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If you got here via a bookmark, please check out the new site at KanjiHacks.com (no longer kanjihacks.wordpress.com). I’ll be posting there from now on. See you there!

Kanji Pict-O-Graphics [book review]

The official review will be coming soon. In the meantime, check out the KanjiPictographix website to get an idea of the approach.

How to improve your memory [memorization tips]

This is a good video chock full of easy tips to improve your memory (and not the usual “just think harder!” type tips). I especially like the one about moving your eyes right to left every morning. Who knew?

How To Improve Your Memory on Howcast

Memorize on an empty stomach [memorization tip]

If you can manage it, try to memorize your kanji right before a meal.

The “hunger hormone,” ghrelin, has been linked to improved memory, and it “directly influences activity and plasticity of a brain region associated with learning and memory.”

I don’t know how much difference it will make, but every little bit helps when you have to remember thousands of kanji!

止（と·める、と·まる、シ）

Meaning: to stop

My hack: I can’t claim credit for this one. (I learned this from a book called Kanji Pict-O-Graphix, which has about 1000 mnemonics if you’re interested in seeing some other memorization ideas.)

The first stroke (the longer vertical line) is a police officer, and the little horizontal stroke is his arm out to signal traffic to stop. The third stroke is a child waiting to cross the street, and the final stroke is the ground.

This character is on the cover of the book:

Kanji Pict-O-Graphix

Note: Just in case anyone is suspicious, I have no affiliation with the author of this book and I am not being paid to plug it. I’m just putting it out there as an option for anyone who is interested. For more details on this book and others, check out my reviews.

丶（てん）

Meaning: dot, drop

My hack: it’s not much of a hack, but it does look like a droplet of water, or a bead of sweat in a cartoon kind of way.

Photo by emrank

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