When you read, are you voicing the words in your head or reading without doing this? I once spoke to someone online a few years ago who said he had got into the habit of reading without voicing/sounding the words (if you know what i mean) in his head. He said it was quicker and that he was able to still absord fully what he was reading.
How the heck is that possible?! I just tried for five minutes and wasn't able to do it. You learn to speak before you are taught to read, and you learn to speak through example (by hearing others) so it is only natural that you would read in your mind and hear your voice, voicing the words. IMO, myth busted lol
Is it possible to read without voicing words in your head? Sure. But it's hard to get used to. And it's a bad idea to do when editing anything. I remember when I first started reading, reading aloud was the norm, to help everyone get started. I think your mental reading voice is just that old practice coming through. The next time you read, try putting a pencil or something under the line you're reading to serve as a guide for your eyes. That seemed to help my reading speed a bit. I bet there's an awesome neuroscience / biological explanation of why that is. :-P
I cant do it either, it doesn't seem to work for me and it prevents me from actually taking in what im reading. Thinking about this just reminded me of a guy called Kim Peek http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Peek he can read two pages at the same time.
Oh yeah, I remember seeing him in a documentary called "The boy with the incredible brain". Found the full video here: http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4913196365903075662 Also, it seems since then they made a full show about him. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2T45r5G3kA
I wish I could read as fast as Kim Peek, he reminds me of Daniel Tammet, who can do large calculation like 234 x 12 and do the math in his head in seconds. Its crazy. As for sub-vocalizing try these 10 tips: -Catch yourself doing it! -Read faster (you can't talk as much this way) -Put your index fingers to your lips -Read key words (3 letters or longer) -Mumble or Hum -Use your hand or card to speed you up -Put toothpaste (or other strange flavor) on your lips -Gently bite your tongue -Chew gum -Press your tongue to the roof of your mouth If you do any of these just try to read faster than you usually do. At first you might not understand what your reading but then your brain learns how. Pretty amazing actually. I got the above tips at www.revitupreading.com There are more tips on how to speed read and the course was great!
Amazing isn't he thanks for the links. Yeah im amazed by Daniel Tammet too, theres a few others that have been mentioned on these programs, each with their own gift. Reading through these tips, i will try the tongue pressed to the roof of my mouth method but im also going to take a look at revitupreading.com, thanks for the suggestion.