Still, even having created images for each group of three cards, it is difficult to keep them in order. This is done using the foci method, or hat some call a Memory Palace term created by Frances Yates in his 1966 book The Art of Memory which is a simple yet effective method devised by the ancient Greeks. They practised transforming lists of words into vivid sets of objects, which they arranged in their imagination around familiar spaces. Then they learned to link these images back to their original meaning But are there people with naturally superior memories? We've all heard of people with photographic memories the ability to memorize anything just by looking at it. Rajan Mahadevan, born in India in 1957, seemed to have such a memory By the age of five, he was able to remember the license plate numbers of a parking lot full of cars. He was also able to remember a string of 31,811 digits. One book claimed that his memory power was a natural talent. Later, however Mahadevan visited with K. Anders Ericsson, a psychologist who believes that memory is a matter of training, not talent. They discussed Mahadevan's memory achievements, and Mahadevan explained that he had spent 1,000 hours and used memory techniques to memorize the 31,811 digits. He admitted that it was hard training that allowed him to do it, not a special memory The winner of the 2011 World Memory Championships, held in Guangzhou, China, was 21-year-old Chinese national Wang Feng. He retained his title from the previous year by breaking world records for three of the competition's 10 memory games. These records were recalling 300 of 400 spoken numbers, and memorzng 500 numbers in five minutes and 2660 numbers in one hour But Wang Feng says he had a normal memory as a child," and no special talent except for hard work and attention to detail. I've spent three months preparing for this championship he said. Each day I spend five to six hours practicing. Actually each ar, I spend two to three months preparing for competitions. Although many still think that people have either good or bad memories from birth, that need not be true. By using the methods of grouping, linking towd images, and the loci method we can all enhance our memories. Who knows you might even become the next World Memory Champion!