When you write permanent notes about what you read to test understanding, you transform what you read into an original artifact that is your own. The evergreens in your talahardin develop into original arguments shaped by the mental models you have stored in your brain. Vice versa, the mental models you have are changed by the things you read and take note of. This is why, when you grow the talahardin to complexity, you also grow your thinking. The connections there also develop the connections in our brain. What’s more, Talahardin improves memory about our ideas and those of others because they are now embedded in a latticework (see spaced repetition).
References
Ahrens, S. (2017). How to Take Smart Notes: One Simple Technique to Boost Writing, Learning and Thinking – for Students, Academics and Nonfiction Book Writers. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform.