How do people speed read? Is it legit? Are there any sources on the web that can help me boost my reading speed? Can anybody do it, or do you have to be born with the talent?
Hell, this is something I learned to do during early secondary school. In fact, I can remember receiving tuition on how to do it.
The idea is that you skim across a block of text and register on key words within the context of what it is saying. You probably do this already when you do a web search, or when you deciding whether you want to drill down too deep in a thread on this message board that only half intersts you.
Another technique that can be useful is to look at the first couple of paragraphs of an article, and then the last paragraph, with perhaps a flick across any sub-headings that may be present.
It’s amazing how much info you actually retain when you get the technique refined.
DVous Means seems to have covered the essence of speed reading, but I’d like to highlight a few things.
First, if you’re looking for detailed information or a thorough understanding of the material, speed reading is probably not a good idea–it’ll help you find the area of interest, but that’s about it. Pretty much anyone can do it; most people already speed read (which I prefer to call “skimming” since that’s what it is)–they just might not do it very efficiently.
If you want to boost your reading speed while retaining full comprehension, there’s only one thing to do: read. Read obsessively, read for pleasure, read automatically just because there’s text in front of you. There’s nothing quite like practice to make you good at something. I generally prefer to read material at 200-250 wpm and understand it rather than at >=1000 wpm and just get the gist. For the record, I think those “speed reading” courses are steaming piles of digestive by-products.
I can read pretty fast when I want to, with good comprehension, but I often chose not to. I could read a novel lightning fast and understand the plot. But there’s more to a good novel than plot. You’d lose the poetry of the words (prose poetry, which is the best kind, IMHO).
Let’s not start a “prose poetry” discussion in here, bibliophage. The GD on poetry nearly made me swear off the stuff, and I only posted once!
On topic, I agree entirely–even if I do look for subtle jokes more than poetry. I can read very quickly indeed, but I slow down when I’m reading for pleasure. Quite aside from the aesthetic advantages, my book bill is outrageous.
It should be noted that at least three presidents, Kennedy, Carter, and Kreeshus of Zorlak 8 insisted that their staffs attend the Evelyn Wood Institute. I know why, too. Government regulations and bills are insanely redundant and tedious. Quick comprehension of such documentation comes from identifying and understanding only the important parts.
“Real” writing, on the other hand, should require no such filtering. Should, that is.
Jeez! Didn’t anyone catch that?! I guess everyone is a speed reader here.
yeah, “Evelyn Wood” …good one! 
Thank you. I was beginning to feel as if everyone had missed my point, assuming I had one.
Of course everyone knows it’s Evelyn Woodhead. See Loading...