How good a reader are you?

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How good a reader are you?

Postby cmsellers » Sun Oct 07, 2018 7:26 am

Tess has observed that I am a fast reader before, but I didn't really believe it. After reading something labeled as "a 50 minute read" in 17 minutes, I got really curious, and found this. There is a comprehension test at the end too.

My results are 685 wpm and 82%, which is apparently substantially better than average. I thought that I read books at about a rate of 60-90 pages an hour though, which would translate to barely above average speeds. I should get a videocamera and time just how much of the time I spend reading books is actually staring off into space and thinking.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby JamishT » Sun Oct 07, 2018 8:04 am

I got 555 wpm with 73% comprehension, but to be honest, I guessed a lot on the comprehension. I know that when I was a kid, I would read about 100-120 pages an hour, unless I was reading something intellectual like The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene or something.

I don't read much anymore, which is a shame, I guess.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby Absentia » Sun Oct 07, 2018 9:36 am

I got 444 WPM and 91% comprehension. In my defense, I'm only wearing one contact lens and it's 4:30 in the morning.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby jbobsully11 » Sun Oct 07, 2018 9:49 pm

313 wpm / 64% comprehension

For what it's worth, I think there are a few things I should point out. One, I'm pretty sure I've taken this test before, though I didn't remember much about what the text said. Two, I was trying to speed read through most of it, so I didn't sub-vocalize as much as I would have if I was reading for pleasure. If I had been reading at normal book-reading speed, I think that my wpm count would be lower, but my comprehension higher.

On a slightly-related note, the speed at which I read also depends on what I'm reading and how it's written (as I imagine it would with other people); if it's about something simple, it takes much less time for me to read than if it's about something complicated. Likewise if I think it's boring, but I have to get through it for some reason; I'll actually try to get through it faster than if I find it interesting.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby Australia » Sun Oct 07, 2018 10:27 pm

I'm gooder than you are, Sellers. Everyone knows it's 'how well a reader are you?'

...But seriously, I'm slow as shit.

...My shit is also slow.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby NathanLoiselle » Sun Oct 07, 2018 10:28 pm

I don't need to even take the test. The answer is clear, it's 42.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby Marcuse » Mon Oct 08, 2018 12:36 am

I got 413 with 73% comprehension. I'm not really sure what this is supposed to test though. Most of the time, stuff I'm reading I read slower or faster depending on the content. I read The Two Towers, Return of the King and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix each in a single day, but it takes me sometimes hours to read a chapter of something like Zarathustra. I'd personally value comprehension over speed unless you're reading bomb disposal instructions with only a few seconds...
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby 52xMax » Mon Oct 08, 2018 1:12 pm

I got a pretty coincidental 520 wpm with a reading comprehension of 91%. I can actually read a tad faster than that if I set my mind to it, but I slowed down every time there were numbers (which I already forgot) because I got a feeling that would be what they'd ask about in the comprehension test. And I was right.

That's not my normal reading speed, though. I didn't skim so much as I took large chunks of text at a time instead of word by word, which requires more effort and concentration, which is why I don't think it's very sustainable. At any rate, I usually take my time when I'm reading for leisure, but no matter what, I try to get it right on the first time.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby iMURDAu » Mon Oct 08, 2018 6:05 pm

I cheated and got 2167 words a minute.

With a comprehension score of 73% which is damn good for reading a couple sentences, counting to three, pressing stop, and continuing on to the quiz.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby NathanLoiselle » Mon Oct 08, 2018 6:47 pm

Okay so I decided to do the test. I got 214 wpm at a comprehension of 91% So suck on that people!
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby KleinerKiller » Tue Oct 09, 2018 2:17 am

I got 394 wpm, 91% comprehension.

I'm fairly certain I'm a faster reader in general, but loads of numbers and stats packed in close succession trips me up, and reading about reading as presented is less than engaging. Thus, some of the answers in the comprehension test that had to do with the numbers were lucky guesses.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby cmsellers » Tue Oct 09, 2018 2:59 am

KleinerKiller wrote:I got 394 wpm, 91% comprehension.

I'm fairly certain I'm a faster reader in general, but loads of numbers and stats packed in close succession trips me up, and reading about reading as presented is less than engaging. Thus, some of the answers in the comprehension test that had to do with the numbers were lucky guesses.

I too, actually got 91%. But one of the answers was also a lucky guess, so I retook it with the wrong answer deliberately on that one for my actual answer. OTOH, there were two questions I didn't understand, even after re-reading it the second time, including the one I guessed at.

I took several other of these reading reading speed tests, getting numbers between 450 and about 900, but never above 700 for texts longer than two paragraphs. In the process I learned that if I see a number, it is important. I also learned that while I remember most numbers without trying, this is only if there is less than one number a paragraph and none of them are dates. For some reason I am really bad at dates, and at least three numbers in one paragraph means I will probably forget at least one unless I pause reading and deliberately commit each number to memory.

Interestingly, while I can still remember several of the numbers from longer form reading test articles I read yesterday (which had only one number per paragraph), I cannot remember any of the ones where I committed them to memory. It seems like when I read, I may fix information in my long-term memory under certain conditions without trying, but if I have to commit information I wouldn't otherwise remember to my short-term memory, it doesn't take.

And I still have no idea why dates are so hard for me. I have autism. There is only one kind of date I should be messing up, and it's not this one.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby A Combustible Lemon » Tue Oct 09, 2018 9:47 am

I got 1111 wpm and about 60% comprehension, but also I'm making a conscious decision to ignore the numbers because they're generally the least important part of anything that I'm not expected to memorize and super easy to look back up. (also it was insanely short and predictable)

Who reads something and thinks "huh, 250 wpm is normal, I have to remember that." instead of "the normal wpm is <number>"
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby Malfeasinator » Wed Oct 10, 2018 4:52 am

I'm the best reader. My reading comprehension is huge. I'm a stable reading genius.

Also, *edit*, in the interest of ethics, I've taken this test years ago. I've used the Spreeder app off and on for years but never really dedicated myself to speed-reading.

I never felt like the things I'm into would benefit. You can't speed read DIY/How-to type books. The books I like for fun, I like to read slow and wonder why the author chose certain words. There could be foreshadowing, an easter egg, a red herring, or the author could have a sick sense of humor that I might miss out on, if all I'm doing is devouring the pages. It could be about more than just comprehending what's there; it could be about reading between the lines.
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Re: How good a reader are you?

Postby NathanLoiselle » Wed Oct 10, 2018 7:04 am

@A Combustible Lemon\

I do. I think "huh, 250 words per minute is standard. I'll have to remember that I'm average because of course I am. I couldn't be exceptional, no sirree. Nope." Which would be why I read so slow.
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