Hacker Timesnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

Yes, it is possible. It is partly developing a kind of fluency that is very similar to sight-reading music (this is a nice one to think about because you really have to grok what is there to do it, and you have to do it in real time at "prima vista").

Doing a lot of it is one of the keys! Doing it in a way that various short and long-term memories are involved is another key (rapid reading with comprehension of both text and music is partly a kind of memorization and buffering, etc.)

I don't think I've read 23,000 books in 76 years, but very likely somewhere between 16,000 and 20,000 (I haven't been counting). Bertrand Russell easily read 23,000 books in his lifetime, etc.



I was late to this and didn't expect a reply, so thanks for taking the time to come back and respond!

I agree with the practice, as for some periods I've noticed an increase in speed when I've been consistently reading every day.

Regarding the second point - short and long-term memory - do you have a link or other suggestion for where to learn more, please?


There was quite a bit of discussion about this on the HN gig about my long ago "reading list"





Consider applying for YC's Summer 2026 batch! Applications are open till May 4

Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: