4 ms·
I'm sorry Paul, but the article is just plain wrong. My wife and mother-in-law both easily read at least three or four times as fast as I do. I don't have act
by mightybyte 18y ago
I'm sorry Paul, but the article is just plain wrong. My wife and mother-in-law both easily read at least three or four times as fast as I do. I don't have actual measurements, but I've seen them in one afternoon plow through a book that would have taken me several days to read. That, and living with them has given me more than enough opportunities to be convinced.
My wife's story sounds much like lincolnq's. She taught herself to read by the time she was two, and didn't use the clunky phonetic system that most of us (myself included) are taught in school. The article suggests that these people aren't really reading, but in fact skimming. Well, if you define reading as saying each word out loud in your head, then no, they aren't reading. They're assimilating the content in a much more efficient manner that doesn't result in the loss of comprehension suggested by the word "skimming". I don't know about you, but that meets my definition of the word "reading".
- pg 18y agoPeople certainly read at different speeds. I can read a book in an afternoon if the ideas aren't hard. The myth is that it's a skill that can be taught, multiplying everyone's reading rate till you get numbers up in the thousands of words per minute.
- mightybyte 18y agoAgreed. I misinterpreted your original meaning. However, the stated upper bound on reading speed is false. Contrary to the article and it's egalitarian appeal, some people are just more gifted.