Memorizing Numbers

brain and gears How we use our memory skills
There are two basic modes of use:
Explicit use of memory - Involving conscious efforts to recover information through memory processes. We use explicit memory throughout the day, such as remembering the time of an appointment or recollecting an event from years ago.
Implicit use of memory - Availability of information through mind processes without the application of any intentional or conscious effort to encode or recover the information. A form of implicit memory used everyday is called 'procedural memory'.

Stimulated sensory information creates the perception of an event into working memory. Reinforcement and arousal enable to consolidate events into long-term memory storage.

Types of memories
  Memory is divided into 3 main categories based on the amount of time the memory lasts: the shortest memories lasting only milliseconds are called ‘immediate memories’ or ‘short-term memories’ (STM), memories lasting about a minute are called ‘working memories’, and memories lasting anywhere from an hour to many years are called ‘long-term memories’ (LTM).
  Each type of memory is tied to a particular type of brain function. Long-term memory, the class that we are most familiar with, is associated with the preservation of information for retrieval at any later time: it is actually used to store facts/information, observations, and the stories of our lives.   Working memory is used to hold the same kind of information for a much shorter amount of time, often just long enough for the information to be useful for practical tasks such as reasoning and language comprehension.
  Immediate memory is typically so short-lived that we do not even think of it as memory; the brain uses immediate memory as a ‘collecting bin’, so that, for instance, when your eyes jump from point to point across a scene the individual snapshots are collected together into what seems like a smooth panorama.

Another way to categorize memory is to divide memories about what something is from memories about how something is done. Skills like catching a baseball or riding a bicycle are called ‘nondeclarative memories’ or ‘procedural memories’ because we perform those activities automatically, with no conscious recollection of how we learned the skills. ‘Declarative memories’, on the other hand, are memories of facts and events that we can consciously recall and describe verbally.

brain face The best way to keep the mind engaged
Tackling unfamiliar tasks or new ways of thinking can help develop underused brain connections and boost your memory.
Among other suggestions: regularly carry out brain gym exercises. Take up word games like scrabble, crossword puzzles and acrostics. Solve riddles and brain teasing puzzles. Memorize favorite poems or famous passages, talks or speeches, like "I have a Dream" of Martin Luther King. Read challenging books or articles that encourage you to expand your interests and skills.
Practice other-handedness. If you're right-handed, try sometimes writing your notes with your left hand.
Eat natural antioxidants such as blueberries, nuts, spinach, or red peppers. Include omega-3 fatty acids in your diet, found in deep-sea fish and fish oil...

Memorizing Dates and Numbers