Concept: A Public Mnemonic Database for Memorising Japanese Items

Hello there! My name is Freddie, and I am a new member of this subreddit. As I’m sure you can see from my other posts, I’m not far down the Japanese learning journey, however, I’m not bad at programming. I also have an interest in language learning and learning in general, and have spent perhaps too long looking at Japanese learning resources, surveying my options. Obviously, one resource isn’t going to be perfect for everyone, right? *Well*, I think if we worked together, we could get pretty close. My idea is a public database, similar to the text-based mnemonics on Koohii or Renshuu. But I think we could do better. What if we took that, made it completely public, and added the option for media? I know this is a fairly primitive idea, but I think it could go REALLY far. Instead of traditional mnemonics, where you have to try and visualize the mnemonics in your head and then assign emotions to them (for the best retention), the mnemonic is already visualized for you! Whether that be in the form of a short or long video, an image, or even some sort of 3D representation: the sky’s the limit!

I know this sounds tough. There are *2136* Jōyō kanji, which is *A LOT*, especially when each one needs a pretty good visual representation. Nowadays, however, it is becoming an increasingly straightforward task. Recently, image generation from text labels has been all the rage in tech circles, and for good reason. Before, you would need to actually find an image that fit the mnemonic or create one physically. Now, for free (limitedly), you just type in your mnemonic (with the correct formatting), and out it spits a somewhat perfect image for that mnemonic. Of course, this technology has limited capability, being predominantly in its beta, and it has a long way to go. But that doesn’t mean it isn’t an incredibly interesting prospect.

I believe that as this technology emerges at an increasing rate (with Dall-e 2 and Mid journey at the forefront), its distinct capabilities, the nonchalance of its task, and its prominent role in society will all become apparent. That is why I think we should embrace it with open arms, in all applicable fields. This is my prospect. It is simply an idea. But of course, with support from the community, I will work to realize this; in my opinion, a huge opportunity for the Japanese (and all) language learning communities.