Our top speed-reader now in U.S.

Title

Language

English

Source

Panorama Volume XXI (No. 2) February 1969

Year

1969

Rights

In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted

Abstract

An astonishing Filipino female student shows her ability as a master reader

Fulltext

■ An astonishing Filipino female student shows her ability as a master reader. OUR TOP SPEED-READER NOW IN U.S. What can we do to honor our fifteen-year-old plucky Filipina girl who’s No. 1 candidate for the WORLD’S top speed-reader? To all our students in all our high schools and colleges I say, Let’s do honor to Maria Te resa Calderon.^ Did you read The Weekly Nation’s (1/27) reprint of a Milwaukee Journal Staff ar ticle about her by William C. Nelson who called her the “fastest reader in the world?” Now I am privi leged to share with you parts of her latest letter to her parents: “I found out that I had to fly on to Chicago the fol lowing morning! I had to ask 2 days off. Monday and Tuesday. Schale paid for plane fare so I left Dubuque airport — Monday, February 3 at 8:40 a.m. As I got in to Chicago, Leo picked me up. We went to China-town to get Siopao! Then, pro ceeded to Schale’s place. Dr. Schale plus 2 other speed readers (10,000 wpm-20,000 wpm) and myself proceeded on to the Chicago Loop. Schale treated us to lunch at the Marina City Restau rant. It was exquisite! Then we went to the Uni versity at Illinois. There was this machine which recorded your eye vision. Reading pace, etc. This was. We had to read with one eye! We wore masks which co vered our left eye. It was terrible. I had never tried reading with one eye in my whole life! They gave me a 6,000 word-short story “De vil and Daniel Webster.’’ I read it at 80,000 words per minute and 100 per cent com prehension. Brother! I was shocked. Everyone was sur prised too. After reading another article the day’s work was done. Prof. Schale was so happy and in high spirits February 1969 11 she brought me to the apart ment. Leo and I picked up Lil. We went out to eat at George Diamonds. I had a T-Bone steak then we watch ed the movie Shoes of the Fisherman. I enjoyed it. The book is a lot better though. “Tuesday — flight for Min neapolis, Minnesota. Profes sor Schale with her Cadillac picked me up at the apart ment at 7:45 a.m. We pro ceeded to Chicago’s O’Hara Airport. We missed our flight due to the traffic jam. We ate breakfast and got on the 10:00 flight. Upon ar riving at Minneapolis, we took a cab to the University of Minnesota. We met the famous Professors Alton Raygor and Kunes Brown who have written books on Effi cient Reading. We had lunch on the campus. After lunch we proceeded on. They gave more photographic memory tests. No one had gotten a perfect score there. They gave me 5 seconds to observe the picture. Then each one asked specific ques tions — detailed ones! I got a hundred per cent. Then I was given the speed-read ing test. I read at 80,000 words per minute! They (as well as I) were astonished! After the test, w^ proceeded to the airport for my flight back here. “As you see, the past days have been busy. Now, I’m back to school to hit the books again. Phew!” Let me quote Nelson’s ar ticle which recounts how she was handed a pocketbook How to Buy Stocks. This would be a rugged test for the polite teenager who could possibly be the fastest reader in the world. “Would you read the 19th chapter, ‘What It Means to Speculate?’ she was asked. ‘Sure,’ she replied, ‘but first I’d like to see how many pages are in the chapter.’ The black haired, efferves cent little girl (she stands only 4 feet 10 inches and jokingly calls herself ‘the dwarf') thumbed through the seven pages as her inter viewer jotted down a few notes. “He heard the pages flip over, then she said: “All right, I’m ready.’ OK, go ahead and read the chapter.’ ‘I already have.' ‘You don’t mean it.’ ‘Sure. Very inte 12 Panorama resting. Now ask me some questions.’ ” She had taken less than a minute to zip through a complicated chapter. The reporter had spent 15 mi nutes wading through it. The question-answer session delved into the distinction between speculation and gambling. Penny stocks. Cy clical stocks and the size of their dividend. Long and short term capital gains. Pyramid profits. Her answers were correct ...and in detail. A talk ative, down-to-earth girl, she even tossed a few of her own questions at the repor ter. "Don't be too sur prised,” she said graciously. "My father is a member of the Manila stock exchange and my older sister is an investment analyst in Chi cago.” “I hope to work on the stock exchange this summer.” “The writer was convinced. Teresa, now a junior at St. Clara Academy, a Catholic girls’ boarding school just east of Dubuque, is a remark able girl.” So says Nelson. Teresa makes front page in Ameri ca. HOW do we HONOR her? — Manila Chronicle, Feb. 15, 1969. THE VETO POWER The veto is a powerful political tool. There are no such political simpletons as would let it drop. — Andrei Vishinski Februaby 1969 13

pages

11+

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