity makes it easy to , especially in the works of Shakespeare.

From Hamlet:

To be / or not / to be / that is / the question.

From the Sonnets:

Shall I / compare / thee to / a sum/mer’s day?

Thou art / more love/ly and / more tem/perate: Rough winds / do shake / the dar/ling buds / of May, And sum/mer’s lease / hath all / too short / a date.

Setting a text to a well-known tune and rhythm is a useful method of memorizing the words. Why not try singing Homer’s Odyssey, Coleridge’s ‘The Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ or one of Shakespeare’s sonnets to the tune of your favourite nursery rhyme or pop song? You can the words using a combination of rhymes, rhythms and repetition.

2

To Spell or Not to Spell

Everyone has a different level of ability when it comes to spelling. Some of us are lucky enough to be able to spell ‘supercalifragilisticexpialidocious’ without a second thought, while others are stumped by the simplest word. For those who fall into the latter category, perhaps they weren’t taught the right sort of spelling mnemonics . . .

I Before E (Except After C)

This phrase is drummed into children at primary school and it works in the sentence: ‘Receive a Piece of Pie.’ But all rules invariably have exceptions, just to make life difficult:

i before e, except after c or when sounded like a as in neighbour and weigh

A similar version ends with the line: ‘as in weigh, neigh or sleigh’. Numerous exceptions to the rule include the words neither, height, leisure and weird.

A rhyme with an extended rule used more commonly in British schools clarifies things a little further:

When the sound is ee

It’s i before e except after c

However, even the extended rule has a number of exceptions: words such as caffeine, protein and seize are e before i despite having a long ee sound. Also, the plurals of –cy words end with –cies, which is another exception to the i before e rule, as are science-related words. Hence, yet another addendum has had to be applied to the original saying:

i before e, except after c or when sounded like a as in neighbour and weigh; drop this rule when -c sounds as -sh

Thus words such as ancient, efficient and species become covered by the additional rule.

The Vagaries of English Spelling

The English language is full of complexities and contradictions, which can make the spelling and pronunciation of certain words quite difficult to predict. Here is an anonymous poem that cleverly highlights a number of problem words that all learners of English, young and old, should watch out for in particular.

I take it you already know Of tough and bough and cough and dough? Others may stumble, but not you, On hiccough, thorough, lough and through? Well done! And now you wish, perhaps, To learn of less familiar traps? Beware of heard, a dreadful word That looks like beard and sounds like bird, And dead: it’s said like bed, not bead – For goodness’ sake, don’t call it deed ! Watch out for meat and great and threat (They rhyme with suite and straight and debt). A moth is not a moth in mother, Nor both in bother, broth in brother,

And here is not a match for there, Nor dear and fear for bear and pear. And then there’s dose and rose and lose – Just look them up – and goose and choose, And cork and work, and card and ward, And font and front, and word and sword, And do and go, and thwart and cart – Come, come, I’ve hardly made a start! A dreadful language? Man alive! I’d mastered it when I was five!

License or Licence? Practise or Practice?

A handy way to when to use an ‘s’ and when to use a ‘c’ is illustrated perfectly in this pithy rhyme:

S is the verb and C is the noun, That’s the rule that runs the town.

The DVLA is licensed to issue driving licences.

A doctor practises medicine at his practice.

Affect or Effect?

The RAVEN mnemonic is useful when working out whether to use ‘affect’ or ‘effect’ in a sentence:

: Affect, Verb; Effect, Noun

The woman was affected by the effect of the film.

Reading with care will secure everybody from false spelling; for books are always well spelled.

PHILIP STANHOPE, 4TH EARL OF CHESTERFIELD

Spelling Aids: A Useful Selection

The spellings of some words appear to have no logic whatsoever, and the only way not to look like a dunce is to recite a well-worn mnemonic phrase to help you to , or even to invent one of your own.

ACCELERATOR

A Cruel Creature – imagine words and pictures to remind you to write two Cs.

ACCESSIBLE

-able or -ible? Say out loud, ‘I am always accessible.’

ACCIDENTALLY

Two Cs and an ally. Make up a story: two cats accidentally scratched your friend and ally.

ACCOMMODATION

Again two Cs and two Ms, and don’t forget that second O after the second M.

Comfortable Chairs, Or Modern Mats, Or . . . ?

ADDRESS

Directly Delivered letters are Safe and Sound.

AEROPLANE

All Engines Running Okay.

ALMOND

ALmonds are ovALs.

ARGUMENT

A Rude Girl Undresses – My Eyes Need Taping.

Another way to check your spelling is to find short words within. Think of chewing GUM when you chew over an arGUMent.

ARITHMETIC

A Rat In The House May Eat The Ice Cream.

ASSASSINATION

This word is made up of four short words:

ASS ASS I NATION

ASTHMA

The cause of AsthmA – Sensitivity To Household Mites.

AUTUMN

There’s an N at the end of Autumn. Think of N standing for November, when it’s the end of Autumn and beginning of winter.

BARE or BEAR

Imagine scenarios relating to the two words.

It’s bathtime with a BAR of soap on your BARE skin.

A BEAR is scary and fills you with FEAR.

BEAUTIFUL

Big Elephants Are Usually BEAUtiful.

BECAUSE

Big Elephants Can Always Understand Small Elephants.

Big Elephants Can’t Always Use Small Exits.

BELIEVE

This word obeys the i before e rule, and there’s also a perfect word association within.

Do you beLIEve a LIE?

BISCUIT

Some believe this word is derived from two French words – bis cuit meaning ‘twice cooked’. The easy way to how to spell it is with this phrase:

BIScuits are Crumbled Up Into Tiny pieces.

BROCCOLI

We know it’s good for us, but it’s tricky to spell. that broccoli would never Cause COLIc.

CAPITAL or CAPITOL

The capitAl city of Greece is Athens. PAris is the capitAl of .

Most capitOl buildings have dOmes. There’s a capitOl in WashingtOn.

CHAOS

Cyclones, Hurricanes And Other Storms create chaos.

CHARACTER CHARlie’s ACT is ERotic.

COMMITTEE

: Many Meetings Take Time – Everyone’s Exhausted!

CONSCIENCE

It’s not pronounced how it’s spelled. It’s SCIENCE with CON at the beginning.

CORRESPONDENCE

CORRect your CORResponDENce in the DEN.

DEFINITELY

Find the word FINITE within.

DELIBERATE

It was a deLIBERATE plan to LIBERATE the hostages.

DESPERATE

Imagine Desperate DESPERADOS!

DESERT (as in Sahara) or DESSERT (as in crème brûlée)

that the sweet one has two SugarS or that the double ‘s’ in ‘dessert’ stands for ‘Sweet Stuff’.

DIARRHOEA

If you need to know how to spell this – here goes!

Dash In A Real Rush, Hurry Or Else Accident!

DOUBT

Sometimes it’s only natural to Be in doubt.

DRAUGHT

Think of An Unpleasant Gale Howling Through the draughty corridors.

ECCENTRIC

The word literally means ‘off centre’, so imagine an eccentric Crazy Cat running round in circles.

ECZEMA

It’s pronounced with an X, but there’s no X factor with this problem: Even Clean ZEalots MAy get eczema.

EMBARRASS

Do you go Really Red And Smile Shyly when embarrassed?

EXAGGERATE

If he’s brAGGing then he’s surely exaggerating.

FASCINATE

Are you faSCInated by SCIence?

FORTY

Life begins when you can’t spell your age. FORget the ‘u’ in four when you spell FORty.

FRIEND

FRIEs are for sharing with your friend.

FULFIL

It’s ‘full’ and ‘fill’, but with one L in each, not two.

GEOGRAPHY

General Eisenhower’s Oldest Girl Rode A Pony Home Yesterday.

GRAMMAR

There’s no ‘e’ in grammar, so think of GrandMA, who writes and speaks with perfect grammar.

HANDKERCHIEF

It’s shortened to ‘hanky’, but the long form has a D. Think of holding a handkerchief in your HAND.

HAEMORRHAGE

Help! Accident, EMergency – Often Ruins Routine Hospital Appointment.

HEARD OR HERD

If you heard something you used your EAR. There are lots of animals in a herd, so there can’t be A single one on its own in this word.

HUMOROUS

The root is humour, but think of the humorous way Americans spell HUMOR.

INDISPENSABLE

They say that no one is indispensable, but only the most ABLE are indispensABLE.

INTERRUPT

It’s a fact that it’s Really Rude to interrupt.

JEWELLERY

It’s easy to forget the third E, but always a JewELLER makes JewELLERy.

Just to confuse, Americans use jewelry and jeweler, which are spelled as they sound, but break the above rule.

JODHPURS

These are tight-fitting tros worn when horse-riding, named after the city in India. The silent H between the D and the P stands for Horse.

LIAISON

Dangerous – and misspelled – if you don’t use your two eyes = 2 Is.

MANOEUVRE

Sounds like hard work – it is MAN, short for manual, and OEUVRE, a French word often meaning a work by a composer, particularly opera.

MEMENTO

Commonly misspelled as ‘momento’. A souvenir from your holiday is a memento and it represents happy MEMories.

MILLENNIUM

A thousand years – MILLE – that’s more than Ninety-Nine years.

MINIATURE

It means tiny and there are tiny words in the middle – I and A.

MISSISSIPPI

The great river – a momentous word.

Mrs M, Mrs I, Mrs S S I, Mrs S S I, Mrs P P I – Mississippi.

MISSPELL

The subject of this section of the book. Don’t miSS that extra ‘s’ in miSSpell.

NECESSARY

Not Every Cat Eats Sardines – Some Are Really Yummy.

Never Eat Crisps; Eat Salad Sandwiches And Remain Young.

Or think of a shirt – it is necessary for a shirt to have one Collar and two Sleeves. Or think of a coffee – one Cream and two Sugars.

OCCASION

If it’s a special one, you’d travel over two seas (Cs).

OCEAN

Only Cats’ Eyes Are Narrow.

PARALLEL

There are three Ls in parallel, but think of the middle ones acting as parallel lines next to each other.

PARLIAMENT

Think I AM parliament.

PEOPLE

People Eat Other People’s Leftovers Eagerly.

PNEUMONIA

People Never Expect Us to go down with PNEUmonia.

POSSESSION

Very sweet – four Sugars.

POTASSIUM

One Tea and two Sugars

PRINCIPAL or PRINCIPLE

A princiPAL can be your PAL, and a principLE you believe is a ruLE.

Adjective or noun? If it’s an adjective it’s princiPAL.

RHYTHM

Rhythm Helps You To Hear Music.

Rhythm Helps Your Two Hips Move.

RECOMMEND

No need for confusion with this word. It’s simply ‘commend’ with RE at the beginning.

RIDICULOUS This word is derived from RIDICULE. this and you’ll never put an E in it.

SEPARATE

It’s so common to see this word spelled ‘seperate’ instead of ‘separate’. Just think of your old Father or PA in his den, as a sePArate kind of person.

STATIONERY or STATIONARY

A or E? Every office junior gets the spelling of this word wrong at least once in their life. You only have to one, and by process of elimination the other must be right! Think of the initial ‘e’ in ‘envelope’ for ‘stationery’, or keep in mind the following sentences:

PEns are items of stationEry

CArs when parked are stationAry

SUBTLE

To Be subtle – Be silent.

SUCCEED

Succeed, Proceed, Exceed are the only three English words that end in CEED. Take the initial letters of these words and think SPEED.

SUPERSEDE

There is no ‘c’ in supersede, but there is a second ‘s’. It’s the only word in the dictionary that ends SEDE. All the others containing CEDE end like this, e.g. precede, recede.

THERE or THEIR

Think directions for THERE: it’s either HERE or THERE. HERE is over THERE, and can be found in THERE.

Think of ownership for THEIR: someone is an HEIR before they inherit THEIR fortune.

TOGETHER

Split it up into three separate words: think TO GET HER.

WEATHER or WHETHER

WE look AT HER (the TV weather girl) to check the forecast and discover whether it will be sunny or rainy.

WEDNESDAY

WE Do Not Eat Soup DAY.

WOOLLY

W, Double-O, Double-L, Y

This works for ‘coolly’ as well. Resist the temptation to spell with one L.

YOU’RE or YOUR

YOU’RE never going to get it right if you don’t use YOUR head.

If something belongs to us, it is OURs, just as something that belongs to you is YOURs.

3

Think of a Number

First Steps: Counting Rhymes

Learning to count is the first step to understanding arithmetic. Most of us do it with nursery rhymes, which contain the essential ingredients of mnemonics: imagery, rhyme and fun. Nursery rhymes are one of the first mnemonic devices we encounter as children. ‘One, Two, Buckle My Shoe’ was devised many years ago as a fun way to teach children how to count to twenty using rhyme and imagery. Here are two slightly different versions of the famous verse:

One, Two, buckle my shoe, Three, Four, knock at the door, Five, Six, pick up sticks, Seven, Eight, lay them straight, Nine, Ten, a big fat hen, Eleven, Twelve, dig and delve, Thirteen, Fourteen, maids a-courting, Fifteen, Sixteen, maids in the kitchen, Seventeen, Eighteen, maids in waiting, Nineteen, Twenty, my plate’s empty.

