Pokémon Aficionados Help Scientists Prove 'Practice Makes Perfect'

BySarah Benton FeitlingeronFebruary 7, 2017

Avid Pokémon video and card game fans were recently called upon for to use theirexpertisefor an unusual task – to help scientists understand the inner-workings of the brain. Specifically, Weiwei Zhang, an assistant professor at the University of California, Riverside, was seeking to learn the connection between the short-term, or working memory, and long-term memory.

According to the researcher, while the human brain’s ability to store information isinfinite, accessing it can be a little tricky. That’s because the working memory that enables us to learn and retain data for short periods of time has a limited capacity. Too much information causes what Zhang refers to as a “bottleneck,” or a traffic-jam, limitingcognitiveabilities like creativity. The researcher was curious to see if one could boost orsupplementthis limited range with help from the long-term memory.

An analysis of the results showed that those that had been more familiar with Pokémon characters before entering the study, were not only able to easily recall the characters they knew but also moreproficientat identifying ones they had just been introduced to. In other words, the better they knew the first-generation Pokémon characters, the more they were able to remember the series of characters in the short-term, whether old or new.

Zhang, who published the findings, in the Journal,Memory and Cognition, in December 2016, says, “These results suggest that long-term memory, specifically familiarity, could boost working memory capacity, another example of 'practice makes perfect.”

Of course, the research has greater value than simply being able to identify and remember Gastrodon and Jigglypuff. The scientist believes it has important implications for academics, saying, “For example, those preparation courses for MCAT or SAT may have familiarized their students with the testing procedure and the scope of assessments such that the students could perform better simply because they had a better working memory for the testing materials." So the next time your teacher or parent asks you to practice before an exam do not resist – it will go a long way in helping you achieve your goals!

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VOCABULARIES

1.expertise ~ noun expert skill or knowledge in a particular field

2.cognitive ~ adjective of, relating to, being, or involving conscious intellectual activity

3.infinite ~ adjective limitless or endless in space, extent, or size; impossible to measure or calculate.

4.supplement ~ adjective something that completes or enhances something else when added to it

5.proficient ~adjective competent or skilled in doing or using something.

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS:

  1. What was the research all about?
  2. What was its purpose?
  3. Who published Memory and Cognition? What were the findings?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:

  1. Are you an avid fan of Pokémon video and card games? What do you like the most about it?
  2. Can you easily recognize Pokémon characters both old and new ones? If not, what do you do to easily name them?
  3. In what other situations can you apply “practice makes perfect?” Name some activities.