Learning in your sleep

sleeping with stack of booksYour sleeping mind is still hard at work. The following excerpt from Business Insider includes examples of specific skills scientists have found can be honed while you are fast asleep.

Learn foreign words. In a recent experiment, scientists had native German speakers begin learning Dutch, starting with some basic vocabulary. Then, they played the sound of a few of those Dutch words to some of the German speakers while they slept, without telling the German speakers what they were doing. Compared with those who had no sound playing overnight, the group who heard words in their sleep were better able to identify and translate them later.

Hone musical skills.  Researchers recently had a group of people learn to play guitar melodies using a technique borrowed from the video game Guitar Hero. Then, all of the volunteers got to nap.

Unbeknownst to them, a selection of the sleeping participants were played the same melody they had just learned.

After their slumber, the volunteers played the tune again. Those who heard it while napping — even though they had no memory of doing so — played the melody far better than those who didn’t.

Keep specific memories from fading.  Scientists recently found that people who listened to a sound they associated with a memory—even an inconsequential one—were better able to hold on to that memory.

They had a group of volunteers place icons on a computer screen in a specific location. The computer was programmed to play a specific sound when each object was placed. Then, they let participants nap. While they dozed, the scientists played the sounds of some of the icons.

The people who listened to the sounds—any of the sounds—were better able to recall all of the objects. In other words, one sound triggered multiple memories.

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