What do you gain from knowing whether empiricism is the second or the seventh in the list,
Take a look at the list. Look at the last sentence of each item, and the first sentence of the next. Do you see how they flow into each other? Learning the order of the items helps me remember which virtues are connected to other ones, and how.
or from memorizing pithy quotes word for word, without context?
There is context, just not in the Anki card. It's in the article (which you would need to read before using the deck), and it's in your brain (the memories of the last time you read it.)
The important thing is to learn how to practice and apply the concepts, not to memorize them by rote.
When I'm in situations where I might want to apply these virtues (e.g. when having an argument), I often don't have time to deduce them from first principles. If I've got them memorised, I can at least do a quick check of “is my current behaviour in opposition to any of the virtues?”. This helps me apply them to everyday life.
So how would you “learn how to practice and apply the concepts” from the article? What concrete steps would you take?
I'm sure my method has flaws; I want to know of a better way. Can you help me?
This post may be a better thing to internalize. I'm pretty sure there's other similar posts out there, but this was the most salient one for me.
In an effort to internalise the Twelve Virtues of Rationality, I created an Anki deck. It's already been done, so the reason I'm posting is to share a condensed version of the article (created as a side effect of my making the deck).
Hopefully it will make it easier to quickly refresh the concepts if you've already read the article.
If you're not using spaced repetition, you should. Don't believe me? Try reading Gwern's thorough review of the topic.
Then download the “Twelve Virtues of Rationality” deck.
The first virtue is curiosity.
The second virtue is relinquishment.
The third virtue is lightness.
The fourth virtue is evenness.
The fifth virtue is argument.
The sixth virtue is empiricism.
The seventh virtue is simplicity.
The eighth virtue is humility.
The ninth virtue is perfectionism.
The tenth virtue is precision.
The eleventh virtue is scholarship.
Before these eleven virtues is a virtue which is nameless.