Targeted memory reactivation is a process that strengthens one’s memories by playing sounds associated with that memory during sleep. In a study, researchers found that reactivation also helps with remembering names, but only for those who had a deep, undisturbed sleep. The ones who spent less time in the deepest stage of sleep and whose sleep was disrupted (even a little) didn’t benefit from reactivation. They hypothesise it’s because reactivation needs a lot of time to strengthen memories. Read full article here
Societal Issues
AI Predicts Crime A Week In Advance With 90 Per Cent Accuracy
An artificial intelligence model built by Ishanu Chattopadhyay and his colleagues analysed crime data in Chicago from 2014 to 2016 and managed to predict future levels of crime down to the nearest 300 metres, a week before they actually happened. While extremely useful, this artificial intelligence has been shown to expose racial prejudice in law enforcement. Hopefully, as the study’s data and methodology have been made available for others to evaluate, these prejudices can be avoided in the next iteration. Read full article here
Merv
August 15, 2022
