Sometimes when I'm feeling
passive and stupid and usually sleep-deprived, I subject myself to a style of learning I will nickname, '
Faceless Education'. It works on a very
subconscious,
intuitive level, because the participant (passive, stupid, and sleep-deprived Me) is too passive, stupid and sleep-deprived to concentrate to their typical
cerebral capacity or, at the very least, anything remotely more complex,
layered, and time-consuming than a vegetable pastie
reheating in a microwave.
The technique works on a very basic, Neanderthalian premise, not dissimilar to that of advertising. Take a human and subject them, repeatedly, to an overabundance of information. The human is unable to consciously digest all of the data in the moment, however much information is ultimately absorbed and stored, subconsciously. I will delineate this by means of an old and indeed, sterile, metaphor: A woman thrust into such intense waves of data will drown when attempting to ride them all at once. However, information will wash over her, soak her and, in turn, be absorbed.
If a human is already subdued to a zombie-like state (see: Me), the extent of this subconscious absorption will undoubtedly be greater.
Individual as sponge.
Artists may call this inspiration. Consumers may call it temptation. Babies may call it the fundamental stages of learning, of course, if they could speak, and dullards are indeed clever enough to not be clever at all.
So, what does one expose themselves to if they wish to learn the lazy way and for later application? And how?
Firstly, I think it is rather patent that people will instantly tweak to whatever interests them. There entails little to no challenge in subjecting yourself to second-hand data you may already have stored in your memory. For example, I will not zone-out to Big Bird singing the alphabet. Still, those inclined to this style of effortless learning are usually already passive and, in more severe cases (see: Me), deluded to a state of zombie-ism already. If you seek a challenge, however, anything of or relating to Quarks should do the job.
There are many ways to learn without learning. Afterall, it is an innate skill we all posess. But if you are wishing to channel this energy into daily, designated allotments of time, opt for the period in your day in which you are at your sleepiest. You will already be opposed to anything that requires effort and concentration, so the data should wash over you like a cleansing Summer rain. Embrace junk food and other pleasures. This will build positive associations in your mind and you'll soon discover that, the next time you reach for Kit Kat, you have actually understood the meaning of life.
What I'm saying isn't new, and I'm not meaning to preach here, friends, when I say that I find this 'Faceless Education' immeasurably effective. Personally, I hate to feel stagnant and jarred in my life and, although my lifestyle presents little to suggest so, I seek to live in a state of constant progression. If not outwardly (clearly not outwardly), then inwardly. This includes knowledge, understanding, perception, etc, and when I am too exhausted, ill, or faux-lobotomised to get 'ert about things, I still like to keep learning.
This education is faceless in the way a crowd has no face. Let the information spin and whir and hum. It's a flurry of madness, a stream of code. Let it curve and tickle your cortex, in intricate slivers, in patterns and pulsations, in definitions and cores. Humming, humming, ho-hum. It tangles and knots, then knits and weaves. And you, oblivious, consume.
Enjoy.