One, Two, buckle my shoe, Three, Four, knock at the door,

Five, Six, pick up sticks, Seven, Eight, don’t be late, Nine, Ten, a good fat hen, Eleven, Twelve, dig and delve Thirteen, Fourteen, maids a-courting, Fifteen, Sixteen, maids a-kissing, Seventeen, Eighteen, maids a-waiting, Nineteen, Twenty, I’ve had plenty.

‘One, Two, Three, Four, Five’, which is also known as ‘Once I Caught a Fish Alive’, is another famous counting rhyme. Though its origins are unknown, its earliest date of publication has been traced back to 1888:

One, two, three, four, five. Once I caught a fish alive. Six, seven, eight, nine, ten. Then I let it go again. Why did you let it go? Because it bit my finger so. Which finger did it bite? This little finger on my right.

This shorter counting rhyme was also popular with children:

One, Two, Three, Four, Mary’s at the cottage door. Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Eating cherries off a plate.

Writing Numbers

Mastering the numbers out loud is one thing, but writing them down is something else entirely. However, this number-writing poem doubtless helped countless youngsters:

Around to the left to find my hero, Back to the top, I’ve made a zero.

Downward stroke; my, that’s fun, Now I’ve made the number 1.

Half a heart says, ‘I love you.’ A line – now I made the number 2.

Around the tree, around the tree, Now I’ve made the number 3.

Down and across and down once more Now I’ve made the number 4.

The hat, the back, the belly – a 5. Watch out! It might come alive.

Bend down low to pick up sticks, Now I’ve made the number 6.

Across the sky, and down from heaven, Now I’ve made the number 7.

Make an ‘S’ and close the gate, Now I’ve made the number 8.

An oval and a line, Now I’ve made the number 9.

One (1) egg (0) laid my hen. Now I’ve made the number 10.

Roman Numerals

Imagine doing sums using Roman numerals. They are still used today for indicating successive same-name kings, queens, sons and daughters, movie sequels and dates, and also for successive Olympic Games and the Super Bowl, but their usage is quite rare. I, V and X are more commonly used, particularly on clock faces, so we are generally more familiar with these numerals and the fact that they represent 1, 5 and 10 respectively. It’s a good idea to that C stands for ‘century’, i.e. 100 years:

The Romans did not have a notation for zero, which meant that early in the second millennium the system was gradually replaced by the Arabic numerals that we use today. As Roman numerals are considerably underused in modern society, there’s a danger that we might start to forget them, so here’s a simple mnemonic to help keep the system in mind:

I Value Xylophones Like Cows Dig Milk

If you can only the first three letters IVX, you could recite the following to recall LCD and M:

Lucy Can’t Drink Milk

This poem is useful for learning Roman numerals:

X shall stand for playmates Ten, V for Five stout stalwart men, I for One as I’m alive, C for Hundred and D for Five, M for a Thousand soldiers true, And L for Fifty, I’ll tell you.

As is this pithy verse:

M’s mille – or 1,000 said, D’s half – 500 quickly read. C’s just a 100 – century And L is half again – 50. So all that’s left is X and V Or 10 and 5 and I is easy.

The Metric System

Metrication, or the decimal system, began in in the 1790s, and even today the rest of the world is still catching up. In Britain, we still measure our journeys in miles, but in the fields of building, science and engineering we’ve been fully metricated.

Kilometre 1,000 metres Hectometre 100 metres Decametre 10 metres Metre (base) 1 metre Decimetre of a metre Centimetre of a metre Millimetre of a metre

The first letters stand for the metric prefixes and base unit: Kilo, Hecto, Deca, Metre (base), Deci, Centi, Milli. The following phrases help to the correct order:

King Henry Died Mightily Drinking Chocolate Milk

Kippers Hardly Dare Move During Cold Months

King Henry Died – Mother Didn’t Care Much

King Hector Died Miserable Death – Caught Measles

If the base unit is a gram rather than a metre we would have:

King Henry Died – Granny Didn’t Care Much

Times-Table Tricks

Ten-Times Table

We all know that to multiply a number by ten we simply add a zero to it. This is a mnemonic device. 3 × 10 = 30 just as 26,350 × 10 = 263,500. As the numbers get larger, it is just a simple task of adding a zero and moving the comma along to the right by one place.

Nine-Times Table

There are an infinite number of patterns to be found in arithmetic, particularly in the nine-times table.

9 × 1 = 9

9 × 2 = 18

9 × 3 = 27

9 × 4 = 36

9 × 5 = 45

9 × 6 = 54

9 × 7 = 63

9 × 8 = 72

9 × 9 = 81

9 × 10 = 90

Halfway through the nine-times table at 5, see how the numbers invert, i.e.:

9 × 5 = 45; 9 × 6 = 54

Up to 9 × 10, notice how the digits in the products of numbers multiplied by 9 always add up to 9, i.e.:

9 × 2 = 18 (1 + 8 = 9), 9 × 3 = 27 (2 + 7 = 9).

Nine-Times Table: By Hand

How many of us learned this cunning way to our nine-times table, using only our hands? Firstly, hold your two hands up with the palms facing you, and number each

digit from 1 to 10, starting with the thumb on your left hand (1) through to the thumb on your right hand (10). For 9 × 2, you need to bend digit number 2 (your left index finger) to signify ‘times 2’. This leaves your thumb (1) outstretched to the left of your bent index finger, and 8 digits outstretched to the right of it. Put 1 and 8 together to make the sum of 9 × 2. For 9 × 6, you need to bend digit number 6 (your right pinky) to represent ‘times 6’. This leaves all the digits on your left hand outstretched (5) and the remaining digits on your right hand outstretched (4). Put 5 and 4 together to make the sum of 9 × 6. You look at the number of fingers to the left side of the folded-down finger to find out what number is in the tens column of the answer, and you look to the right of the folded-down finger to find the number in the ones column. It couldn’t be simpler!

Long Division

When it comes to the technique for ing which steps to follow when doing long division – Divide, Multiply, Subtract, Bring down – use one of these memorable phrases:

Dad, Mum, Sister, Brother

Dead Monkeys Smell Bad

The Order of Calculation

The order we must use to work out a sum is: Multiply and Divide before you Add and Subtract. Any mathematical statement with an ‘equals’ sign is an equation, i.e. one side of the equation equals the other side. For example, 1 + 1 = 2 is an equation, just as 2 × 10 = 4 × 5 is an equation. Some people find that the following phrase helps them the MDAS correct order:

My Dear Aunt Sally

When things get a bit more complicated, and there are several functions to work out in a sum, the PEMDAS way is the order in which to tackle the problem:

Parentheses Exponents Multiplication Division Addition Subtraction

Certain phrases are useful for keeping the correct order in mind:

Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally

Please Execute My Dog And Soon

Put Every Man Down And Shout

Others will have been taught the BIDMAS alternative, which works in exactly the same way.

Brackets Indices Division Multiplication Addition Subtraction

BIDMAS allows you to calculate the sum written as:

The B for Brackets in BIDMAS means the same as the P for Parentheses in PEMDAS, as does the I for Indices and the E for Exponents. The order of Division and Multiplication is flexible, so the order can either be DM or MD.

Finding Averages

Here is an excellent way to the names of the four methods of finding averages, using the ‘Medium-Range Mean Model’ method:

Median – the number exactly in the middle when a set of numbers is listed in order.

Range – the difference between the highest and lowest numbers in a set.

Mean – the sum of a set of numbers, divided by the number of numbers in the set.

Mode – the number (or numbers) that appears most frequently in a set.

Isosceles Triangles

To help distinguish between an isosceles triangle and all other types of triangle, this song sung to the tune of ‘Oh, Christmas Tree’ has proved a valuable aid:

Oh, isosceles, oh, isosceles, Two angles have Equal degrees. Oh, isosceles, oh, isosceles, You look just like A Christmas tree.

Dividing by Fractions

A fraction is a numerical quantity that is not a whole number, for example ½ or , which are quantities that form part of a whole. The definition of a fraction is a numerator divided by a denominator, but which is which?

Think of ‘Notre Dame’:

NUmerator Up, Denominator Down.

Therefore, in ½, 1 is the numerator, 2 is the denominator. In , 19 is the numerator, 20 is the denominator.

This rhyme will help every student who gets into a muddle when dividing by fractions:

The number you’re dividing by, Turn upside down and multiply.

e.g. 10 divided by ½ = 10 × = 20

or 15 divided by = 15 × = 75

The Value of Pi

Pi is the Greek letter π. It is a mathematical constant and calculated as the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter. Pi is the number 3.14159, although in reality it has an infinite number of decimal places. The traditional way to remind yourself of the decimals is to use phrases containing word-length mnemonics, where the number of letters in each word corresponds to a digit.

Pi to six decimal places is:

How I wish I could calculate pi = 3.141592

And to fourteen places:

How I like a drink, alcoholic of course, after the heavy lectures involving quantum mechanics = 3.14159265358979

And here’s a rhyme to twenty decimal places of pi:

Now, I wish I could recollect pi. ‘Eureka,’ cried the great inventor. Christmas Pudding, Christmas Pie, Is the problem’s very centre. = 3.14159265358979323846

And to thirty-one decimal places:

Sir, I bear a rhyme excelling In mystic force, and magic spelling Celestial sprites elucidate All my own striving can’t relate Or locate they who can cogitate And so finally terminate. Finis. = 3.1415926535897932384626433832795

This useful method of ing pi only works up to thirty-one decimal places, unfortunately, because the thirty-second number after the decimal point is 0.

From Omni, the celebrated science magazine of the late 1970s and early 1980s,

this is a fun verse devised to help students to calculate the circumference of a circle using pi:

If you cross a circle with a line, Which hits the centre and runs from spine to spine, And the line’s length is d The circumference will be d times 3.14159.

The area of a circle is calculated as π × r-squared (where r is the radius) = πr².

To help the formula, think:

Apple Pie Are Square.

The circumference of a circle is calculated as π × d (where d is the diameter) = πd.

One memorable way to recall the formula is to think:

Cherry Pie Delicious.

The following rhyme can help us to learn the difference between circumference

and area:

Fiddlededum, fiddlededee, A ring round the moon is π times d, If a hole in your sock you want repaired, You use the formula πr-squared.

Square Roots

Just as subtraction is the opposite of addition, and division is the opposite of multiplication, so square roots are the opposite of squaring, i.e. multiplying a number by itself, so the square root of 4 is 2, i.e. 2 × 2 = 4. This is a perfect square root and is therefore quite simple. Things get more interesting when maths explores more complicated concepts such as the square root of 2. Which number multiplied by itself makes 2? It’s not a round number and so, as with pi, the length of each word in the following rhymes represents each digit:

For the square root of 2, I wish I knew 1.414 – the root of two.

For the square root of 3, O, charmed was he 1.732 – to know the root of three.

For the square root of 5, So we now strive 2.236 – to know the root of five.

For the square root of 6 We need more logistics 2.449 – to know the root of six.

Pythagoras’ Theorem

Pythagoras (c.580–500 BC) was a Greek mathematician and philosopher from Samos, sometimes known as ‘The Father of Numbers’. His famous theorem is a maths standard that reveals how to calculate the lengths of the three sides of a right-angled triangle.

In essence, Pythagoras’ theorem states that the square of the hypotenuse is equal to the sum of the squares of the other two sides, or HYPOTENUSE squared = BASE squared + HEIGHT squared. To help maths students the formula, a visual aid in the form of the ‘teepee story’ was devised, which featured a memorable mnemonic punchline:

A Red Indian chief had three squaws in three teepees. When he came home late from hunting, he never knew which squaw was in which teepee because it was always dark. One day he killed a hippopotamus, a bear and a buffalo. He put one hide from each animal into each teepee, so that when he came home late he could feel inside the teepee and he would know which squaw was which. After a year, all three squaws had had children. The squaw on the bear hide had a baby boy, the squaw on the buffalo hide had a baby girl. But the squaw on the hippopotamus hide had a girl and a boy. And the moral of the story?

The squaw on the hippopotamus is equal to the sum of the squaws on the other two hides.

Trigonometry: Sine Cosine Tangent

By definition, triangles are all about threes – sides and angles. If you know two elements of a right-angled triangle, whether it be sides, angles or one of each, you can then work out the third. In a right-angled triangle, if the value of a second angle is given:

the Sine of the angle = the ratio of the Opposite side to the Hypotenuse

the Cosine of the angle = the ratio of the Adjacent side to the Hypotenuse

the Tangent of the angle = the ratio of the Opposite and the Adjacent sides

For example, in this diagram,

The initials spell SOH–CAH–TOA, which is easy to recall because it rhymes with Krakatoa, the volcanic island in Indonesia. If, however, the volcano comparison is less than effective, one of the examples below might prove more memorable:

Smiles Of Happiness Come After Having Tankards Of Ale

Some Old Hag Caught A Hippy Tripping On Acid

Some Old Horse Caught Another Horse Taking Oats Away

Graph Coordinates

From simple bar charts showing hours of sunshine against months of the year to advanced calculus graphs indicating rates of change, this is the rule for all graphs:

X along the corridor, Y up and down the stairs.

