Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

Hello,

My second grade daughter is doing a project similar to 'Do the Eyes Have It' in which she tests a subject's visual memory and auditory memory. She generates a random seven digit number and the procedure says to give a point for every integer recalled correctly by the participant. My question is should the order of the sequence of integers matter when scoring the result of each test? Or should the subject just get a point for every integer they can remember, regardless of the original order of the sequence?

Thank you!

Hello, and welcome to Science Buddies! A great project for your daughter to do.

I recommend you require them to recite in the order given. With a 7-digit number, assuming you are including 0 as one of the numbers, there are only 10 numbers to choose from. If they just choose 7 of 10 numbers, without having to worry about order, the experiment is more about luck of the draw than it is testing memory. Also, not scoring for order doesn't account for a number repeated within the sequence.

I hope this helps. Feel free to write back if you have more questions. Good luck to your daughter on her science project!

Hello there,

I also agree with the expert who posted above that you should only award a point to the participant if they remember the specific integers in the correct order. Have you thought about adding additional twists to this experiment (this isn't necessary though, only if you are interested!)? For example, what if you also give the participants different digit numbers (i.e. three digit, ten digit). Is it more difficult for the participants to score more points as the number of digits increases, whether it be for visual or auditory memory? Or how about comparing the results you get for girls versus boys--are girls better or worse than boys at visual and/or auditory memory, or are they both relatively similar?

Good luck! This sounds like a very fun project for your daughter. Please let us know if you have anymore questions.

Connie