How it works
Each MedCards feature below lists the evidence behind it, the sources and the limits. We promise no score and no pass.
Spaced repetition
MedCards spaces the reviews of each card over days and weeks. Reviews spread over time give more retention than the same amount of massed study.
Sources: Cepeda, Pashler, Vul, Wixted and Rohrer (2006), *Psychological Bulletin* 132(3); Dunlosky et al. (2013), *Psychological Science in the Public Interest* 14(1).
Limits: the studies measure recall of facts; transfer to new clinical questions is smaller and depends on how the card is written.
Retrieval practice
Each card asks you to recall the answer before you see it. Trying to recall strengthens memory more than rereading.
Sources: Roediger and Karpicke (2006), *Psychological Science* 17(3); Dunlosky et al. (2013).
Limits: the effect depends on a real attempt before you show the answer.
Scheduling with FSRS
MedCards schedules each card with FSRS, an open algorithm that predicts forgetting better than Anki's SM-2 for most users in a public benchmark.
Source: Expertium, "Benchmark of spaced repetition algorithms" (open-spaced-repetition/srs-benchmark).
Limits: the benchmark uses Anki users' histories; your numbers can differ, and MedCards shows your true retention.
True retention
We show the share of reviews of learned cards that you passed in the last 30 days, not only how many cards you saw.
Limits: below 100 reviews in the period the number shows without emphasis, because it varies too much.
Readiness and the exam plan
Readiness is an estimate with a range, based only on your flashcards. The plan computes how many new cards a day fit before the exam date.
Limits: the estimate does not know questions outside your decks or your exam results; it never says "you will pass".
Interleaving
In comparison sets, MedCards mixes similar topics in one session to train the distinction between them.
Source: Rohrer and Taylor (2007), *Instructional Science* 35.
Limits: the evidence comes mostly from mathematics and visual categories; in medicine it is smaller.
Breaks
After many answers in a row MedCards suggests a short break. You continue with one tap.
Limits: the break is a well-being choice, not a technique with a measured effect on memory.