The convention for labelling a pair of coordinates (x and y) is that x is the horizontal shift and y the vertical shift.

Converting Miles to Kilometres

Fibonacci numbers are named after the thirteenth-century mathematician Leonardo of Pisa, who was also called Leonardo Fibonacci. They are whole numbers in sequence: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21, 34, 55, 89 . . . and so on to infinity. Each number in the series is the sum of the previous two numbers. There are approximately 8 (8.05 km) kilometres in 5 miles, and since both 8 and 5 are Fibonacci numbers, you can convert kilometres to miles and miles to kilometres by looking at the consecutive numbers. Just there will always be more kilometres (longer word) than miles (shorter word).

8 km = 5 miles 13 km = 8 miles 21 km = 13 miles 34 km = 21 miles 55 km = 34 miles 89 km = 55 miles

4

Geographically Speaking

Learning Directions

When we first learn about geography and the places around us, we’re taught the four main com directions: North, South, East and West. ing exactly where these points are on a com should be quite straightforward, but to overcome memory loss, a number of useful phrases have been devised. Firstly, you can use the acronym NEWS:

North at the top East on the right West on the left South at the bottom

Alternatively, the first letters of each word in these sentences indicate the points of the com in clockwise order:

Never Eat Shredded Wheat

Never Eat Slimy Worms

Never Enter Santa’s Workshop

Never Eat Soggy Waffles

Naughty Elephants Squirt Water

Latitude and Longitude

If you’ve ever had problems ing which direction latitude and longitude lines go, here are a few mnemonic pointers to ensure you’ll never be bamboozled again. The Latin word latus means ‘side’, hence latitude lines go from side to side. The phrase ‘Lat is fat’ should help remind us that the central lines of latitude go around the ‘belt’ of the equator. Longitude lines seem longer, going from top to bottom or north to south.

The Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn

These are two imaginary lines running parallel to the equator (the longest line of latitude that spans the centre of the globe), which are based on the sun’s position in relation to the earth at two points of the year. The sun is directly overhead at noon on the Tropic of Cancer on 21 June (the beginning of summer in the Northern Hemisphere and of winter in the Southern Hemisphere) and is again overhead at midday on the Tropic of Capricorn on 21 December (the beginning of winter in the Northern Hemisphere and of summer in the Southern Hemisphere). The Tropic of Cancer lies 23.5° north of the equator and the Tropic of Capricorn lies at 23.5° south, and the following verse has helped many to this fact.

CaNcer lies North of the equator

CapricOrn lies on the Other side of the equator

Map Reading

Imagine you’re a Girl Guide or Boy Scout on an expedition carrying no more than a bit of Kendal Mint Cake and an Ordnance Survey map, or a soldier in the field armed with just a map and a com. Your map grid reference is 123456. To find your position on the map just think: ‘Onwards and Upwards’. Split your map reference into two sets of three figures: 123 and 456. 1 is the number of the grid line on the map going across – ONWARD – from west to east. 2 and 3 give more precise coordinates within that grid.

The 4 is the grid line going up – UPWARDS – from south to north. And 5 and 6 give a more precise location.

The Seven Continents of the World

A continent is defined as a large continuous land mass, and geographers state that the world has seven of them:

Europe, Asia, Africa, Australia, Antarctica, North America and South America.

Although Europe is ed to Asia, the two areas are recognized as separate continents, with the Ural Mountains in Russia dividing the areas that we regard as East and West. Australia is the smallest continent, and also known as Oceania. Australia itself is an island of just under 3 million square miles. Asia is the largest continent at approximately 17 million square miles. The following phrases are the most popular to the continents:

Eat An Aspirin After A Nasty Sandwich Eat An Apple As A Nice Snack

The Great Lakes of North America

The five Great Lakes are, from west to east, Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie and Ontario. As SMHEO is a less than memorable acronym, these short pithy sentences are far more effective:

Sally Made Henry Eat Onions Sergeant-Major Hates Eating Oranges Super Mario Heaved Earth Out

From east to west, try:

Old Elephants Have Much Skin

An easier and more commonly used mnemonic acronym is HOMES, but this jumbles up the correct geographical order.

Niagara Falls

Lenor is a fabric softener, but the letters in the word can also be used to remind us of which two great lakes surround Niagara Falls. Picture the scene as if looking at a map where north is at the top of the page.

Left – Erie – Niagara – Ontario – Right

The Countries of Central America

There are seven Central American countries, namely: Guatemala, Belize, Honduras, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama. If these names or the letters GBHEN don’t roll easily off the tongue, try using this mnemonic phrase to jog your memory:

Great Big Hungry Elephants Nearly Consumed Panama

The World’s Longest Rivers

An unusual acronym used to the names of the world’s longest rivers is NAYY CLAIM. The exact length of the two greatest rivers on earth, the Nile and the Amazon, varies over time and geographers disagree on their actual length. Therefore, this acronym is more of an aid to ing the names of the rivers, rather than their exact pecking order, about which no one seems able to agree.

RIVER Nile Amazon Yangtze (Chang Jiang) Yellow (Huang Ho) Congo (Zaire) Lena Amur (Heilong Jiang) Irtysh Mekong

CONTINENT Africa South America Asia Asia Africa Asia Asia Asia Asia

LENGTH 6,695 km (4,160 miles) 6,683 km (4,153 miles) 6,380 km (3,964 miles) 4,830 km (3,001 miles) 4,630 km (2,877 miles) 4,400 km (2,734 miles) 4,350 km (2,703 miles) 4,248 km (2,640 miles) 4,180 km (2,597 miles)

The three longest rivers in Europe can be recalled using the acronym VDU (think Visual Display Unit):

RIVER Volga Danube Ural

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN LENGTH Russia 3,688 km (2,292 miles) 2,850 km (1,771 miles) Russia 2,428 km (1,509 miles)

The Counties of Northern Ireland

On a far smaller scale than the countries of Central America, the six counties of Northern Ireland are:

Armagh, Down, Antrim, Londonderry, Tyrone and Fermanagh.

If you look at a diagram of the counties, beginning with Armagh going anticlockwise round to Fermanagh, you could this nonsense phrase:

Ants Drift Anticlockwise Longer Than Fleas

It might even be easier to an anagram of the initial letters in no particular order, such as DAFT LA or FLAT DA.

The Rivers of the Pennines

During one hot summer, while studying geographical facts for school, I made up my own mnemonic nonsense word, SUNWACD, which comprised the initials of the rivers of the Pennines that all flow east into the River Ouse in Yorkshire:

Swale, Ure, Nidd, Wharfe, Aire, Calder, Don.

The Seven Hills of Rome

Rome was built on the seven hills east of the River Tiber. Clockwise from the westernmost hill, they are Capitoline, Quirinal, Viminal, Esquiline, Caelian, Aventine and Palatine, and can be easily ed with the following phrase:

Can Queen Victoria Eat Cold Apple Pie?

Alternatively, if you start with the Quirinal, going in a clockwise direction, you could try ing a slightly more amusing alternative:

Queen Victoria Eyes Caesar’s Awfully Painful Corns.

An even more memorable acronym is PACE QVC. Pace is the Italian word for

‘peace’ paired with QVC, the shopping channel.

Italian Geography

If you ever needed a reminder of the location of Sicily, here’s a verse guaranteed to help:

Long-legged Italy kicked little Sicily Right into the middle of the Mediterranean Sea.

5

Animal, Vegetable, Mineral

Geological Periods

The list below details the geological classification of rock deposits, starting with the Cambrian, the first period in the Palaeozoic era.

Cambrian Ordovician Silurian Devonian Carboniferous Permian Triassic Jurassic Cretaceous Palaeocene Eocene Oligocene Miocene Pliocene Pleistocene Recent (Holocene)

Approximate number of years ago 570–510 million 510–439 million 439–409 million 409–363 million 363–290 million 290–245 million 245–208 million 208–146 million 146–65 million 65–56.5 million 56.5–35.4 million 35.4–23.3 million 23.3–5.2 million 5.2–1.64 million 1,640,000–10,000 10,000–present day

Large mammals flourished and became extinct as recently as the Pleistocene period, during which time anatomically modern humans began to evolve. The Recent period marked the end of the last Ice Age and the start of the development of modern civilization. Here’s a memorable phrase to help you tell your Eocene from your Pliocene geological period, starting with the Cambrian era from over 500 million years ago:

Camels Often Sit Down Carefully. Perhaps Their ts Creak? Possibly Early Oiling Might Prevent Permanent Rheumatism.

Components of Soil

When testing the soil for its age, geologists also need to know the main constituents of soil, namely Air, Humus, Mineral salts, Water, Bacteria and Rock particles, which can be ed with this jaunty saying:

All Hairy Men Will Buy Razors

The Hardness of Minerals

The Mohs Scale was devised in 1822 by German mineralogist Friedrich Mohs (1773–1839). He chose ten familiar, easily available minerals, and arranged them in order of their ‘scratch hardness’. Minerals in order from softest to hardest are:

1. Talc 2. Gypsum 3. Calcite 4. Fluorite (fluorspar) 5. Apatite 6. Orthoclase (feldspar) 7. Quartz 8. Topaz 9. Corundum 10. Diamond

Groups 1–2 can be scratched by a fingernail. Groups 3–6 can be scratched with a blade. Groups 7–10 are hard enough to scratch glass.

A couple of mnemonics that some might find useful to memorize the Mohs Scale are:

Tall Girls Can Flirt And Other Queer Things Can Develop

TAll GYroscopes CAn FLy APart ORbiting QUickly TO COmplete DIsintegration

Types of Fossils

One way of learning the different types of fossils is to the acronym IMAP, which stands for:

Imprint Moulds (or casts) Actual remains Petrified

Or keep in mind the following apt phrase:

I Marvel At Petrification

Stalactites and Stalagmites

Stalactites are formed when water containing calcium carbonate dissolves after seeping down through limestone or chalk, and evaporates leaving deposits of carbonates of lime to build up over time to form mineral columns in caves. Stalagmites develop in the same way when rain falls on to the floor of caves and minerals build up to form pillars. The similarity between the spelling and pronunciation of the two words has confused many over the years, and so several memory aids have been developed to help simplify matters. This example relies on the difference in spelling, using the C and the G to relate to the origin of the formation:

StalaCtites are formed on the Ceiling

StalaGmites are formed on the Ground

A slightly cheekier way is to think of the reaction to having ants (mites) in your pants:

The ’mites go up and the ’tites come down!

A couple of other suggestions have been:

Stalactites hang tight from the roof;

Stalagmites might reach the roof.

Stalactites hang down like tights on a washing line;

Stalagmites might bite if you sit on them.

Camels: One Lump or Two

There are two main types of camel – one has one hump and the other has two. But what’s the best way of ing which is which?

A Bactrian camel’s back is shaped like the letter B – it has two humps.

A Dromedary’s back is shaped like the letter D – it only has one hump.

Both species of camel are natives of the dry deserts of Asia and North Africa. The Bactrian or two-humped camel inhabits central Asia. The dromedary or onehumped camel is a light and fast breed, otherwise known as the Arabian camel. The name derives from the Greek word dromas – to run. The dromedary is domesticated and no longer lives in the wild.

Elephants Never Forget

How do you tell the difference between an Indian elephant and an African elephant? It’s all in the size, as this rhyme proves:

India’s big, and its elephant there features, But Africa’s bigger with much bigger creatures.

Generally the ears of an African elephant are bigger than those of its Indian counterpart. Imagine that they resemble the shape of the larger African continent, while those of the Indian elephant are the shape of India.

Insect Stings

From one of the world’s largest creatures to two of the smallest. What home remedies are there if you are stung by a bee or a wasp?

Use Ammonia for a Bee sting,

And Vinegar for a Wasp sting

B follows A and W follows V. (Think of the VW car as well.)

This is also a useful mnemonic with which to the Latin family classification of bees and wasps.

Apoidea are Bees

Vespidae are Wasps

More correctly, the apoidea classification refers to the ‘superfamily’ of bees, while vespidae is the ‘family’ classification for wasps.

