Amnesia sufferers can lose their short-term memories within one minute of the initial thought. While such things as head injuries and
strokes are known to cause amnesia, very little is known about why such severe memory loss occurs. However, a
University of Missouri-Columbia researcher has discovered that some amnesiacs can maintain their memories for a longer period of time if they spend time sitting in a dark, quiet room.
“This discovery might provide us with a better understanding of what causes amnesia,” said Nelson Cowan, an MU psychology professor who conducted the study along with Nicoletta Beschin of the Department of Rehabilitation Unit in Somma Lombardo, Italy, and Sergio Della Sala of the University of Aberdeen, United Kingdom. “It also will help us better determine different types of amnesia as well as better therapeutic applications.”
Cowan conducted two experiments with people who have amnesia caused by either a head injury or stroke. In the first experiment, participants reviewed six lists of 15 unrelated words. After the participants read the words they were tested in six different conditions, one of which was to lie quietly in a darkened room with no outside interference, trying not to fall asleep, for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, the participants were asked to recall any of the words. Cowan found that although severe memory loss occurred following activity-filled conditions, 60 percent of the patients experienced much less memory loss after sitting in the darkened room.