Expert Study Habits: Learn from the Greats

[Hunus]

I was just curious if anyone had any information on how 'the greats' went about studying. People such as Feynman, Einstein, etc. studied.

Of course omit the scientists who mastered analysis by the age of 5 like Neumann and Landau.

 

[wuliheron]

Einstein skipped a lot of classes, depended on his roommate's notes, graduated with a "c" average, and after graduation got a third rate job in a patent office through the influence of his roommate's father.

 

[Meta14]

I relearn stuff online, to check my understanding.

 

[micromass]

Einstein skipped a lot of classes, depended on his roommate's notes, graduated with a "c" average, and after graduation got a third rate job in a patent office through the influence of his roommate's father.

Uuuuh no... How do you know this??
You know that Einstein had a PhD right??

 

[shaa]

I'm actually curious how some people go about studying as well. Maybe not the "Greats" but people that can maintain a 3.8 or so in college. For instance, if a class was strictly homework and quizzes, I would have a 4.0, but tests really bring me down. I some how manage to NEVER score above a B on my tests. Quite upsetting actually. Tips or suggestions on study habits? :D

 

[QuarkCharmer]

Uuuuh no... How do you know this??
You know that Einstein had a PhD right??

There is a documentary called "Einstein" that airs on the history channel sometimes that tells this exact story. I cannot gauge the truth of it, (especially considering this is the channel that brought us the great giorgio tsoukalos), but the documentary did say explicitly that he did mediocre at best during his undergraduate, somehow managed a PhD due to his fathers influence, and manage the patent office job via a friend of the family.

 

[jim hardy]

Tips or suggestions on study habits? :D

You said it's the exams that bring you down?

What i found is this:

First you got to keep up with the class work. Never get behind inhomework.

Second - and this is equally important -

Always walk into a test well rested and well fed.
The night before have a steak for dinner.
Then glance through the chapters in your textbook just to remember what they were about. No more than thirty minutes.
Be in bed by 9PM with absolutely no alcohol.
Have a breakfast that's not very high in sugar.
Walk into test feeling great - rested and alert.

old jim

 

[wuliheron]

There is a documentary called "Einstein" that airs on the history channel sometimes that tells this exact story. I cannot gauge the truth of it, (especially considering this is the channel that brought us the great giorgio tsoukalos), but the documentary did say explicitly that he did mediocre at best during his undergraduate, somehow managed a PhD due to his fathers influence, and manage the patent office job via a friend of the family.

Stephen Hawking also admits to spending most his time in college getting drunk. He says he's not proud of the fact, but it was "fashionable" at the time for the truly brilliant to prove they did not need to study.

 

[DataGG]

I don't know about his college days, but there's a high-school diploma that shows he had good marks.

http://www.Alberteinstein.info/gallery/personal_life.html (Highschool certificate)

EDIT: I'm talking about Einstein..

 

[Tosh5457]

Einstein skipped a lot of classes, depended on his roommate's notes, graduated with a "c" average, and after graduation got a third rate job in a patent office through the influence of his roommate's father.

lol I just found out I use Einstein's method since my 1st year of undergrad, I don't think I'm a genius though

 

[Cbray]

At the age of 12 I loved physics and was finishing up year 10 because my study habit was ridiculously brilliant (and I'm jewish haha). One day when I was 11 I sat myself down with a huge pile of books, and studied all night after school, every single day. I just had an amazing passion, I couldn't stop, I'm still the same now, still far ahead (multi-variable calculus at 15) and passed year 12 exams for double specialist 3 months ago. I obviously hired a tutor to fill in small gaps I need help with, but not much really.

Literally this technique worked for me since I had a passion, try and find a passion in your work, because if you can't find a passion, in my opinion, apart from money, studying seems so pointless.

 

[dkotschessaa]

Unfortunately I think the guys you mentioned had different kinds of minds and circumstances and that their success was not really a matter of study habits. Feyman had a father who encouraged critical thinking from a very young age, and he taught himself mathematics including calculus from library books before he was even in high school.

Probably better to find out the study habits of a respectable, accomplished, but not-too-famous people that you'll find working as professors in universities.