Taxonomic Classifications

Not to be confused with taxidermy, which is the art of preparing, stuffing and mounting animal skins, alpha taxonomy is the principle of arranging groups of living organisms, i.e. plants and animals, into groups based on similarities of structure and origin. To give an example of the classifications, here are the definitions of man or homo sapiens:

Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus Species Variety

Animalia Vertibrata Mammalia Primates Hominidae Homo Sapiens —

To the different classifications including ‘variety’, these two phrases roll off the tongue nicely:

Krakatoa Positively Casts Off Fumes Generating Sulphurous Vapours

Kindly Place Cover On Fresh Green Spring Vegetables

Versions excluding any reference to ‘variety’ can be ed thus:

Kids Prefer Cheese Over Fried Green Spinach

King Philip Came Over For Good Soup

King Philip Could Only Find Green Socks

Cedar Trees

Evergreen cedar trees in most British parks and gardens come in three types:

Atlas has Ascending branches

Lebanon has Level branches

Deodar has Drooping branches

The Mount Atlas cedar originates from the Atlas Mountains of Algeria and Morocco, and was introduced to Britain in 1841. The Lebanon cedar arrived in the UK in 1638 from the Middle East and was widely used by landscape designer Capability Brown in the eighteenth century. And the deodar (from the Sanskrit deva dara meaning ‘divine tree’) first came from the Himalayas.

Firewood

If you are laying a fire at home or making a campfire, bring this traditional poem to mind to avoid suffocating smoke and flying sparks:

Beech wood fires are bright and clear, If the logs are kept a year. Chestnut’s only good, they say, If for long it’s laid away. Birch and fir logs burn too fast, Blaze up bright and do not last. Elm wood burns like a churchyard mould, Even the very flames are cold. Poplar gives a bitter smoke, Fills your eyes and makes you choke. Apple wood will scent your room With an incense like perfume. Oak and maple, if dry and old, Keep away the winter cold. But ash wood wet and ash wood dry,

A king shall warm his slippers by.

6

Time and the Calendar

Spring Forward, Fall Back

The seasons change, the clocks go back and forth, time waits for no man, and woe betide if you forget to reset your clock at the beginning of autumn and spring. The end of summer time in Europe takes place at 1 a.m. on the fourth Sunday in October. Summer time begins again on the third Sunday in March. So in the spring we move our clocks forward one hour to herald summer and in autumn (or fall) we go back one hour to welcome winter.

A similar saying to ‘Spring Forward, Fall Back’ was created to remind people of the change in time: ‘Forward April, back September. That is all you need to .’

‘Thirty Days Hath September . . .’

The words to this rhyme are possibly the most oft-repeated of all memory aids. How many of us, since learning the verse in childhood, still find ourselves muttering the lines to recall how many days there are in each month? The origin of the ‘Thirty Days Hath September’ poem is obscure, but the use of ‘olde’ English in the verse suggests that it dates back to at least the sixteenth century. There are a couple of different endings to the last two lines of the verse that are both recorded below:

Thirty days hath September, April, June and November; All the rest have thirty-one Excepting February alone, And that has twenty-eight days clear, With twenty-nine in each leap year.

Which hath but twenty-eight, in fine, Till leap year gives it twenty-nine.

As the verse informs us that four particular months contain thirty days, and February has either twenty-eight or twenty-nine, by process of elimination we can work out that the remaining seven months all comprise thirty-one days. February was the last month in the Julian calendar year, which is why it is left to pick up the leftovers.

Days of the Months by Hand

A physical mnemonic trick that can help you work out the days of the months is right in front of you on the back of your hands. Place your clenched fists together, side by side, and begin with your left hand, naming the knuckle of your little finger as January. The valley or dip between the first two knuckles is February, the knuckle of the ring finger is March and the next valley is April. July marks the last knuckle on the left hand, and August marks the first knuckle on the right hand, as both months have thirty-one days. Carry on until you reach the penultimate knuckle on your right hand, representing December. The two thumb knuckles are both excluded from this technique.

All the knuckles represent months with thirty-one days and the valleys the shorter months. As in the rhyme above, we need to that February is the exception. So, if you can’t the famous verse, you can always rely on your own hands to jog your memory where the months of the year are concerned. If you’re doing it in public, though, try not to make it obvious, otherwise you might attract some curious looks!

Quarter Days

By definition there are four quarter days in the year. Traditionally they were the four dates when rents and rates were due, particularly in rural districts, and also the days on which servants were hired. They coincided with four religious festivals and are about three months apart. Their importance is now limited, but in England the due dates for some leasehold payments and rents for businesses still fall on quarter days. They are:

25 March 5 letters in March – Lady Day (the feast of the Annunciation of Our Lady, the V 24 June 4 letters in June – Midsummer’s Day 29 September 9 letters in September – Michaelmas Day 25 December Christmas Day – everyone re that!

Bonfire Night

Being able to recall the date in 1605 when Guy Fawkes and his co-conspirators were caught trying to blow up the Houses of Parliament was made considerably easier with this snappy little rhyme:

, , The Fifth of November, Gunpowder, treason and plot. I know of no reason why the gunpowder treason Should ever be forgot. Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes, ’twas his intent To blow up the King and Parliament. Threescore barrels of powder below, Poor old England to overthrow; By God’s providence he was catch’d With a dark lantern and burning match.

For plotting against the government, Guy Fawkes was subsequently tried as a traitor, and sentenced to death by being hanged, drawn and quartered. A year later it became an annual custom for the King and Parliament to deliver a sermon to commemorate the event, which also served as a warning to each new

generation that treason was a heinous crime and one that incurred the most severe of punishments.

Time Travel

When travelling long distances throughout the world, it helps to EWG and WEL when calculating if you’ll be losing or gaining time during a journey:

East to West Gains and West to East LosesThe

British Gardening Calendar

Pruning encourages growth, so this rhyme for best results:

Cut thistles in May, They’ll grow in a day; Cut them in June, That’s too soon; Cut them in July, Then they will die.

The Caribbean Hurricane Season

The people of the Caribbean and the southern states of America are only too aware of the risks of hurricanes, as this mnemonic indicates:

June – Too Soon (first month)

July – Stand By (for any news of a storm)

August – You Must (prepare in case a storm comes)

September – (to stand by)

October – It’s All Over (last month)

The Signs of the Zodiac

Aries Taurus Gemini Cancer Leo Virgo Libra Scorpio Sagittarius Capricorn Aquarius Pisces

The Ram The Bull The Twins The Crab The Lion The Virgin The Scales The Scorpion The Archer The Goat The Water Bearer The Fish

21 March – 20 April 21 April – 21 May 22 May – 22 June 23 June – 23 July 21 July – 22 August 24 August – 23 September 24 September – 23 October 24 October – 22 November 23 November – 21 December 22 December – 20 January 21 January – 19 February 20 February – 20 March

The first letters of the words in this mnemonic sentence give us of the signs of the astrological zodiac in order, which can be ed with these phrases:

All The Great Chancellors Live Very Long Since Shops Can’t Alter Politics

A Tense Grey Cat Lay Very Low Sneaking Slowly, Contemplating A Pounce

Alternatively, if we start from January, we have Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces, Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius:

Can All People Always Take Good Care Lighting Valuable Lamps Surrounding Salisbury?

If you are inclined to recall lists with a sense of rhythm instead, use the verse written by preacher, poet and hymn writer Isaac Watts (1674–1748), which starts with Aries:

The Ram, the Bull, the heavenly Twins, And next the Crab, the Lion shines, The Virgin and the Scales; The Scorpion, Archer and the Goat. The Man who pours the water out

And Fish with glittering scales.

Or perhaps try this alternative from E. Cobham Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase & Fable (1899):

Our vernal signs the Ram begins Then comes the Bull, in May the Twins; The Crab in June, next Leo shines, And Virgo ends the northern signs. The Balance brings autumnal fruits, The Scorpion stings, the Archer shoots; December’s Goat brings wintry blast, Aquarius rain, the Fish comes last.

7

The Sky at Night and by Day

The Order of the Planets

Before August 2006, the planets in our solar system were Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune and Pluto. Their initial letters lent themselves to all sorts of phrases:

My Very Easy Method: Just Set Up Nine Planets

My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas

Mum’s Very Early Morning Jam Sandwiches Usually Nauseate People

In August 2006, the International Astronomical Union decided to downgrade the status of Pluto, and so some new mnemonic phrases that don’t mention poor old Pluto have had to be devised for the new generation of stargazers:

My Very Energetic Mother Just Sent Us Nowhere

My Very Educated Mother Just Sent Us Nuts

My Very Exotic Mistress Just Served Us Noodles

The four planets closest to the sun are Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars. These are called the ‘rocky’ or ‘terrestrial’ planets, and are small in relation to other planets while consisting of similar materials to earth:

My Visitor Eats Mice

My Virgin Eats Men

My Voice Expects More

The ‘gas’ planets are Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, which all have rings and moons, and consist mainly of hydrogen, helium, frozen water, ammonia, methane and carbon monoxide:

Jam Sandwiches Usually Needed

Jolly Susan’s Under-Nourished

John Smith Upsets Neighbours

Saturn’s Moons

Saturn has a number of moons (thirty-five have been named to date). To recall the nine principal moons of Saturn, think about how you MET DR THIP:

Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, Rhea, Titan, Hyperion, Iapetus, Phoebe

The Brightest Stars in the Sky

Positioned at the centre of the solar system, the closest star to Earth is the sun. The brightest stars visible from earth are listed below, along with the constellation where each is located:

Sir Can Rig A VCR, PA

Sir Can Rig A V C R P A

Sirius in Canis Major Canopus in Carina Rigil Kent in Centaurus Arcturus in Boötes Vega in Lyra Capella in Auriga Rigel in Orion Procyon in Canis Minor Achernar in Eridanus

The Earth’s Atmospheres

Troposphere: extends from the Earth’s surface to approximately 6–10 km.

Stratosphere: extends to approximately 10–50 km above Earth.

Mesosphere: located 50–80 km above the Earth’s surface.

Thermosphere: located more than 80 km above Earth.

Exosphere: the outermost layer of the atmosphere at 500–1,000 km above the Earth.

To help recall the order of the Earth’s atmospheres, the following phrases may act as helpful reminders:

The Strong Man’s Triceps Explode

The Straight Man’s Throttle Excites

Men on the Moon

Named after the Greek god of the sun, Project Apollo was a series of manned space flights that aimed to land a man on the moon by the end of the 1960s. This was eventually achieved by Neil Armstrong on 20 July 1969, when he became the first man to walk on the moon. Armstrong was a member of the crew of Apollo 11, which we can by the double ‘ll’ in ‘Apollo’. The names of Armstrong and his fellow astronauts can be recalled with a simple use of the ABC:

Neil Armstrong

Buzz Aldrin

Michael Collins

The Apollo programme lasted until only 1975 when it was cut short due to rising costs. Only twelve men have ever walked on the moon: Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, Pete Conrad, Alan Bean, Alan Shepard, Edgar Mitchell, David Scott, James Irwin, John W. Young, Charles Duke, Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt.

Colours of the Rainbow

When a rainbow appears in the sky as a result of the refraction and dispersion of the sun’s rays by light or other water droplets, the seven colours that are said to be visible are: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet. ‘Richard Of York Gave Battle In Vain’ is the popular mnemonic phrase with which most people are familiar. It refers to the Battle of Bosworth in 1485, when King Richard III was defeated by Henry Tudor, who became, as Henry VII, the first king of the Tudor dynasty. However, it can also be fun to make up other phrases such as:

Run Off, You Girls; Boys In View!

Roll Out Your Guinness, Boys In Vats!

While some people prefer to recall the colours by making up a man’s name: ROY G BIV. Nowadays, however, it is widely believed that indigo does not strictly appear in the spectrum, but was merely included by Sir Isaac Newton, the seventeenthcentury English physicist and mathematician, because seven colours was considered to be better than six.

Weather Forecasting

A red sky at night; shepherd’s delight, A red sky in the morning; shepherd’s warning.

The origins of this rhyme can be traced back to St Matthew’s Gospel in the Bible: ‘When evening comes, you say, “It will be fair weather, for the sky is red”, and in the morning, “Today it will be stormy, for the sky is red and overcast.”’ In Britain the words refer to a shepherd who would say that a red sky in the morning would indicate inclement weather to follow, while in the USA the words relate to a sailor’s predictions:

Red sky at night, sailor’s delight; Red sky at morning, sailor’s warning.

Hundreds of years ago, before there were any accurate ways of weather forecasting, people had to rely on those with knowledge and experience, such as sailors and shepherds, whose lives were dependent on the weather and its changing moods.

Temperatures in Celsius

When Britain went metric in the 1970s and weather forecasters predicted the temperature in Celsius, it all got rather confusing. Here’s a simple rhyme featuring different Celsius temperatures to help you decide whether to take a cardigan or an overcoat:

30°C is hot

20°C is nice

10°C is cold

0°C is ice

8

The World of Science

During the course of their studies, chemistry students are expected to have a good knowledge of the names and properties of the 100+ chemical elements. It’s crucial that they learn their unique properties and how they react with each other because getting it wrong can have disastrously flat, fizzy or fiery consequences.

