Why You Keep Forgetting Why You Entered a Room
We’ve all done it. Walk into a room for something and completely forget what it is. It’s extremely frustrating and can’t make you feel like you’re losing your mind. But a new study has some good news on the forgetfulness front.
Scientists from Australia’s Bond University have been studying this memory blip referred to as “The Doorway Effect” and they’ve found it has nothing to do with you getting older or experiencing memory loss. The researchers found it only really happens when your brain is working really hard.
In their experiment, participants used VR headsets to move through computer-generated 3D rooms and asked to remember objects from one room to the next. They did well until the researchers added in the additional task of counting backward while they moved around. According to assistant professor Olver Bauumann, this proves that “the doorway effect only occurs if we are cognitively in a vulnerable state.” So there you have it. You’re not crazy. You’ve just got too much crap going on to remember where you put your keys.
Source: Vice
