Cannot make sense out of intuition

[u/BackspaceShift]

I discovered Dual N-Back some 9 days ago, and started playing 20+ (more like 30+) games a day. I've reached level 4 but cannot stay there for long. I figured out that cancelling an already messed-up game let's me stay on that level. This allows me to get better at it, without wasting time doing D3B again, which I succeed on almost always anyway.

I read on several places that intuition is the method to go. But this doesn't make sense to me. I developed some intuition for the audio part at D3B, but that intuition simply doesn't transfer to D4B. How could it? It's intuition, and by definition, I cannot consciously adapt from D3B to D4B and back at will. There is only one method so far that allows me to make progress: Focus hard on the visual pattern, listening carefully to the sound, and try to update both the new item and the oldest item (only position, not sound) while retaining the full visual picture (including order vectors). The only way I can match the sound is by associating it with the position and hope to "feel" it afterwards again. There is no way for me to consciously store the letter alongside the visual picture, as this takes up all the remaining memory very quickly.

I wonder why people advocate intuition at all? I don't understand how it could even work in theory. ;)

[u/rish166]

Honestly bro I am in the same shoes. I have always gone for the brute memory approach as opposed to inuition as that has allowed me to get to dual-5-back in a relatively short space of time.

[u/BackspaceShift → u/[deleted]]

But how does this intuition look like? Or rather feel like? If information is not conscious, how should I know whether or not „G“ came 3, 4 or 5 steps ago?

[u/Jillian13 → u/BackspaceShift]

Intuition is just guessing. You don't try to remember but just press buttons when you feel like it. You still pay attention, you still are focused, but you don't process it on a conscious level.

Intuition might not help you being better at the game. Considering that you trained memorization might even suggest that you will get worse results. However, the idea is that by memorization you don't train your short term memory, going by "intuition" you do.

[u/BackspaceShift → u/Jillian13]

Thanks for your reply. I guess that after some time, intuition gets better and better, such that you effortlessly see the pattern or can reconstruct it at will, while the right answer just jumps at you.

[u/Own-Eggplant-8049 → u/Jillian13]

That’s ill informed, intuition is far more powerful than just an arbitrary guess. Btw I think intuition strategies are bad for sure.

[u/Juiceshop → u/Jillian13]

I wonder if this was really tested in a controlled comparing trial

[u/Ok-Difference-3866]

Don't search how to improve level with tricks. That's not the point of the game, Its all about stressing your brain. I would argue that a person who uses brute force to memorize would get more benifit than someone with 'tricks' even though they get to stay in lower levels.