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ANFA 2021: The role of the physical environment on memorization of experiences: perspectives and possibilities

Poster · September 2021

DOI: 10.13140/RG.2.2.27681.12649

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 The role of the physical environment on memorization of
experiences: perspectives and possibilities Andréa de Paiva, MA
www.neuroau.com/e
@neuro_au
ANFA 2021 SYMPOSIUM andrea@neuroau.com

INTRODUCTION
SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE THAT POINTS TO LINKS BETWEEN MEMORY AND PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT
This paper is concerned with the links between episodic memory
and the physical environment. To what extent could encoding of
memories be a ected by the surroundings of the space where EPISODIC MEMORY MEMORY, ENVIRONMENT AND BRAIN
they were rst experienced? Would we have stronger memories
about our experiences depending on where we were when we The term episodic memory was rst introduced by Endel Tulving in Hippocampus and Parahippocampal Navigation and memory Enrichment and memory
rst experienced them? 1972. He created the term to distinguish between remembering Gyrus One of the oldest Studies conducted with
The internet and online video conferencing allowed people to factual information (semantic memory) and remembering events from The hippocampus plays a key role in memorization techniques is adult rodents have shown
engage in a variety of activities from one same place. This the past (episodic memory). Thus, “episodic memories are long-term memory processing (Squire & known as the Roman that enriched environments,
situation was intensi ed recently, due to the COVID-19 pandemic consciously recollected memories related to personally experienced Zola-Morgan, 1991; Voss et al., 2017), Room, or Method of Loci, de ned as a combination of
and the increase of home o ce and home schooling. If events” (Ploran & Wheeler, 2009, p.1). as well as in spatial cognition created by the Greek and complex inanimate and
environments are an important element to support episodic Although recent studies have been showing the interconnections (Eichenbaum, 2017; Hartley et al., Romans. It involves social stimulation
between both kinds of memory (Greenberg & Verfaellie, 2010), 2013; O’Keefe & Nadel, 1978). Place visualizations of familiar (Rosenzweig et al., 1978),
memory encoding, perhaps some of the spaces we have been
episodic memories are a category of long-term memory that is cells – which support recognition of spatial environments in can stimulate synaptic
designing are not supporting memorization of experiences as
connected to a particular phenomenological experience that allows a spaces - are located in the order to enhance the recall plasticity (Leal-Galicia et al.,
they could be, especially in this new context of using only the
person to mentally travel back in time to relive a past episode and to hippocampus (O’Keefe & Dostrovsky, of information. It consists in 2008) and neurogenesis
home – or a room at home – to engage in so many di erent
be aware of the temporal dimension of their own existence (Martin- 1971) and studies suggest that they are mentalizing a spatial layout, (Kempermann et al., 1997)
activities.
Ordas & Atance, 2019). They can not only a ect performance in day- directly connected to episodic memory, like a building or street, and in various brain regions,
Although there is a signi cant amount of research about spatial including the hippocampus
to-day tasks, such as remembering people met and activities providing the spatial context for then memorizing a set of
memory, the e ects of the physical environment on memory memories by recalling the neural items by associating them (Ohline & Abraham, 2019).
engaged in, but also the sense of self (Guerine et al., 2018).
encoding about events and personal experiences have not been representation of the environments in with di erent locations in Notably, studies also point
Importantly, recent studies have pointed three main elements that
very explored. The investigation of such relationship, though, which they occurred (Smith & Mizumori, the mentalized layout. that enriched environments
compose episodic memories: recollection about what, where, and
can lead to better understanding about how the physical when something happened (Martin-Ordas & Atance, 2019). 2006; Tulving & Markowitsch, 1998). Retrieval of items is improve learning and
environment can a ect its users. Additionally, it can help The parahipocampal gyrus, a cortical achieved by 'walking' memory in young adult rats
architects to think of new strategies in order to design spaces WHAT + WHERE + WHEN region that surrounds the through the loci. O’Keefe & (Hullinger et al., 2015). In
that support memorization of events lived in them. hippocampus, is also known to be Nadel (1978) pointed that addition, long-term
The goal of this paper is to present a holistic framework about involved with memory encoding and the hippocampus, involved exposition to environmental
Episodic memories are not
the possible connections between spaces and episodic retrieval (Amino et al., 2013); with long-term memory, can enrichment since youth
disassociated from the place where
memories of personal events. It also aims to point spatial visuospatial processing relating to also form some kind of map might prevent memory
they took place. Consequently,
attributes that architects could consider to create spaces that scene perception (Ekstrom et al., 2003; in which all the elements decline and even increase
architecture, with its a ordances and
support memorization. Epstein et al., 1999; Park, & Chun, are interrelated and synaptic plasticity markers
multi-sensory stimuli, might play a
2009) and spatial representation simultaneously available. during aging (Leal-Galicia et
key role on episodic memorization.
(Mullally & Maguire, 2011). al., 2008).

