I feel like I lack basic general knowledge

Reading, reading and more reading. Reading newspapers, novels, magazine articles, internet blogs, even Facebook pages (but use a good pinch of salt and a large helping of common sense on the FB pages, they may be "fake news".) Talking about things to other people and listening to what they have to say. Being interested in what is happening, in other people's stories and lives, their work and their holiday destinations, in how and where things are made,

I am not sure that you can learn "general knowledge" by rote, it is more something you pick up as you live life. You may forget a lot of what you read or hear, but more will stick than will be lost - and you probably know much more than you think you do.

I have always found that doing general knowledge crosswords helps and watching quiz shows where general knowledge is tested. If it isn’t fun I doubt you will be very successful at retaining the information.

Curiosity

Watching daytime television has been helpful for me. Quiz shows too. Travelled a lot as a child, helped geography.

BBC Bitesize basic subjects just like revision very good. You can choose subjects and repeat to retain the information all the time taking notes.

At least give it a try it's interesting also Future Learn plenty of free taster courses no charge short courses.

General knowledge creeps in while you get on with life.

kittylester

General knowledge creeps in while you get on with life.

This is right, IMO.

Cramming ‘facts’ out of context is not the same as knowledge. Knowledge recognises that ‘facts’ are only part of a story, and that there are likely to be other ‘facts’ that contradict them. Quiz shows can be good for sharpening the memory, but knowing the currency of Bolivia or the name of the last man to be executed in the UK isn’t very useful unless you know and understand the context.

Knowledge is something you pick up by living life, it's high points and disasters. I also think exoeriencing things you remember more such as travel. I travelled as much as I could and am a keen reader. If something pops up I don't know I look it up on line, it used to be my dictionary and the library.
I am 80 now and the older I get the less I realise I know. I am now reading up on the planets, how little I know is ridiculous.
Curiosity motivates me more the older I get. I do wish I had been better educated, I left school at fifteen but was lucky in getting better jobs as I got older.

I agree with Elegran reading is a great source of general knowledge. I remember reading Gone with the Wind in my mid teens, not knowing anything about the American Civil War or Civil Wars per se, but that book gave me the impetus to read factual material on that. Novels can often spur me on , if interested enough, to expand knowledge on a subject matter and read some non fiction on whatever it may be.

I have sometimes discovered new things from children and grandchildrens' curriculums. Matters that I didn't learn at school. I think it's easier now with the internet to acquire knowledge and information than it was in the days of wading through encylopedias and getting a brief synopsis

As others have said TV as well. David Attenborough. Programmes like Race Across the World, anything Simon Reeve does to find out about other places in the world. Always a source of interest as many more of that nature are.

Stumbling through life is a learning curve as well imo.

There are times when I wish that I could switch my brain off and get on with practical things like cleaning !

In the middle of sorting my books out - I noticed that an interesting programme had begun about the terracotta army.
I had to watch it .
Then I had to do some research about it .
Two hours passed ...

If it isn't that it's something else - I feel as though I have to cram every fact known to man in my brain .
I can't walk down the road without latin names of plants flooding my brain.
Or stand at the bus stop without wondering if the other people are speaking Polish or Russian or trying to identify Yoruba .

General knowledge isn't everything!

I think you have to be fired up enough about something in particular to want to know more about it. Like many there are matters that pass me by. There's a thread on GN at the monent regarding achievements in motor racing, something I couldn't care less about, but certainly an area of general knowledge. Sport per se is something that doesn't interest me, I rarely read about it. On Trivial Pursuit or a quiz on that subject totally unknowledgeable and I don't really care that I am.

OH and I do a couple of online general knowledge quizzes each day after lunch. The one we do is multichoice but OH asks the question and I see if I know the answer first, then he gives me the multi choice answers, often that means I can choose the right answer easily but if neither of us know the answer we discuss the question and use our pooled knowledge to make an educated guess. We often follow that up with looking online for further information if the question peaks our interest. It's fun, we often have a laugh and it's led both of us read, watch programmes or to find further quizzes that help to build our knowledge on the internet. There's some great online quizzes that help you learn the states of America, capitol cities, names of rivers etc. I had to drop both geography and history at "O" level so I had huge gaps in my knowledge but not so much now!d I also listen to history podcasts, the Rest is history series is very easy listening, not dry at all.

