Those who use the computer while swiping the phone have poor memory

With the development of the attention economy and the popularization of smart devices, it has become very common to use more than two electronic devices at the same time. Recently, the Stanford University research team published a study in Nature, showing that such media multitasking behavior is related to poor memory.

Image source: Pexels Image source: Pexels

　　The eyes are called the window of the soul, they can indeed be used to insight into memory. Scientists at Stanford have now been able to predict whether participants will remember or forget information based on neural activity and pupil size. They have also found that the multitasking behaviors of watching TV and playing mobile phones at the same time are related to poor memory performance.

"In the journey of life, we sometimes get frustrated because we can't remember what's in our heads," explains Lucie Stern Professor Anthony Wagner of the Stanford University School of Social Sciences. "Fortunately, science has now provided the tools that allow us to explain why a person may not remember the information stored in their memory from time to time."

https://www.2021hermes.com/ - In addition to studying why people sometimes remember and sometimes forget, the team of scientists also wants to understand why some people seem to have better memory retrieval capabilities than others, and how media multitasking might have an impact, namely The multitasking behavior of watching TV and using a smartphone or tablet at the same time.

　　 The research published this week in the journal Nature begins to answer these basic questions. They may have an impact on the understanding of memory deficit diseases such as Alzheimer's, thereby improving people's daily attention and memory.

　　 Three mindedness is related to poor memory

In order to monitor the relationship between loss of attention and memory, the researchers asked 80 subjects aged 18-26 to complete tasks, such as recalling the past or recognizing changes in previously seen objects. At the same time, they measured the size of their pupils and used EEG (EEG) monitor their brain activity, and the research pays particular attention to the alpha waves in the back of the brain.

"The increase in alpha waves in the back of the brain is related to lack of attention, distraction, and inability to concentrate," said the first author of the study and postdoctoral fellow at the Stanford Memory Laboratory Kevin Madore (Kevin Madore). "We also know the pupil diameter The change in schizophrenia is closely related to poor performance such as slow response and distracted attention, especially the change in pupil diameter before you perform different tasks."

　　 In addition, the researcher can measure the ability to maintain attention by studying the subject's recognition of the gradual changes in the image. The researchers first asked the subjects to quickly browse the pictures of objects on the computer screen. After a ten-minute delay period, they showed them the second set of pictures and asked them to point out whether these pictures have become larger or smaller. People are happy or unhappy, or whether they have seen this picture before, or have not compared with the previous group. The results show that the distraction at the moment before the memory is related to the decrease of the neural signal of the memory and forgetting.

　　 The media multitasking ability relies on personal reports for evaluation. Participants reported their weekly volume of media multitasking, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) symptoms, impulsivity, game play, and trends in attention and mental mobility by filling out a questionnaire. Next, the scientists compared the memory performance of each person and found that those who had difficulty maintaining attention and those who were more engaged in media multitasking performed poorly on memory tasks.

　　Wagner and Madore emphasized that their work only reflects a correlation, not a causal relationship. "We can't say that it is media multitasking that causes problems in maintaining attention and causing memory decline," Madore said, "but we are learning more and more about the direction of interaction."

　　The memory that comes prepared

　　Wagner said that one direction that the entire field is studying is what happens before learning or memorizing. After all, memory relies heavily on goal-oriented cognitive processes. In order to be able to successfully retrieve memories in the future, we must be prepared to remember things, concentrate and have a memory goal in our mind.

"Attention is very important for learning and memory. This is indeed logical. The more important point here is that what happened before you start to remember will affect whether you can reactivate a memory related to your current goal later. "Wagner said.

　　 He added that we have grasped some factors that affect memory preparation, so we can use them to improve memory recall. For example, people can improve their memory by consciously focusing their attention, preparing for memory, reducing potential interferences to affect their way of thinking, and changing the surrounding environment.

　　 These relatively straightforward methods can now be applied, and the researchers pointed out that there may eventually be goal-oriented attention training or interventions to help people stay focused. These are called "closed-loop interventions" and are an active area of ​​research.

　　 For example, Wagner and Madore envisaged the use of wearable eye sensors to detect the duration of attention in real time by measuring the size of the pupil. If the sensor can give a reminder to the wearer to remind them to refocus on the task at hand, it may be helpful for learning and recalling information.

　　 Finally, technological advancements in measuring the state of attention and their impact on the use of goals to guide memory are expected to give researchers a better understanding of memory health and related diseases. Wagner said: "We now have an opportunity to explore and understand the connection between the interactions between the brain networks that support attention, goals, and memory, and the individual differences in memory in older people, including those involved in and independent of Alzheimer’s. Aspect."