Tool introduction
This is a short-term memory test made famous by an experiment that studied memory in chimpanzees. Nine numbers will appear at different locations on the screen at the same time, and then disappear into white squares. The tester is asked to point out the positions of these 9 numbers in order of size. Chimpanzees consistently outperformed humans in this study, with some achieving a 90 percent success rate at remembering nine digits.
This tool is a variation of that experiment. Each round becomes increasingly difficult, starting with 4 digits and increasing by one each round. If you pass a level, this number increases. You have three chances to fail. If the number of failures exceeds three, the test will end.
Based on the data collected so far, the average (median) number passed is 10 digits. Don't worry if your score is not up to the average, you can improve your memory through training with this tool.
Chimpanzee memory experiment
Six chimpanzees and 12 college students each stood in front of a touch screen. Nine numbers would appear at different locations on the screen at the same time, and then disappear and be replaced by white squares. The test subject needs to point out the location of the 9 numbers in order from small to large.
Test results showed that chimpanzees performed significantly better than adult humans. The memory of chimpanzees may be related to the phenomenon of "relict images" or "photographic memory". This kind of memory ability is that after the stimulation stops, the brain continues to maintain an extremely clear and vivid image.
This acute memory ability is important for chimpanzees to survive in the wild. We can speculate that when several male chimpanzees approach a nearby chimpanzee colony, it would be important for them to take a quick glance to learn how many hostile chimpanzees are nearby. There is also the case when a chimpanzee is under a fig tree and can tell which fruits are edible with just a glance. This is very similar to the instant memory ability and instant comprehension ability in our speed reading training.
