# Cool Mnemonics **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 24, 2012, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675 "2012-03-24T05:44:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Kevbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e47774/32.png) [@Kevbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kevbo)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/41 "2012-03-27T17:27:02Z")
> [@Roadfood](#): > > A mnemonic to remember the _order_? North is the top of the map, east is the right. That’s hard enough to remember that it needs a mnemonic? The order applies when headings are given as degrees, as they typically are in aviation. Easy enough to keep straight that 0 is North, and 180 is South, but are 90 & 270 East and West or vice verse? I always just used “East is Least” to keep it straight. Note that this clockwise convention is exactly opposite the counterclockwise convention used in many math and engineering studies, not to mention the 90 degree shifting if you normally have the +X axis going to the right, and North at the top of a map. ---
**Author:** ![Colophon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f05b48/32.png) [@Colophon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colophon)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/42 "2012-03-27T18:10:22Z")
> [@Greg\_Charles](#): > > Right here, in fact. The genus of yew trees is taxus. Someone (Polycarp?) said that’s why they’re planted around cemetaries, because the two inevitabilities in life are death and taxus. I don’t know if knowing the genus of yews will ever be useful to me, but I know I’ll never forget it. [Ahem](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=14891479&postcount=561) 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Kevbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e47774/32.png) [@Kevbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kevbo)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/43 "2012-03-27T20:15:39Z")
> [@Colophon](#): > > [Ahem](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=14891479&postcount=561) 🙂 Whats that handy mnemonic for who posted what again? ---
**Author:** ![WhyNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c77e96/32.png) [@WhyNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WhyNot)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/44 "2012-03-27T21:12:10Z")
> [@Kevbo](#): > > Whats that handy mnemonic for who posted what again? Okay, I got this one! …a baby deer with rump spots of all colors\* is standing in the graveyard, nibbling the shoots of a yew tree. \*Colored fawn = Colophon. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/45 "2012-03-27T21:17:33Z")
Nobody had King Phillip came over for great sex? ---
**Author:** ![california\_jobcase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@california\_jobcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/california_jobcase)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/46 "2012-03-27T22:11:43Z")
Cations are positive. Just remember all the plussy cats you’ve seen. ^ ^ + + =+= ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [March 27, 2012, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/47 "2012-03-27T23:10:38Z")
> [@astorian](#): > > In high school chemistry, we learned about two guys named Gerry and Leo. > > That was suppoed to help us remember that a GAIN in ELECTRONS is called REDUCTION (G.E.R.), while a LOSS in ELECTRONS is called OXIDATION (L.E.O.) I learned “Oil Rig” = Oxidation Is Loss, Reduction Is Gain ---
**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 1:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/48 "2012-03-28T01:18:51Z")
C BIG KD to deal with high potassium levels: calcium gluconate, bicarbonate, insulin and glucose, Kayexalate, and/or dialysis ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 3:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/49 "2012-03-28T03:33:02Z")
The phases of mitosis: Please Make A Twin (Prophase, Metaphase, Anaphase, Telophase) ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/50 "2012-03-28T13:35:00Z")
King Philip Caught Old Fish: Got Sick The princi_pal_ (of the school) is your _pal_. ---
**Author:** ![Nzinga\_Seated](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/b5ac83/32.png) [@Nzinga\_Seated](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nzinga_Seated)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/51 "2012-03-28T15:56:05Z")
> [@CalMeacham](#): > > …The risque, extremely non-PC version is > > **Bad Boys Rape Our Young Girls But Violet Gives Willingly**. Hmm. We used this too. Our Kindergarten teacher taught us this, but instead of ‘bad’ it was ‘black’. ---
**Author:** ![Spectralist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Spectralist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectralist)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 8:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/52 "2012-03-28T20:55:28Z")
> [@Roadfood](#): > > A mnemonic to remember the _order_? North is the top of the map, east is the right. That’s hard enough to remember that it needs a mnemonic? I do. North/South are fine but I can never remember things that are differentiated exclusively by being right/left. I was taught Never Eat Soggy Wieners. Baby eats candy apple until she explodes. Because. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/53 "2012-03-28T21:30:51Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > Hmm. We used this too. Our Kindergarten teacher taught us this, but instead of ‘bad’ it was ‘black’. Of _course_ she did. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/54 "2012-03-28T22:12:25Z")
Not long since we had this before, when I mentioned [this](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=14008265&postcount=69). Sadly Google is unforthcoming and only showed the link above, so I still can’t tell you what the causes of stoppages actually _are_. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 10:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/55 "2012-03-28T22:20:17Z")
> [@Nzinga\_Seated](#): > > Hmm. We used this too. Our Kindergarten teacher taught us this, but instead of ‘bad’ it was ‘black’. I’m not too surprised by that version, as much as you learning about electronics color codes in kindergarten? ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/56 "2012-03-28T22:44:40Z")
[xkcd](http://xkcd.com/992/) weighs in on mnemonics. I like:"Mary’s ‘virgin’ explanation made Joseph suspect upstairs neighbor. " Mnemonic is related to Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory. I’d like a mnemonic to remember the muses. I can only usually recall Mnemosyne, Terpsichore and Calliope. ---
**Author:** ![SiXSwordS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/49beb7/32.png) [@SiXSwordS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SiXSwordS)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2012, 11:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/57 "2012-03-28T23:40:15Z")
If anyone tells you they are laying down, they’re lie-ing. (You _lay_ down a rug, but you _lie_ down to rest.) ---
**Author:** ![MacSpon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/34f0e0/32.png) [@MacSpon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MacSpon)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/58 "2012-03-29T02:10:45Z")
> [@Topologist](#): > > And to add a couple of other classics: Every Good Boy Deserves Favor [or Fudge] for the notes on the lines of the G-clef; FACE for the notes on the spaces. We were taught “every good boy”, as kids; but we soon decided that “Every Grandma Bakes Dirty Fleas” was more memorable. 🙂 And we must have been right, because it’s the mnemonic that automatically comes to mind, thirty years later… For the bass clef, “Good Bugs Deserve Fruity Ajax.” ---
**Author:** ![Cub\_Mistress](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ea666f/32.png) [@Cub\_Mistress](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cub_Mistress)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/59 "2012-03-29T02:18:33Z")
An oldie but a goodie: Thirty days hath September, April, June, and November; All the rest have thirty-one, Save February, with twenty-eight days clear, And twenty-nine each leap year. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2012, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675/60 "2012-03-29T02:32:52Z")
> [@Cub\_Mistress](#): > > An oldie but a goodie: > > Thirty days hath September, > April, June, and November; > All the rest have thirty-one, > Save February, with twenty-eight days clear, > And twenty-nine each leap year. Make a fist. Look at your knuckles. Count each knuckle and each gap between as 1 month. Knuckles are 31 day months, the gaps are 28-29-30 days. When you pass July, start again on the first knuckle. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cool-mnemonics/616675.md?page=4)