My system is based on the Person-Action-Object (PAO) system, which allows associating a set of digits with a mental scene composed of a character, an action, and an object. Each character, action, and object is coded by a number ranging from 00 to 99, translating to two digits per mental object. Therefore, one scene corresponds to 6 digits. To memorize 1000 digits, I need to place 167 scenes in my mental palaces (my university, my room, my street, etc.).
I applied several constraints on the characters, actions, and objects to accelerate the recall of mental objects. Firstly, the mental objects are organized into categories as follows:
| Category | Action | Object |
|---|---|---|
| 0 Combat (LoL) | 0 Cuisiner | 0 Corps |
| 1 Lyrique | 1 Lancer | 1 Aliments |
| 2 aNimateur | 2 oNomatopées | 2 Animaux |
| 3 Monde (politique) | 3 fait dans la Maison | 3 dans la Maison |
| 4 Héros (bd) | 4 Rouler | 4 Arthropodes |
| 5 Sportif | 5 Esquisser | 5 Instruments |
| 6 Disney | 6 Détruire | 6 Drapeaux de |
| 7 Tv show | 7 Travailler | 7 Outils |
| 8 Videogames | 8 Venir en tenue de | 8 Vetements |
| 9 Pokemon | 9 Piéger/emPêcher | 9 Plantes |
For example, the objects from 70 to 79 are tools, and the characters from 50 to 59 are athletes. I also use the Dominic system, which associates numbers with letters: K/C = 0, L = 1, 2 = N, 3 = M, 4 = R, 5 = S, 6 = D, 7 = T, 8 = V, 9 = P/B.
I can quickly decode a mental object without learning its corresponding number. For example, consider a mental scene containing the character Daft Punk. Daft Punk is a singer (1), and the first letter of the character is D (2), so the number corresponding to Daft Punk is 12. I decoded the mental object Daft Punk without knowing the association between Daft Punk and 12 beforehand. Thus, I place the scenes in my mental palaces to memorize Pi. Then, during recitation, I decode the scenes without needing to learn my PAO system, thanks to the categorization of mental objects and the Dominic system. Regular practice (15 minutes a day) makes memorizing 1000 decimal places in less than a month possible. The file pao_system.xlsx contains my system and the 167 scenes corresponding to the 1000 digits of Pi.
Video where I recite 1000 digits of Pi:
