Researchers have long been studying the impact of smells on learning and memory of people. In 2007 it was found that, if a person will inhale a certain scent in the process of learning new information, and then he hears the same smell in the phase of slow sleep, it will improve memory consolidation – the process of transferring new data from “short-term” store of the brain in the “long-term”.
such Experiments were mainly conducted under laboratory conditions, the specialists monitored the brain activity of subjects to “enable” fragrance at the right time.
Now scientists at the University of Freiburg have found that this method can improve the training and in normal conditions.
the article presented in the journal Scientific Reports, the authors describe several tests with the participation of 54 German schoolchildren aged 11-12 years. They had to learn English words in the dictionary using incense sticks with the scent of roses.
In one case the pupils put incense on desks during home training and during a screening test at school, which was held a week later.
In another case, the participants breathed in the scent of roses while learning at home, and every night during the week before the test.
Finally, in another experiment, participants used the incense sticks and during the training period at home and night, and during the subsequent vocabulary test in school.
it turned Out that the use of incense during class and during sleep improves learning productivity by about 30%. In addition, the use of incense sticks during a vocabulary test further stimulated the work of memory.
Apparently, the aromatic effect of the “doping” due to the fact that the brain, receiving and processing new data, associates them with a specific flavor. And the scent afterwards is “search signal” – helps to extract from the memory the stored information.
“Our study shows that we can facilitate learning during sleep. And who would have podumat, what our nose can help, says study leader Jurgen of Kornmeier (Jrgen Kornmeier). We showed that this effect works very reliably in everyday life and can be used purposefully”.
by the Way, it is highly likely that improving learning will not only help the fragrance of a rose, but any other. A 2007 study, for example, showed that this effect is not associated with any particular smell in that experiment worked even unpleasant flavors.
earlier, “News.Science” talked about the fact that sleep is not a prerequisite for creating long-term memories. And another interesting study showed that special aromatherapy helps patients to get rid of fears and phobias.
Text: To.Science