Phoneme Memory Technique

Memorizing long numbers is not inherently easy. Unless someone is a savant, numbers by themselves are too abstract to stand out in the memory.

I found a technique years ago that is very helpful with remembering numbers. It’s not automatic; it takes effort but is an effective way to remember long numbers. The key is to turn the numbers into a silly and/or memorable image that stands out when thinking of the subject.

The technique is basically turning a number into a sequence of phonemes which are used to create an image or sequence of events in your head. The number changes from an abstract value to something which stands out. Silly and memorable is the point; we do not remember the boring and mundane very well.

How It Works

Each number from 0 to 9 is assigned one or more phonemes. They are all consonant sounds. None of the phonemes are vowels. You are free to add in any number of vowels to create words.

Number	Associated Sounds	How to Remember the Rule
0	s, soft c or z	zero starts with z
1	t or d	t has one downstroke
2	n	n has 2 downstrokes
3	m	m has 3 downstokes
4	r	four ends in r
5	l	hand with 5 fingers makes loser symbol
6	sh, z, j or soft ch	ends with sh in Sean Connery’s voice
7	k, hard g or hard c	looks like part of letter k
8	f, v or ph sound	rhymes with fate
9	p or b	looks like p and b

The sound is the key. Age sounds like j so the associated number is 6. Gate is a hard g and t sound so the associated number is 71. Go by the sound not the spelling.

A Few Examples

The number of watts in one horsepower is 746. The phonemes I use are hard c, r and sh. Add in a vowel to spell crash. A horse crashes into a giant light bulb.

The Western Roman Empire collapsed in 476. The sounds I use are r, k and j. The fall of Rome led to a rise of castles: rook age.

The radius of the Earth is about 6372 km. The sounds I use are j, m, k and n. The Earth has a giant jam can stuffed inside between the center and the surface.

Some IT Examples

The port number for SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) is 25. Letters n and l. A letter is held to the wall of a post office with a nail.

The port number for HTTPS (Hypertext Transport Protocol over TLS/SSH) is 443. Letter r, r, m. A hyperactive lion is roaring to keep everyone away as he transports a message: roar ‘em.

One private address range is 172.16.x.x to 172.31.x.x Taken to show, taken meat. I don’t want to explain that one.

Summary

I’ve used this trick often when studying for my CS degree and for CompTIA certifications and it has been very helpful. It takes some practice however. The key is being able to remember which sounds are associated with each number.

Written on June 25th, 2019 by Roy Berube