E P I S O D I C M E M O R Y A N D S PAT I A L AT T R I B U T E S

A ordances and Embodiment Perceptual Fluency and Cognitive Restoration

Spatial
attribut
es:
The embodied approach to cognition suggests that the human body, particularly the Recent studies suggest that spaces can a ect cognitive restoration. Sensory
LAYOUT
perceptual and motor systems, play an important role in cognition (Damasio, 2005; Mada & processes, particularly vision, draw on limited mental resources (Shenhav et
FURNITUR
ENVIRONM
E DESIGN Singhal, 2012). For instance, Dijkstra et al. (2007) found that congruent body posture might al., 2017). Once these are depleted, cognition is impaired (Kato et al., 2009). Spatial
attribu
SAFETY
ENTAL CL
UES facilitate retrieval of autobiographical memories. They found that adopting a similar body However, some environments can help save and restore resources, leading to NATURE
& BIOPH tes:
FRACTAL ILIC DESI
DISTANC posture to one that was assumed during a given past experience facilitated memory retrieval “cognitive restoration”, which is the capacity to replenish cognitive resources S SHAPE
S & P AT
GN
ES TERNS
VISIBILITY of that very same experience – compared to when subjects adopted incongruent postures. depleted by everyday activities (Kaplan, 1995) and to reduce stress levels COMPLEX
& INTEG AMOUNT ITY
WAYFIND
ING
RATION Not only that, but walking has been shown to enhance learning and memory in humans and (Ulrich, 1983). The two main environmental elements associated with cognitive OF VISUA
L INFORM
ATION
STAIRS D
ESIGN other animals (van Praag, 2009) and daily physical exercise has been shown to reduce the restoration are nature (Kaplan, 1995) and fractals (Taylor, 2006; Taylor et al., COLORS
cognitive decline associated with aging (Buchman et al., 2012). 2011). Recent studies de ne such elements as “perceptually uent”. This PROSPEC
T & REF
UGE
uency is de ned as the subjective experience of the ease with which a certain SILENCE
stimulus organization is processed (Joye et al., 2016). For instance, research VISUAL P
RIVACY
has showed an increase in the average working memory of school children that
Lighting
Context and coherence spent more time in contact with nature (Dadvand et al., 2015) and an
Studies point to a relationship between the environment’s
According to the Contextual improvement in directed-attention abilities (Berman et al., 2008), which has a
bu t es: lighting and attention levels and memory retention (Huiberts et
a ttr i
Binding Theory (Yonelinas et al., key role in memory encoding (Muzzio et al., 2009).
p a t ia l
Z E NITH al., 2015; Vandewalle et al., 2009). Natural light in classrooms
S S&
O W was found to enhance attention levels and learning (Heschong 2019), the hippocampus binds
WIND R AREAS
U T D OO G H TING et al., 2002; Shishegar & Boubekri, 2016) and more windows together item and context
O I A L LI
ARTI
F IC
in the classroom was associated with faster rate of information. A steady context Multi-sensory Stimuli
I N DING
WAY
F
improvement on student’s performance (Heschong et al., during encoding could enhance As well as in perception, memory
UT bu t es:
LAYO ATION 2002). Research also show that light (especially blue light) the chances of remembering, encoding and retrieving can also vary attr
i
E GR a ti a l E R IA L S
I N T
might a ect not only attention and alertness, but also memory whilst forgetting could result from Spatial Arrangement and The across the senses. The sense of smell is Sp MA T
U RES
TE X T
consolidation (Shan et al., 2015; Zhu et al., 2018). interferences from other Encoding Speci city Principle known to be directly connected to the SOUN
DS
memories that share similar The work of Radvansky explores the Spatial limbic system, including the amygdala and ODOR
S
content or context (Yonelinas et attribut IG N
links between spatial arrangement es: the hippocampus, the regions related to D E S
CONCLUSION al., 2019). Aligned with this, other and memory (Radvansky & LAYOUT
emotion, memory and associative learning RE & BI O P H ILIC
OF K I TC HEN
studies also point to the possible Copeland, 2006; Radvansky et al., VISIBILIT NATU OCATION
e s: INTEGRA
Y (Herz, 2016). This is why smells are L
“We are who we are in good measure because of what we have r ibut role of the hippocampus and 2010). He found that when people TION
i a l a t t considered powerful triggers to retrieve
learned and what we remember” and “memory is the glue that Spat S surrounding areas in mediating pass through a doorway to move
WALLS
B O L stored episodic memories. Visual
SYM context and memory associations from one location to another, they
holds our mental life together” (Kandel, 2020, pg. 199). Thus, LA Y O U T information, especially pictures, are also
understanding how spaces can a ect memorization can help R N I T URE (Bar & Amino , 2003; Bar et al., forget more information than if they known for how they can be easily stored
FU RES
architects and designers to create spaces that improve R S E X TU 2008). Thus, the coherence do not make such a shift, which he in the human mind if compared to words (Grady et al., 1998).
COLO S & T
A T ERIAL between spatial context and called the location-updating e ect Another important point to make is that multi-sensory cues can
performance, mental life and the sense of self. M
ODOR
S activity/event could be another (Radvansky et al., 2010). His ndings are aligned with the enhance retention of information (Broadbent et al., 2019);
Although there are still many gaps to ll in order to understand DS
SOUN relevant element to support Encoding Speci city Principle, which indicates that working memory (Quak et al., 2015); and memory of virtual
the complexity of this relationship between episodic memories memorization. In the current context that matching the encoding context at recall can assist in the environments (Dinh et al., 1999). However, it is worth mentioning
and architecture, this paper aimed to contribute to the many people are using a few spaces to retrieval of episodic memories (Tulving & Thomson, 1973). that studies on cross-modal perception show that coherence
discussions by pointing some spatial attributes that have already shelter the many di erent activities in which Thus, individuals tend to recall more information when in the between di erent sensory modalities is important to facilitate
been studied and linked to memorization. Those can be they engage, this issue becomes even more same environment as they originally encoded them (Brown & perception and that incoherent cross-modal stimuli could lead
important in order to help architects and designers to adopt critical and deserves further investigation. Craik, 2000; Godden & Baddeley, 1975). to interferences and, thus, hinder perception and memorization.
science informed solutions that could support memory encoding.

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