Minimum information principle
Minimum information principle says that simple questions formulated for active recall in learning bring much better memory outcomes than complex questions even though one complex question may be equivalent to a large number of simpler questions. Minimum information principle is essential for understanding 20 rules of formulating knowledge.
For details see: 20 rules of formulating knowledge
This glossary entry is used to explain "I would never send my kids to school" (2017-2024) by Piotr Wozniak
Figure: Memory complexity illustrates the importance of the minimum information principle. When memorizing simple questions and answers, we can rely on a simple memory connection, and uniformly refresh that connection at review. Complex memories may have their concepts activated in an incomplete fashion, or in a different sequence that depends on the context. As a result, it is hard to produce a uniform increase in memory stability at review. Complex items are difficult to remember. An example of a simple item may be a word pair, e.g. apple = pomo (Esperanto). While a complex net of connection may be needed to recognize an apple. The connection between apple and pomo is irreducible (i.e. maximally simplified)