The Periodic Table of Elements

The Periodic Table was devised in 1869 by Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleyev. The elements are arranged in increasing order of atomic number from left to right across the table so that elements with a similar atomic structure and chemical properties appear in vertical columns. The horizontal rows are called periods and the vertical rows are known as groups. Setting a long list of strange names to music is a tried and tested way to them. Music has a structure and flow, so if the words fit, they fly off the tongue with ease. Try replacing the lyrics of Gilbert and Sullivan’s ‘I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General’ with the list of the chemical elements – as devised by Tom Lehrer – and you will never forget them:

There’s antimony, arsenic, aluminium, selenium, And hydrogen and oxygen and nitrogen and rhenium, And nickel, neodymium, neptunium, germanium, And iron, americium, ruthenium, uranium, Europium, zirconium, lutetium, vanadium, And lanthanum and osmium and astatine and radium, And gold and protactinium and indium and gallium,

[Gasp.]

And iodine and thorium and thulium and thallium. There’s yttrium, ytterbium, actinium, rubidium, And boron, gadolinium, niobium, iridium, And strontium and silicon and silver and samarium, And bismuth, bromine, lithium, beryllium and barium. There’s holmium and helium and hafnium and erbium, And phosphorus and francium and fluorine and terbium, And manganese and mercury, molybdenum, magnesium, Dysprosium and scandium and cerium and caesium. And lead, praseodymium, and platinum, plutonium, Palladium, promethium, potassium, polonium, And tantalum, technetium, titanium, tellurium,

[Pause for deep breath.]

And cium and calcium and chromium and curium. There’s sulphur, californium, and fermium, berkelium, And also mendelevium, einsteinium, nobelium,

And argon, krypton, neon, radon, xenon, zinc and rhodium, And chlorine, carbon, cobalt, copper, tungsten, tin and sodium. These are the only ones of which the news has come to Ha’vard, And there may be many others, but they haven’t been discavard!

In addition to the 102 listed above, a few more elements have since been discovered; namely, lawrencium, rutherfordium, dubnium, seaborgium, bohrium, hassium, meitnerium, darmstadtium, roentgenium, and seven others that have yet to be named. Here are a few ways of ing the first eighteen elements in the periodic table, which occupy the first three periods:

Periods 1–2 (Elements 1–10) H He Li Be B C N O F Ne

Hydrogen Helium Lithium Beryllium Boron Carbon Nitrogen Oxygen Fluorine Neon

Happy Henry Likes Baking Big Cakes, Not Omitting Floury Nuggets

Happy Henry Likes Beer But Could Not Obtain Four Nuts

Period 3 (Elements 11–18) Na Mg Al Si P S Cl Ar

Sodium Magnesium Aluminium Silicon Phosphorus Sulphur Chlorine Argon

Naughty Magpies Always Sing Perfect Songs Clawing Ants

The Commonest Magnetic Material

The four commonest magnetic materials are Nickel, Iron, Cobalt and Steel, which can be ed by the pithy saying:

Nick Irons Creased Shirts

Oxidation and Reduction

Oxidation is the loss of an electron by a molecule, atom or ion. Reduction is the opposite, i.e. the gain of an electron by molecule, atom or ion. A simple example of an oxidation–reduction reaction (you can’t have one without the other) is the reaction of hydrogen gas with oxygen gas to form water: 2H2 + O2 = 2H2O Many students have found the OILRIG acronym an invaluable method of understanding the process:

Oxidation Is Loss (of electrons)

Reduction Is Gain (of electrons)

Parts of an Atom

PEN is possibly the simplest acronym in the history of mnemonics:

Proton, Electron, Neutron

CFCs

CFCs have invaded the language and the atmosphere. Chlorofluorocarbons were discovered in the 1920s by Thomas Midgley, an organic chemist at General Motors Corporation. They are a group of gases that are believed to contribute to global warming by eroding the ozone layer. The gases that come from leaking air conditioners, refrigerators and aerosols take ten to twenty years to reach the stratosphere and remain there for sixty-five years. Because the word chlorofluorocarbons doesn’t exactly trip off the tongue, some thoughtful soul had the idea of shortening the word to CFC, to keep this vital word in the forefront of our minds.

The Speed of Light

In the same way that it is possible to pi to different numbers of decimal places, a simple phrase also enables us to recall the speed of light in metres per second:

We guarantee certainty, clearly referring to this light mnemonic = 299,792,458 m/sec.

Chemistry Experiments: A Warning

And here’s a warning to all would-be chemists about the dangers of confusing water with sulphuric acid:

Johnny was a chemist, But Johnny is no more, For what he thought was H2O, Was H2SO4!

9

Britain: A Brief History

Because there are so many dates and lists pertaining to emperors, kings, queens and presidents associated with world history, mnemonics have proved to be a perfect way of helping us to who did what to whom, where and when.

English Kings and Queens

It’s a long roll call of names from William the Conqueror, and a long poem, but much more fun than just memorizing a list. For all its merits, though, it should be noted that the following verse misses out the nine-day reign of Lady Jane Grey in 1553 (in between the reigns of Edward VI and Mary I).

Willie, Willie, Harry, Stee, Harry, Dick, John, Harry Three, One To Three Neds, Richard Two, Harrys Four Five Six . . . then who? Edwards Four Five, Dick the Bad, Harrys twain, Ned Six the lad, Mary, Bessie, James you ken, Then Charlie, Charlie, James again . . .

Will and Mary, Anne of gloria, Georges Four!, Will Four, Victoria,

Edward Seven next, and then Came George the Fifth in 1910.

Ned the Eight soon abdicated, So George Six was coronated, (or a George was reinstated) Then number two Elizabeth. And that’s all folks, until her death . . .

(And for the probable future: Charles Three and now I’m out of breath!)

(This poem is a traditional piece and naturally has been extended over the years.)

For reference, this is the list of English kings and queens in full, divided up according to the above verse:

William I ‘the Conqueror’ (1066–87), William II ‘Rufus’ (1087–1100), Henry I (1100–35), Stephen (1135–54), Henry II (1154–89), Richard I ‘the Lionheart’ (1189–99), John (1199–1216), Henry III (1216–72), Edward I (1272–1307), Edward II (1307–27), Edward III (1327–77), Richard II (1377–1399), Henry IV (1399–1413), Henry V (1413–22), Henry VI (1422–61, 1470–1)

Edward IV (1461–70, 1471–83), Edward V (1483), Richard III (1483–5), Henry VII (1485–1509), Henry VIII (1509–47), Edward VI (1547–53), Mary I (1553– 8), Elizabeth I (1558–1603), James I (and VI of Scotland) (1603–25), Charles I (1625–49), Charles II (1660–85), James II (and VII of Scotland) (1685–8)

William III and Mary II (1689–94), William III (1694–1702), Anne (1702–14), George I (1714–27), George II (1727–60), George III (1760–1820), George IV (1820–30), William IV (1830–7), Victoria (1837–1901), Edward VII (1901–10), George V (1910–36)

Edward VIII (1936), George VI (1936–52), Elizabeth II (1952–).

British Monarchs and their Jubilees

The following simple phrase, used to represent the British monarchs who were on the throne for more than fifty years, worked perfectly until Queen Elizabeth II reached her Golden Jubilee in 2002 and overtook King Edward III in the list:

V and Three Thirds

The ‘V’ and the first three ‘third’ monarchs in question are:

Queen Victoria (1837–1901) – 64 years King George III (1760–1820) – 60 years King Henry III (1216–72) – 56 years King Edward III (1327–77) – 51 years

The Six Wives of Henry VIII

Henry VIII (1491–1547) married six times in a quest to sire a son and heir. His decision to divorce his first wife and remarry was the root of the break with the Catholic Church in Rome and the dissolution of the monasteries.

m. 1510 – Catherine of Aragon (mother of Mary I) m. 1533 – Anne Boleyn (mother of Elizabeth I) m. 1536 – Jane Seymour (mother of Edward VI) m. 1540 – Anne of Cleves m. 1540 – Catherine Howard m. 1543 – Catherine Parr

This is a rhythmic couplet used to their first names:

Kate ’n’ Anne ’n’ Jane, ’n’ Anne ’n’ Kate again ’n’ again!

Using the initial letters of their surnames gives the phrase:

All Boys Should Come Home, Please

This memorable rhyme reveals the fate of Henry VIII’s respective wives:

Divorced, beheaded, died, Divorced, beheaded, survived.

British Royal Dynasties

From William the Conqueror to the current British monarch, there have been eight major royal houses since 1066: Norman Plantagenet Lancaster York Tudor Stuart Hanover Windsor

(1066–1135) (1154–1399) (1399–1461; 1470–1) (1461–70, 1471–85) (1485–1603) (1603–49; 1660–1714) (1714–1901) (1901–to date)

As the NPLYTSHW list doesn’t exactly trip off the tongue, these well-known phrases have been used as a more effective memory aid:

No Plan Like Yours To Study History Wisely

No Point Letting Your Tros Slip Half Way

The Wars of the Roses

The battles between the Yorkists (white rose) and Lancastrians (red rose) were a series of intermittent civil wars fought over the English throne between 1455 and 1487. Although the white and red roses were emblems of each house, the ‘Wars of the Roses’ were not so called until the sixteenth century. The name derives from a scene in Shakespeare’s Henry VI Part 1 in which the two sides pick different coloured roses at the Temple Church in London.

St Albans (first battle, 1455) Blore Heath (1459) Northampton (1460) Wakefield (1460) Mortimer’s Cross (1461) St Albans (second battle, 1461) Towton (1461) Hedgeley Moor (1464) Hexham (1464) Barnet (1471) Tewkesbury (1471) Bosworth (1487)

To recall all the battles in chronological order, the phrase that follows has proved a useful saying for students of British history:

A Boy Now Will Mention All The Hot Horrid Battles Till Bosworth

The Great Fire of London, 1666

To the year when the Great Fire of London ruined the medieval City of London from 2 to 5 September 1666, a pictorial mnemonic has often been used: think of the three sixes in 1666 resembling smoking chimneys on the skyline of the City of London. Interestingly, when the year 1666 is set out in Roman numerals, it uses every letter once in descending order:

MDCLXVI

Marlborough’s Victories

Here’s how history scholars have been taught to the four important victories of John Churchill, first Duke of Marlborough, in the War of the Spanish Succession (1702–13). The battles in question are:

Blenheim, 1704

Ramillies, 1706

Ouidenarde, 1708

Malplaquet, 1709

Think of this code, BROM 4689, as an old-fashioned telephone number, using the initial capital letter of each battle location alongside the last digit of the year in which each battle was fought. The disputes with were ignited when King Charles II of Spain died without an heir. The Duke of Marlborough led a Grand Alliance comprising Britain, the Netherlands and Austria against the expanding French armies.

King George III (1760–1820)

The year that George III took the throne equals the number of yards in a mile, and from this coincidence a short verse was devised to aid maths and history scholars alike:

George the Third said with a smile, ‘Seventeen-sixty yards in a mile.’

Nelson’s Injuries

During the Napoleonic Wars Nelson sustained numerous injuries. In 1794, at the Siege of Calvi, he lost the sight in his right eye when he was hit in the face by stone splinters after a cannonball hit a nearby building. Three years later, during an attack on the Spanish base of Santa Cruz in the Canary Islands, Nelson’s right arm was shattered by grapeshot and had to be amputated. So, to which parts of his anatomy Nelson lost in the course of duty, think EAR:

Eye, Arm – Right

10

World History

The Greek Philosophers

The names of the three most important Greek philosophers, in order of their dates of birth and also their influence, are:

Socrates (469–399 BC) Plato (c.429–c.347 BC) Aristotle (384–322 BC)

Socrates taught Plato and Plato taught Aristotle. Together they created the foundations of Western philosophy. Use your visual memory and imagine one or all of them meditating in a health SPA. Or think of the phrase: Smart People of Athens.

Roman Emperors

After Julius Caesar, the Roman general and statesman who became dictator of the Roman Empire before his assassination in 44 BC, the first five emperors of Rome were all Caesars. The first Emperor was Julius Caesar’s adopted son (and great-nephew), Augustus, who handed down the title to his son-in-law Tiberius. From Augustus to Nero, Caesar’s descendants, by adoption, marriage or birth, all inherited the family name:

Augustus Tiberius Caligula Claudius Nero

(31 BC–AD 14) (AD 14–37) (AD 37–41) (AD 41–54) (AD 54–68)

Here’s a phrase to help the names by which they were most commonly known:

Another Tom Cat Caught Napping

The next six Roman emperors after Nero are Galba, Otho, Vitellius, Vespasian, Titus, Domitian:

At The Cat Club Never Give Out Violent Vermin To Dogs

The Seven Wonders of the World

The seven wonders of the ancient world were chronicled in the second century BC, but a list was discovered in The Histories of Herodotus in the fifth century BC. The final list of amazing monuments to religion, mythology and art was compiled in the Middle Ages.

