Memory & Attention

Expertise and Chunking Long-Term Working Memory oSkilled Memory oFast retrieval of knowledge oRetrieval structures (set of retrieval cues) oTask related information Dynamic flow of expected activity

Capacity and Chunking Working Memory limited by duration & capacity o10 – 15 sec (Brown-Peterson paradigm) o7 +/- 2 (Miller, 1956) Chunking oParsing (physical separation) oMnemonics Pattern Recognition

Attention Demo - difference between attention and awareness

Types of Attention a. Focused Attention b. Divided Attention c. Selective Attention  Why is attention often considered to be a bottleneck for information processing?  How does meditation help selective attention skills?  How might a magician or baseball pitcher make use of attention bottlenecks?

Everyday Attention Name everyday tasks that require... oFocused Attention oWhat are the signals involved? oSelective Attention oWhat are the signals involved? oWhat might influence sensitivity? oDivided Attention oWhat are the signals involved? oWhat might influence response bias?

Parallel Processing oWhat does parallel processing mean? oWhy might theorists assume that parallel processing happens? oWhat does “global” or “holistic” processing mean?

Preattentive Processing oIntrinsic display properties that activate before the user is aware oHow can designers make use of preattentive processing in order to reduce workload? oUse of emergent features oUse of colour and shapes oAdvantages oLimits oExample

Proximity-Compatibility Principle - If task requires integrating information, then present in close proximity or as an integrated display - If task requires separating information, then present as separate displays - Example

Cognitive Tunneling oWhat is cognitive tunneling? oWhy is it important for designers to recognize the phenomenon of “cognitive tunneling”? oExample