Immersion for Better Memory
Author(s): Scott Douglas Jacobsen
Publication (Outlet/Website): TrendBT
Publication Date (yyyy/mm/dd): 2018/06/19
ZDNet stated that University of Maryland research did one in-depth study. It was on the immersion technology of virtual reality. They, apparently, can help with the improvement of some types of memory better than traditional platforms.
However, these are full immersion technologies. “Published in the journal Virtual Reality, the results show that ‘immersion aids,’ which permit better spatial awareness than desktop screens, draw on the power of spatial mnemonics to aid memory,” the reportage stated.
It was considered an exciting development in the immersive environment research literature. Because this suggests the possibility for the strengthening of memory based on a different technique of teaching: VR.
The article explained, “The researchers administered memory tests to study participants using a classical memory technique called a memory palace, which will be familiar to readers of Moonwalking with Einstein.”
With the memory palace technique, the individuals will mentally arrange objects in their minds for the ability to distinguish mental locations of those objects, and so create a memory map, a palace.
That palace forms the basis of the improvement in memory. “To use the memory palace technique, a person mentally arranges objects or images they want to remember in a location, like a room in a familiar building. Known as spatial mnemonic encoding, the technique permits humans to spatially organize large quantities of information, allowing for better recall,” the article stated.
With the researchers and the study, the participants in the study were asked to navigate a virtual memory palace with various photographs. The images had many familiar faces.
One group of people used a VR headset. They moved their head to view things. Another group of participants used modern desktop computer. They used the mouse and a screen to navigate.
It gives two different methodologies to explore the palaces. As it turns out, the VR group had a better recall of 8.8 percent.
One doctoral student, Eric Krokos and a lead author on the article, stated, “We wanted to see if virtual reality might be the next logical step in this progression.”
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