1. Statue of Zeus at Olympia

2. Lighthouse (Pharos) of Alexandria

3. Mausoleum of Halicarnassus

4. Pyramids of Egypt

5. Hanging Gardens of Babylon

6. Temple of Artemis at Ephesus

7. Colossus of Rhodes

This mnemonic phrase has proved useful in ing the seven wonders:

Seems Like Mata Hari Picked Her Targets Carefully

Mythological Matters

Mnemosyne is the Greek goddess of memory, daughter of Gaia and Uranus. She lay with Zeus for nine nights and gave birth to the nine Muses: Calliope, Euterpe, Clio, Erato, Melpomene, Polyhymnia, Terpsichore, Thalia and Urania.

Carol Eats Crumpets, Even More Plump Teas Than Usual

Carl Even Calls Eleven Men Plucky Thomas Tank’s Uncles

In classical art, the Muses are represented by emblems or mnemonic symbols, of which the masks of comedy and tragedy are probably the most familiar.

Name Calliope Euterpe Clio Erato Melpomene Polyhymnia Terpsichore Thalia Urania

Association Mnemonic symbol chief of the muses and muse of epic poetry writing tablet muse of music flute muse of history scroll and books muse of love poetry lyre and crown of roses muse of tragedy tragic mask muse of sacred poetry pensive expression muse of dance dancing with a lyre muse of comedy comic mask muse of astronomy staff and celestial globe

Joan of Arc

Also known as the Maid of Orléans, Joan of Arc (c.1412–31) was a French national heroine. She claimed that it was God’s mission for her to reclaim her homeland from English domination towards the end of the Hundred Years War. She triumphed at the Siege of Orléans in 1429, which led to Charles VII’s coronation at Reims, but was later captured at a skirmish near Compiègne. The English regent John of Lancaster, first Duke of Bedford, had her burned at the stake at Rouen aged only nineteen. She was canonized in 1920. This mnemonic phrase describes the short career of Jeanne d’Arc:

ORLEANS CAMPAIGN RUIN

Orleans – victory – 1429 Compiègne – capture – 1430 Rouen – trial and death – 1431

Christopher Columbus Discovers America

The following verse was devised by American poet and former child prodigy Winifred Sackville Stoner Jr (1902–83). She was best known for writing mnemonic rhymes and poems to help people recall important information, particularly for educational purposes. One of her most famous poems is ‘The History of the US’, which starts with some lines on Christopher Columbus’ discovery of the New World in 1492:

In fourteen hundred, ninety-two, Columbus sailed the ocean blue. And found this land, land of the Free, beloved by you, beloved by me.

The Pilgrim Fathers

In 1620, the colonists of North America, known collectively as the Pilgrim Fathers, sailed in the Mayflower from Plymouth in England to America, landing at Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The following short verse makes use of the twenty-four-hour clock to remind Americans when their fore-fathers first settled in the area:

It’s twenty past four,

Let’s go ashore.

US History in Brief

Other rhymes or phrases to recall aspects of American history include:

1776 – Signature of the American Declaration of Independence. The number of letters in each word in the following sentence stands for a numeral in the date:

I sighted Thomas’s rights.

Winifred Sackville Stoner Jr’s take on how we should the date of the Declaration of Independence goes like this:

Year seventeen hundred seventy-six, July the fourth, this date please fix Within your minds, my children dear, for that was Independence Year.

And regarding the dark days of the American Civil War, she wrote:

In eighteen hundred and sixty-one, an awful war was then begun

Between the brothers of our land, who now together firmly stand.

Presidents of the USA

To date there have been forty-three US Presidents, which would make an incredibly long and complicated mnemonic phrase. The names of the first eleven Presidents are:

George Washington (1789–97) John Adams (1797–1801) Thomas Jefferson (1801–9) James Madison (1809–17) James Monroe (1817–25) John Quincy Adams (1825–9) Andrew Jackson (1829–37) Martin van Buren (1837–41) William Henry Harrison (1841) John Tyler (1841–5) James Polk (1845–9)

Here’s a question to ponder to help recall the first eleven:

Will A Jolly Man Make A Just

But Harshly Treated President?

And if eleven is too many to , here’s a phrase for the first seven:

Washington And Jefferson Made Many A Joke

The names of the middle American Presidents are:

Zachary Taylor (1849–50) Millard Fillmore (1850–3) Franklin Pierce (1853–7) James Buchanan (1857–61) Abraham Lincoln (1861–5) Andrew Johnson (1865–9) Ulysses S. Grant (1869–77) Rutherford B. Hayes (1877–81) James Garfield (1881) Chester Arthur (1881–5) Grover Cleveland (1885–9) Benjamin Harrison (1889–93) Grover Cleveland (1893–7)

William McKinley (1897–1901)

To recall this eminent list of fourteen, keep in mind the following phrase:

Taylor Felt Proud But Lincoln Just Grinned Happily, Gargling, And Could Hardly Contain McKinley

And finally, the Presidents of the twentieth century:

Theodore Roosevelt (1901–9) William H. Taft (1909–13) Woodrow Wilson (1913–21) Warren Harding (1921–3) Calvin Coolidge (1923–9) Herbert Hoover (1929–33) Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933–45) Harry S. Truman (1945–53) Dwight Eisenhower (1953–61) John F. Kennedy (1961–3) Lyndon B. Johnson (1963–9) Richard Nixon (1969–74)

Gerald Ford (1974–7) Jimmy Carter (1977–81) Ronald Reagan (1981–9) George H. W. Bush (1989–93) William J. Clinton (1993–2001)

Though it’s quite a lengthy list, this saying might just make life easier:

Theodore Takes Wilson’s Hand, Cool Hoovering Franklin’s True Experiences. Ken, Justly Noted For Candour, Ruled But Coolly

The Heads on Mount Rushmore

Mount Rushmore is a world-famous national memorial in South Dakota that represents the first 150 years of American history with 60-foot-high granite carvings of the heads of four great US presidents: Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln and Roosevelt.

We Just Like Rushmore

11

Musical Interlude

Music can be a mnemonic device just by itself: many of us learned the alphabet to the well-known tune and rhythm of ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’. Similarly, rs use musical jingles to remind us of their products. For example, in just three descending notes composed by Johnny Johnson in 1967 we have: ‘Beanz Meanz Heinz.’ And who can forget the immortal line: ‘Do the Shake’n’Vac and put the freshness back’?

Musical Notes

The first seven letters of the alphabet (A, B, C, D, E, F, G) are used in musical notation, which at least helps to keep things nice and simple. In the 1965 film The Sound of Music, Julie Andrews’s character Maria makes the learning of music seem so easy.

Do–Re–Mi–Fa–So–La–Ti

Do = doe – a female deer Re = ray – a drop of golden sun Mi = me – a name I call myself Fa = far – a long, long way to run So = sew – a needle pulling thread La = la – a note to follow ‘so’ Ti = tea – a drink with jam and bread

Musical Staves

Learning to read music notation is almost impossible without the use of mnemonic tools. The musical stave is the set of five lines and four spaces on which notes indicate pitch and rhythm. The treble stave (or clef), indicating higher notes, is generally played with the right hand on the piano, and the bass stave (or clef), indicating lower notes, with the left hand.

Treble Clef: Lines

The notes on the lines of the treble clef are, from the lowest, E, G, B, D, F. They can be ed with the following old chestnut:

Every Good Boy Deserves Favour

Other variations include:

Every Glasgow Bus Drives Fast

Every Good Bird Does Fly

Every Good Boy Deserves Fruit

Treble Clef: Spaces

The notes on the spaces on the treble clef are, from the lowest, F, A, C, E. This pithy rhyme should help with learning the order of notes:

If the note’s in a space, together they spell FACE.

Bass Clef: Lines

The order of notes on the lines of the bass clef are G, B, D, F, A. ‘Good boys’ feature once again in the catchy phrase devised to help musicians the basics:

Good Boys Deserve Fruit Always

(‘Fruit’ can, of course, be substituted for another more suitable f-word if necessary.) Other variations include:

Good Boys Don’t Fool Around

Great Big Dogs Fight Always

Good Bikes Don’t Fall Apart

Great Big Ducks Fly Away

Gentle Brown Donkeys Favour Apples

Bass Clef: Spaces

And thus it follows that the notes in the spaces of the bass clef are A, C, E, G. The following sayings act as a useful reminder of the four-note order:

All Cows Eat Grass

All Cars Eat Gas

All Cats Eat Goldfish

Musical Chord Progression

Music theory is not rocket science. There are twelve notes in Western music and all you need to do is add, subtract, multiply and divide. The notes – B, C, C#, D, D#, E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A# – are all half a tone apart. Major or minor chords are made up of the root note and the higher third and fifth notes, plus the seventh or eighth. The standard progression of chords is based on taking the fifth note as the root for the next chord. For example, in an F chord the fifth note is C, therefore the next chord is in the key of C, then G and so on: F, C, G, D, A, E, B:

Father Charles Goes Down And Ends Battle

Other variations include:

Father Christmas Gets Drunk After Every Beer

Fat Cats Go Deaf After Eating Bats

Five Cool Guys Danced Away Every Beat

And in reverse for the flat keys the mnemonic can be reversed: B, E, A, D, G, C, F:

Battle Ends And Down Goes Charles’s Father

Bottles Empty And Down Goes Charles’s Father

Be Exciting And Daring, Go Climb Fences

Choral Voices

There are four different voice ranges that one can hear in a quartet whose initial letters helpfully spell out STAB:

Soprano Tenor Alto Bass

Musical Modes or Scales

The modes as based on the white piano keys beginning at C are:

Ionian mode – the familiar major scale in which most popular music is written.

Dorian mode – most often heard in Celtic music, with a melancholy feel.

Phrygian mode – used especially by guitar soloists in counterpoint to an Ionian mode.

Lydian mode – popular in jazz music, with a mix of major and minor chord progressions.

Mixolydian mode – major feel with minor intervals and popular with soloists as a counterpoint to an Ionian mode.

Aeolian mode – in a minor key and produces a sense of sadness.

Locrian mode – the intervals are considered unsatisfactory and most composers find it unworkable.

Named after Greek cities that are thought to reflect the moods of the seven modes, one way of ing the order of the modes is to recall this phrase:

I Don’t Play Like My Aunt Lucy

12

Foreign Tongues

French Plurals with an X

Here’s a verse to tell you which French nouns require the letter ‘x’ rather than ‘s’, when they are used in the plural:

Bijou, caillou, chou, Genou, hibou, joujou . . . Pou!

The English translation of the verse is:

Jewel, pebble, cabbage, Knee, owl, toy . . . Flea!

Or commit this rhyme to memory:

Mes choux, mes bijoux, Lassez vous joujoux, Venez sur mes genoux!

Regardez ces mauvais petits garçons, Qui jettent des cailloux a ces pauvres hiboux!

Counting to Six in French

The correct words for one to six in French are un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq and six. Try to picture this dark story of how to control the cat population:

Un, deux, trois, cat sank – cease, please!

French Verbs Using Être

All French verbs that use être in the perfect tense rather than avoir indicate a particular kind of movement. The thirteen main verbs (and four derivatives) can be recalled using the popular mnemonic phrase Dr & Mrs P Vandertramp:

Devenir Revenir & Monter Rester Sortir er Venir Aller Naître Descendre En

Alternatively, the acronym ADVENT is another useful way to recall the main être verbs. Each letter stands for one of the verbs and its opposite, with the thirteenth verb retourner standing alone.

Arriver – Partir Descendre – Monter Venir – Aller Entrer – Sortir Naître – Mourir Tomber – Rester Retourner

Japanese Vowels

The pronunciation and lexical ordering of the Japanese vowels is AIUEO. Using this short phrase you can understand the exact pronunciation of the vowels:

Ah we soon get old

Counting to Ten in Japanese

Numeral 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Japanese word Sounds like Ichi Itchy Ni Knee San Sun Shi She Go Go Roko Rocko Shichi Shi Shi Hachi Hatchy Kyu Queue Ju Jew

Days of the Week in French, Spanish and Italian

The seven-day week has been with us for almost 2,000 years. The Romans allocated one of the seven planets to each of the days of the week: the sun, moon and the five planets that shine brightly in the night sky – Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus and Saturn.

By recalling the planets after which the days were named, it helps to jog the memory when ing the days of the week in the Latin-based languages. This traditional rhyme is derived from some of the characteristics of the planets:

Monday’s child is fair of face, Tuesday’s child is full of grace, Wednesday’s child is full of woe, Thursday’s child has far to go; Friday’s child is loving and giving, Saturday’s child works hard for a living, But the child that is born on the Sabbath day Is bonny and blithe, good and gay.

The Greek Alphabet

For those wishing to learn the Greek alphabet, you can memorize the order of the twenty-four letters by singing along to the tune of ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’, but if you’re no longer a child it might be better not to practise out loud . . .

Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta, Epsilon, Zeta, Eta, Theta, Iota, Kappa, Lambda, Mu, Nu, Xi, Omicron, Pi, Rho, Sigma, Tau, Upsilon, Phi, Chi, Psi kai Omega.

NB: (kai) means ‘and’ in Greek.

The Runic Alphabet

The Runic alphabet is also known as FUTHARK, after the first six letters in the alphabet – namely f, u, th, a, r, and k. Runes were used by Scandinavians and Anglo-Saxons around the third century. There are twenty-four letters comprising eighteen consonants and six vowels. The Runic characters are a series of glyphs that represent sounds and ideas, based on the hieroglyphs of Ancient Egypt. They were not only used to convey sacred meaning, but also mysteries and secrets. It is not known why the letters were ordered in this way, but the word FUTHARK is thought to be an ancient mnemonic.

13

Religious Matters

For Christians, most of the religious tuition we received as children would have been at Sunday school or in religious-education classes. As well as listening to countless Bible stories, there were also many rhymes and sayings we were taught that simplified certain matters of religion, which helped keep the vast subjects of the Old and New Testaments more clearly in mind.

The Twelve Apostles

The twelve chief followers of Jesus are recalled in a well-known Sunday-school rhyme:

This is the way the disciples run Peter, Andrew, James and John Philip and Bartholomew Thomas next and Matthew, too. James the less and Judas the greater Simon the zealot and Judas the traitor.

An alternative shorter method uses the following line:

Bart And John Fill (Phil) Tom’s Matt with 2 Jameses, 2 Simons* and 2 Judases.

*Peter was originally Simon or Simon-Peter, hence there are two Simons in the second verse.

The Four Gospels

With regard to the first four books of the New Testament (the Gospels), various rhymes have been devised to help children to them (and their order) more easily.

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John Went to bed with their tros on.

The above verse is probably derived from the following traditional poem, of which there are two versions:

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John Bless the bed that I lie on; Before I lay me down to sleep, I give my soul to Christ to keep.

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John Bless the bed that I lie on; Four corners to my bed, Four angels round my head;

One to watch, one to pray, And two to bear my soul away!

The Ten Commandments

The Ten Commandments are a list of rules for living a good and moral life. According to the Old Testament they are the word of God, inscribed on two stone tablets and given to Moses on Mount Sinai. James Muirden, author of The Rhyming Bible, has cleverly summed them up in an unforgettable verse comprising six rhyming couplets:

The First Law set by God in stone reads Worship me, and me alone! The next says Idols are profane; the Third, don’t take my Name in vain; the Fourth says keep the Seventh Day free; the Fifth, treat Parents properly; the Sixth says Murdering is wrong (you knew the Seventh all along*); the Eighth is crystal clear on Thieving, as is the Ninth, on Not Deceiving; and now the last of all His laws – don’t Covet things that are not yours.

*The Seventh, of course, forbids adultery.

We can also remind ourselves of the commandments with this cheeky sentence:

One idle damn Sunday, Dad killed cheating thief and lied to cover it.

i.e. one God; no idols; don’t swear; keep the Sabbath; honour your father (and mother); don’t kill; don’t commit adultery; don’t steal; don’t bear false witness; don’t covet.

Books of the Old Testament

Although there are a total of thirty-nine books in the Old Testament, this memorable verse has made it much easier to them all in order:

That great Jehovah speaks to us, In Genesis and Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers see, Followed by Deuteronomy, Joshua and Judges sway the land, Ruth gleans a sheaf with trembling hand; Samuel and numerous Kings appear, Whose Chronicles we wondering hear. Ezra and Nehemiah now, Esther, the beauteous mourner show. Job speaks in sighs, David in Psalms, The Proverbs teach to scatter alms. Ecclesiastes then come on, And the sweet Song of Solomon. Isaiah, Jeremiah then,

With Lamentations takes his pen, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea’s lyres, Swell Joel, Amos, Obadiah’s. Next Jonah, Micah, Nahum come, And lofty Habakkuk finds room. While Zephaniah, Haggai calls, Rapt Zechariah builds his walls, And Malachi, with garments rent, Concludes the Ancient Testament.

The Ten Biblical Plagues of Egypt

From Exodus 7:14–12:36, these are the ten catastrophes that God inflicted upon Egypt:

River to blood Frogs Lice Flies Murrain (disease) Boils Hail Locusts Darkness Firstborn

If the list proves too tricky to , the following sentence is a memorable means of recalling the order and initial letter of each plague:

Retreating From Long Flight McDonald Battered Hostile Leader Demanding Fries

The Seven Deadly Sins

We have seven days of the week, seven colours in the rainbow, seven wonders of the world, and for those who have not taken their Bible studies to heart, we have seven deadly sins:

Anger, Pride, Covetousness, Lust, Sloth, Envy, Greed

To help make the list of sins easier to memorize, some God-fearing person devised the following mnemonic phrase:

All Private Colleges Leave Serious Educational Gaps

Or to put it another way:

Pride, Envy, Wrath, Sloth, Avarice, Gluttony, Lust

PEWS ’Ave GLu

The Ten States of Mind

In the Buddhist construct, there are ten states of mind:

1. Hell, the state of suffering 2. Hunger, the state of base needs 3. Animalism, the state of beastly power 4. Anger, the state of loathing 5. Neutrality, the state of neither one thing nor another 6. Rapture, the state of joy 7. Learning, the state of being mentally open 8. Realization, the state of receiving/living wisdom 9. Bodhisattva, the state of comion 10. Buddha, the state of perfection

All of which mental agony and ecstasy gives us:

Has Hannah Arranged All Novices Running Late, Required Before Buddha?

14

The Human Body

Young medics are faced with masses of dull and lengthy lists of complicated words that represent the workings of the human body. Without a wide range of useful and often amusing memory aids, it would be impossible for them to everything.

The Vital Processes of Life

Collectively, these are known as MRS GREN:

Movement, Respiration, Sensitivity, Growth, Reproduction, Excretion, Nutrition

The Human Brain

The brain is the most complex structure at the nub of all human decisions, communications and activities. The cerebral cortex is divided into four sections or lobes:

Frontal, Parietal, Occipital, Temporal

First Place Often Trounces

Cranial Bones

Occipital, Parietal, Frontal, Temporal, Ethmoid, Sphenoid

Old People From Texas Eat Spiders

Cranial Nerves

How many med students learned the twelve cranial nerves sung to the tune of ‘The Twelve Days of Christmas’? The first and second verses start off:

I (Olfactory) On the first nerve of the cranium, my true love gave to me: My sense olfactory.

II (Optic) On the second nerve of the cranium, my true love gave to me: Two eyes a-looking, And my sense olfactory.

The song gets quite lengthy, so the final verse is:

XII (Hypoglossal) On the twelfth nerve of the cranium, my true love gave to me: Twelve lovely lickings, (Hypoglossal) Eleven heads a-tilting, (Spinal accessory) Ten heartbeats a minute, (Vagus) Nine quick swallows, (Glossopharyngeal) Eight sounds, and balance, (Auditory) Seven funny faces, (Facial) Six sideways glances, (Abducens)

Mas-ti-ca-tion! (Trigeminal) Four superior oblique muscles, (Trochlear) Three cross-eyed glances, (Oculomotor) Two eyes a-looking, (Optic) And my sense olfactory. (Olfactory)

In addition to the song, there is also a catchy phrase to recall when ing the names of the cranial nerves:

On Old Olympus’s Towering Top, A Fat-Arsed German Viewed Some Hops

Bones of the Human Body

BONES OF THE UPPER LIMB OR ARM: Scapula, Clavicle, Humerus, Ulna, Radius, Carpals, Metacarpals, Phalanges

Some Crooks Have Underestimated Royal Canadian Mounted Police

BONES OF THE LOWER LIMB OR LEG: Hip, Femur, Patella, Tibia, Fibula, Tarsals, Metatarsals, Phalanges

Help Five Police To Find Ten Missing Prisoners

BONES OF THE WRIST (CARPAL): Scaphoid, Lunate, Triquetrum, Pisiform, Trapezium, Trapezoid, Capitate, Hamate

Some Lovers Try Positions That They Can’t Handle

VERTEBRAE OR BONES OF THE SPINAL COLUMN (SUPERIOR TO INFERIOR): Cervical, Dorsal,* Lumbar, Sacrum, Coccyx

Clever Dick Looks Silly Clot!

Canned Tuna Looks So Cramped

* Dorsal vertebrae are also known as Thoracic, hence the alternative phrase.

SHOULDER MUSCLES OR ROTATOR CUFF Teres minor, Infraspinatus, Supraspinatus, Subscapular

Tarts In Silk Stockings

Bone Fracture Types

Once medical students have learned the names of the bones, they can use the GO C3PO acronym to learn the ways in which the bones can get broken.

Greenstick, Open, Complete/Closed/Comminuted, Partial, Others

Skin Layers

Mnemonic sentences help medics to the order of skin layers or nerves so that when they become surgeons and start brandishing scalpels, they can identify which bit to cut through first. They use the aptly named SCALP acronym:

Skin, Connective tissue, Aponeurosis, Loose areolar tissue, Periosteum

Excretion

For the excretory organs of the body, think SKILL:

Skin, Kidneys, Intestines, Liver, Lungs

The Properties of Bile

Here’s a catchy ditty to keep the properties of bile in mind:

Bile from the liver emulsifies greases Tinges the urine and colours the faeces Aids peristalsis, prevents putrefaction If you all this you’ll give satisfaction.

For doctors dealing with patients who are possible suicide risks, the SAD PERSONS checklist always come in handy:

Sex (male or female) Age (old or young) Depression Previous suicide attempts Ethanol and other drugs Reality testing/Rational thought (loss of) Social lacking Organized suicide plan

No spouse Sickness/Stated future intent

Signs of Mania

Medics have to DIG FAST to identify key symptoms of manic behaviour:

Distractibility Indiscretion (‘excessive involvement in pleasurable activities’) Grandiosity Flight of ideas Activity increase Sleep deficit (decreased need for sleep) Talkativeness (pressured speech)

The Heart

The signs of heart failure are ABCDE:

Acidosis, Blue skin, Cold skin, Dilated heart, Edema (oedema in the UK)

Signs of Schizophrenia

If doctors suspect a patient may have schizophrenia, they will check for WHID:

Withdrawn, Hallucinations Inappropriate emotional response, Delusions

Signs of Anxiety Disorder

Your GP will test for MR FISC if you’re suffering from GAD – General Anxiety Disorder:

Motor tension Restlessness Fatigue Irritability Sleep disturbances Concentration difficulty

Hangover Signs

You know you’ve a hangover when you feel like SHIT:

Shakes/Seizures/Sweats/Stomach pains Hallucinosis (auditory) Increased vitals/Insomnia Tremens (delirium tremens – the lethal part)

Fever Facts

Your doctor will check the FACTS to diagnose influenza or just ‘man flu’, i.e. a cold:

Fever Aches Chills Tiredness Sudden symptoms

Vitamins Are Good For You

We all need vitamins to maintain a good level of health. This rhyme reminds us of the important qualities of each and every vitamin: Vitamin A keeps the cold germs away And tends to make meek people nervy, B’s what you need When you’re going to seed, And C is specific in scurvy. Vitamin D makes the bones in your knee Tough and hard for the service on Sunday, While E makes hens scratch And increases the hatch And brings in more profits on Monday. Vitamin F never bothers the chef For this vitamin never existed. G puts the fight in the old appetite And you eat all the foods that are listed. So now when you dine these lines; If long on this globe you will tarry.

Just try to be good and pick out more food From the orchard, the garden and dairy.

Doctors’ Shorthand

Doctors-to-be develop their sense of humour as students and refine it throughout their careers. Consequently, doctors have been known to write F BUNDY on patients’ notes if the prognosis is grim:

F***ed But Unfortunately Not Dead Yet

15

Life-Saving Tips

Reminding yourself of how to save a life might be the best thing you ever do, so pay attention and refresh your memory of the many first-aid-related acronyms in existence.

The main aim of First Aid is the 3 Ps:

Preserve life Prevent deterioration in the patient’s condition Promote recovery

ABC is the traditional and essential way to what to check when istering cardiopulmonary resuscitation on a casualty:

Airway Breathing Circulation

Here are two lots of 3 Bs to when dealing with an accident victim:

Check Breath Before Blood (flow) And then Blood Before Bones

Keep calm in an emergency and think AMEGA:

Assess the situation Make the area safe Emergency aid Get help Aftermath

How alert is your casualty? Check for AVPU:

Alert Voice Pain Unconscious

Is the casualty in circulatory shock? Look for PCFATS:

Pale Cold and Clammy skin Fast pulse Anxious Thirsty Sick

Assess the injuries. Look at areas of soft tissue and bones and think RICE:

Rest Ice/Immobilize Compression Elevation

If your casualty is lucid, ask these AMPLE questions:

Allergies – do they have any? Medication – are they taking any? Past history – do they have any prior medical problems? Last meal – what/when did they last eat? Environment – do they know where they are?

