There are seven diatomic elements and they are very easy to memorize.
You just need a proper mnemonic strategy to get the job done.Sure, you can use a weak acronym like “Have no fear of ice cold bears,” but
let me ask you this:
How does that acronym help you memorize the name and number of each and every element?
Answer:
It doesn’t.
We can do better.
And when we do, you can sit for exams with great confidence.
You can be a better professional in your career.
And you can use the superior memory techniques that get all the information you need into memory for many other aspects of your learning life.
Ready to learn the best diatomic elements mnemonic available?
Great! Let’s dig in!
How to Remember The Diatomic Elements in 3 Steps
The technique I’m going to teach you has been used for thousands of years.
People have used it to memorize and recite entire books backwards and forwards.
You can use it to learn languages much faster, and it will help you never forget a name again.
And since you’re dealing with just seven elements, this simple task won’t take long at all.
The technique involves a Memory Palace.
Let’s look at what it is and how it works step-by-step.
Note: If you’re really keen, you can use the same technique to memorize the entire Periodic Table of the Elements.
Step One: Create A Seven Station Memory Palace
A Memory Palace is simply a mental recreation of a home, office or other familiar building.
Although you can memorize all of these molecules according to location by noticing that everything after hydrogen makes a “seven” shape on the right side of the Periodic Table, we can do better.
We just need to pick a room and assign seven distinct spots in it.
Let’s say we have a bedroom that looks like this:
Obviously, the room you use will look different than this. The point is to identify a few locations that make sense to you.
Then you’re going to pair the seven diatomic elements to each of the spots you’ve identified in the room.
Step Two: Use Pop Culture To Create Highly Memorable Associations
The seven diatomic elements are:
- Hydrogen
- Nitrogen
- Fluorine
- Oxygen
- Iodine
- Chlorine
- Bromine
Now, you can distribute the words of a mnemonic throughout a Memory Palace. But I predict you’ll be much better served by using the story and linking method.
Imagine, for example, that this is happening in your bedroom:
A hydroplane operated by Batman is shooting roses at an ox. It goes into a diner only to find that it’s been replaced by a swimming pool filled with turtles from Super Mario Brothers.
This story is so much easier to remember than the list elements. But if you want to know how to remember diatomic molecules, this is by far the easiest way.
What I’ve done is encoded them in a story that uses as many pop culture references as possible.
The hydroplane reminds me of hydrone, and since Batman is the “Dark Knight,” nitrogen instantly comes to mind.
Can you guess why I’ve chosen the other examples? Give it a try!
Obviously, you’ll want to work with examples that make sense to you. If you don’t know who the Mario Brothers are, think of some other brothers for Bromine. Personalize is the key to forming effective active recall.
Step Three: Add Numbers
If you want to also know the atomic numbers, learn to use the Major System and the Pegword Method.
This works by giving you an image for each and every number.
For example, you can add a swan’s wings to help you remember H2 because swans look a lot like 2.
If you want to know the number of the element itself on the Periodic Table of the Elements, please consider developing a PAO System. This will give you an image for every 2-digit number from 00-99.
I suggest that you secure the diatomic element in the Memory Palace first, then add the numbers you need after.
Add More Memory Skills
Now that you have a fun and easy alternative to using acronyms, why not continue piling on more memory skills?
For example, you can use similar approach to help yourself learn all about:
The trick is to really understand the Memory Palace technique. And for that, I have a FREE Memory Improvement Kit I’d love you to have:
It will help you rapidly scale this technique so you can learn at least 3x faster.
So what do you say?
Are you ready to master the diatomic elements?
I know that you can and wish you great success!