Not so much general knowledge, but specific information eg on pensions, taxation etc can be found on gov.uk.
Citizens Advice website is a mine of information about all sorts of things eg consumer problems, employment, benefits, debt, health, housing and much more.
MoneySavingExpert is another very useful site.
All three are probably best used when you need specific information on a topic rather than general reading, but if you are like me, one thing leads to another. I can sit and read an atlas or a dictionary!

I used to feel the same, but my friends and I do a difficult general knowledge crossword on a Saturday morning while having coffee. I have found that over the years I have gained a lot of knowledge from doing these and now feel more confident about having conversations with them, that I used to lack. I love words in general anyway, so that helps!

I agree, I learned far more after my school and college years than I ever did actually at school/college.

Read, research, use the internet, newspapers etc.

Identify how your learn best (ie your preferred learning “style”) and those things you want to learn about and are interest in.

I’m still pretty rubbish at world geography and sciences. But, I have far more desire to learn about those things now and I enjoy looking at atlases and maps online and reading up on science based subjects.

You could enrol online on any number of free online learning resources or classes or look at adult education classes in your area.

Good luck and you’ll find your own way of retaining facts.

All the suggestions and comment by other Grans on here is fab.

Macaydia

Curiosity

I was going to say that!

Just, when something say on Gransnet or in everyday life something has caught your attention - start by looking it up on the internet - and if this or that then said leaves you still curious, look it up further, there are usually references given.

I also agree with cossy. Online more formal learning resources

Here we go: (for example)

"The Open University (OU) offers specialised introductory courses called Access modules.

These low-stress, ground-level courses are designed for beginners with no prior higher education experience to help build confidence, learn at a distance, and prepare for a full degree"

You can stop at the ground level courses of course but will meet others online who want to do what you do.

I thank Radio 4, which I used to listen to all the time, for keeping me informed on a huge variety of topics, arts, current affairs, sociology, psychology- the list is endless, including all the things you mention. It has been so much more interesting and inspiring than school ever was, and has led me in all sorts of directions, finding out more.

I don’t listen so much these days, but I recommend the habit, and hope you get a lot of enjoyment and entertainment out of it along the way.

We do quizzes on YouTube sometimes in the evening.

You (or someone with the same name) have a lot of internet presence on various social media platforms and interest groups, keronbwan , so I don't think you need to worry too much. You have varied interests and the ability to ask questions, so you will be able to gather information from many areas. Are you seeking information sources to help in utilising an AI application?

Check things out on Google. So if you hear the name of a city, say, Melbourne, look it up, where it is, how much population etc. Knowledge is best acquired when it hooks onto something. It becomes like one huge map in information. Having said that, I have good GK but when it comes to problem solving in quizzes, I am complete rubbish. In my WI there are some elderly ladies who are very unassuming and once the problem solving questions or cryptic crosswords appear, they are masters at it. We are all different in how we learn and store knowledge.

Lots of great answers on here and I love Google for exactly the sort of thing SpinDriftCoastal mentioned. Meeting Americans whilst on holiday, I’ve extended my knowledge of where places are by looking them up.
DH retains that sort of info more easily than I do-which is great for GK crosswords, but he also reads a lot of history, news etc, than I do.
I’m better at listening to info.

I wish I had a mental picture of a map of the world, as my knowledge of geography leaves much to be desired. I’m thinking of doing an online course to widen my knowledge. (Currently learning Spanish on Duolingo and enjoying it.)

Elegran

You (or someone with the same name) have a lot of internet presence on various social media platforms and interest groups, keronbwan , so I don't think you need to worry too much. You have varied interests and the ability to ask questions, so you will be able to gather information from many areas. Are you seeking information sources to help in utilising an AI application?

Well spotted!