If the injured party is in a coma, it could be caused by any of the following MIDAS problems:

Meningitis Intoxication Diabetes Air (respiratory failure) Subdural/Subarachnoid haemorrhage

Or by COMA:

CO2 (carbon dioxide) and CO (carbon monoxide) excess Overdose: drugs such as insulin, paracetamol, etc. Metabolic: BSL (blood sugar level), Na+ (sodium), K+ (potassium), Mg²+ (magnesium), urea, ammonia, etc. Apoplexy: stroke, meningitis, encephalitis, cerebral abscess, etc.

Keep the word FAST in mind when assessing the condition of a possible stroke victim:

Face: is one side of the face drooping downwards?

Arm: can the person raise both arms? Speech: is the person’s speech slurred or confusing; is the person unable to speak? Time: time is critical. Call an ambulance immediately.

If you witness a person collapsing, what could have caused it? Think I’VE FALLEN:

Illness Vestibular (balance problem) Environmental Feet or Footwear Alcohol and/or drugs Low blood pressure Low oxygen status Ears or Eyes Neuropathy

Is the patient in shock? If so, he/she might be suffering from any one of the Royal Navy CHAMPS range of shocks:

Respiratory Neurogenic Cardiogenic Haemorrhagic Anaphylactic Metabolic Psychogenic Septic

Survival Techniques

If it’s a case of personal survival out in the wilds, use extreme survival expert Ray Mears’s word STOP:

Stop Take inventory Orientate Plan

Mr Mears also has a useful way for reminding himself of a checklist for his vehicle before setting out on a journey, using the acronym PETROL:

Petrol, Electrolyte (i.e. battery), Tyres, Radiator, Oil, Lights

In the event of discovering a fire, think FIRE.

Find the fire Inform people by shouting out Restrict the spread of fire (if it is safe to do so) Evacuate the area/Extinguish the fire (if it is safe to do so)

Driving a Car

Mirror Signal Manoeuvre is an essential phrase drummed into all learner drivers, but it’s one that drivers should never forget. Say it to yourself before you start, turn, change lane, reverse and stop. It’s a motorist’s way of applying the ‘Look Before You Leap’ principle. Don’t forget to belt up too:

‘Clunk Click, Every Trip.’

Road Safety

When learning to cross the road, British children of all ages have been strongly advised to these lifesaving lines:

Look Right, Look Left, Then Right Again Stop, Look and Listen

The Green Cross Code campaign was launched in the early 1970s, and the ‘Green Cross’ character was played by David Prowse, of Darth Vader fame. His memorable slogan was: ‘I won’t be there when you cross the road / So always use the Green Cross Code.’ Doctor Who actor Jon Pertwee also had a Green Cross Code role in a 1976 public information film, in which he gave us the quirky mnemonic SPLINK, which stood for:

Find a Safe place to cross Stand on the Pavement Look for traffic If traffic is coming, let it When there is No traffic near, walk across the road Keep looking and listening for traffic as you cross

The campaign continues today with the help of animated hedgehogs helping kids to this simplified six-part list:

1. Think first 2. Stop 3. Use your eyes and ears 4. Wait until it’s safe to cross 5. Look and listen 6. Arrive alive

16

The World of Work

The world of business and employment can be a cutthroat one, which is why it helps to be ahead of the game and gain an advantage over competitors whether they be individuals or entire companies.

Business Internet Domain Names

As with all aspects of selling yourself, choosing a name for your website is as vital as any other way of making sure people notice your business and, most importantly, it. Here’s the list that the UK Freeserve website defined as the key to success: RAIL

Recall Aesthetics Impressions Length

Will the name be easy to ? How will the name look on the screen or on paper? First impressions always count. Keep it short and sweet. Less is definitely more.

Business Presentations

In any type of public meeting, seminar or lecture, never forget your ABC and always be:

Accurate, Brief and Clear

PPPPP

To give a good presentation, plan ahead and the 5 Ps:

Proper Planning Prevents Poor Performance

PRIDE

Whatever line of work you’re in – take PRIDE in what you’re doing:

Personal Responsibility In Daily Efforts

To B or not to B

Be Brave and Believe; and don’t be Boring or Bashful.

KISS

No matter how you earn a living, never forget to:

Keep It Simple, Stupid

The KISS acronym is applied from principles of business, advertising, computer operating systems to science and learning. Albert Einstein’s maxim was: ‘Everything should be made as simple as possible, but no simpler.’

SWOT Analysis

SWOT is a study of four crucial elements of a business’s planning process:

Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats

Never ASSUME Anything

Every business person knows that assumption is the mother of all screw-ups:

To assume makes an ASS out of U and ME.

Office Egos

In the world of employment and life in general it’s sometimes wise to keep your ego under control to avoid making enemies of at least half the population. Stick to the FASTA technique:

Focus on your goals, not just on yourself. Ask for other people’s opinions. You can learn from others. Say thank you. Always a good idea in any situation. Treat everyone as your equal. Other people know stuff that you don’t. Allow yourself to fail. We learn from our mistakes.

Sales Techniques

If you have something to sell, always PLAN in advance:

Prepare with research (don’t forget your 5 Ps) Lose time, lose all Analyse the situation Never just call (always have a good reason to make if you are making a ‘cold call’)

During a sales pitch, meeting or presentation, these should be your AIMS:

Arrest the senses Interest by questions and novelty Move by proof and demonstration Succeed in getting a ‘yes’

Think ETC after the pitch has been made:

Evaluate the outcome Teach yourself and others Check for results

How to Interview

The first mnemonic a journalist learns is the five Ws and the H. The worst moment during an interview is when the subject gives only yes or no answers. Phrasing a question with these words gets people talking and should prevent single-word replies.

Who? When? Where? What? Why? How?

SMART

This mnemonic is used for setting goals and it’s a powerful tool for personal planning and kickstarting your career. Setting goals is all about knowing what you want to achieve and where to concentrate your efforts. You have to be SMART! Your daily ‘to do’ list must be:

Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time bound

AIDA

rs need people to which products to buy and so they design arresting images and messages for us consumers. The key principles of advertising are:

Attract Attention – ‘Look at that!’ Arouse Interest – ‘Mmm, that looks interesting!’ Create Desire – ‘I want it!’ Urge Action – ‘Now!’

Job Interview Techniques

Preparation for meetings is vital in business and job interviews are possibly the most important meetings in business life. Your aim at an interview is to sell yourself – you are the product. Hence the need for the STAR system:

Situation – Describe your previous experience of situations that you have managed successfully. TAsk – Give details of exactly how you managed the situation. What was your contribution to the task? A tip from the professionals – don’t make it up and don’t exaggerate because you’ll be found out! Result – Congratulations. You’re hired!

17

A Miscellany of Mnemonics

Champagne Bottles

Name Capacity Quarter 18.75 cl Half-bottle 37.5 cl Bottle 75 cl Magnum 1.5 l Jeroboam 3 l Rehoboam 4.5 l Methuselah 6 l Salmanazar 9 l Balthazar 12 l Nebuchadnezzar 15 l

No. of Bottles – – 1 2 4 6 8 12 16 20

One way to recall the names of differently sized bottles of champagne is to think of a detective in the company of some ancient men:

Magnum – 1980s TV private detective (or ice cream or gun) Jeroboam – founder and first King of Israel,931–910 BC Rehoboam – son of Solomon, King of Judah,922–908 BC Methuselah – biblical patriarch who lived to the age of 969 Salmanazar – King of Assyria, 859–824 BC Balthazar – son of Nabonide, Regent of Babylon, 539 BC Nebuchadnezzar – King of Babylon, 605–562 BC

Otherwise this rude mnemonic could jog your memory:

My Joanna Really Makes Splendid Burping Noises

Alcohol Tips

Few people need tips on drinking alcohol, but some drinkers swear by the advice offered in this rhyme:

Beer on whisky? Very risky! Whisky on beer, never fear . . .

We all know that mixing drinks isn’t a wise thing to do, but the warning quote below says it succinctly and honestly:

Never mix grape with the grain.

Steering a Boat

If you find yourself behind the wheel of a boat, it helps to recall which side of the boat is port (the left side with red lights) and starboard (the right side with green lights). Fortunately, there are several ways to jog one’s memory:

PORT has four letters and so has LEFT

P (port) comes before S (starboard) in the alphabet, as L (left) comes before R (right)

PORT wine should be LEFT alone when it is RED (therefore starboard is RIGHT)

PORT is a RED wine, and RED is the LEFT side of politics

There’s a little RED PORT LEFT in the bottle

Five Sailing Essentials

This handy phrase reminds the crew of a boat of the ‘Five Essentials’ of sailing:

Can The Boat Sail Correctly?

Course to steer – the course might be a particular bearing (as, say, 250 degrees) or at a particular angle to the apparent wind. Trim – the fore and aft balance of the boat. The moveable ballast on the boat is of course the crew, and the aim is to achieve an even keel. Balance – the port and starboard balance. This is also about adjusting the weight inboard or outboard. Sail – this is to ensure the sails are set correctly until they fill with wind. The front edge or luff of the sail should be in line with the wind. Centreboard – if the boat has a moveable centreboard, it should be lowered when sailing close to the wind. It is raised on a downwind course to reduce drag.

Left and Right

An oft-heard criticism of some organizations is that the right hand doesn’t know what the left hand is doing, which is a bit of a problem if you can’t even tell the difference. A quick physical mnemonic you can use to is to place your left hand

palm down, rotate your left thumb 90 degrees clockwise, so that the forefinger and thumb makes the shape of L for Left.

Interest Rates

Every city slicker knows this one:

When rates are low Stocks will grow. When rates are high Stocks will die.

A Game of Bridge

The Order of Suits from highest to lowest are:

Spades, Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs

If the order of suits just won’t stick in your mind, try ing the following fact:

Sally Has Dirty Children

Basic DIY Techniques

So you’ve found the screwdriver, climbed the ladder, but you don’t know which way to turn the screw because it was secured so tightly the last time round? This invaluable expression will guarantee that you don’t waste precious minutes trying to unscrew a screw the wrong way:

Righty-tighty, Lefty-loosey.

Or how about:

Right on; left off.

British Hereditary Titles

According to Burke’s Peerage, there are five grades of the peerage which can only be inherited by the eldest son or given by the state:

Duke, Marquis, Earl, Viscount, Baron

This short list can also be ed using the following phrases:

Does Milord Ever Visit Brighton?

Did Mary Ever Visit Bognor?

Correct Forms of Address

Here’s a short verse to remind us how to address people with letters after their name:

Honour before degree, Degree before MP.

Therefore the old soldier’s name should be written as:

Mr J. Smith, VC, MA

And the Member of Parliament’s will be:

John Smith Esq, OBE, BSc, MP.

Faithfully or Sincerely?

The correct way to sign off a letter is to use ‘Yours sincerely’ if you know the recipient’s name, and have addressed the letter directly to him or her, and to use ‘Yours faithfully’ if you are sending it to an unknown person, and have begun

the letter ‘Dear Sir’. As it can be tricky to recall when to use which sign-off with which mode of address, the simplest way to is to keep in mind the rule: Never Two Ss Together. Thus a letter addressed ‘Dear Sir’ should never end ‘Yours sincerely’.

The Great Outdoors

If you’re invited on a huntin’, shootin’ and fishin’ weekend with the boss, the following acronym: BRASS.

Breathe, Relax, Aim, Sight, Squeeze

By keeping this sequence in mind, it might help you to shoot a rifle without missing your targets by a mile, or at least make you seem as if you know what you’re doing . . .

Snooker Loopy

Impress your friends by setting up snooker balls in the correct position at the start of a game. From the baulk end of the table – the end where the white ball is positioned at the start of the frame – the balls are placed on the D from left to right in the following order: Green, Brown, Yellow. So just think God Bless You. The correct order in which to pot the six coloured balls after the red ones have been sunk is: Yellow (2 points), Green (3 points), Brown (4 points), Blue (5 points), Pink (6 points), Black (7 points). To keep the right sequence in mind, give this phrase a try:

You Go Brown Before Potting Black

In 1986, popular Cockney singers Chas ’n’ Dave released a quirky song called ‘Snooker Loopy’ with the Matchroom Mob, a group of snooker players collectively managed by promoter Barry Hearn. ‘Pot the reds and screw back for the yellow, green, brown, blue, pink and black’ was one of the song’s many memorable lines, and was sung to a catchy tune that ensured the correct order of colours would be committed to memory for ever.

Select Bibliography

Chambers School Spelling (Chambers Harrap, 2003)

Demonic Mnemonics, Murray Suid (Frank Schaffer Publications, Inc., 1981)

A Dictionary of Mnemonics (Eyre Methuen, 1972)

Fowler’s Modern English Usage, R. W. Burchfield (OUP, 2004)

How To Develop A Brilliant Memory Week By Week, Dominic O’Brien (Duncan Baird Publishers, 2005)

Medico Mnemonica, E. S. Marlowe MD (PMIC, 1997)

The Memory Doctor, Douglas J. Mason and Spencer Xavier Smith (New Harbinger Publications, Inc., 2005)

Your Memory: How It Works And How To Improve It, Kenneth L. Higbee Ph.D. (Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1977)