Multitask Research Paper

To multitask is to do two or more tasks simultaneously. People are in a constant state of multitasking every day, usually through a combination of talking, texting, using social media, and working. One age group that is particularly good at multitasking is college-aged young adults. They eat, sleep, text, surf the internet, and learn - some do all of these in one class period! But is this multitasking good or bad for memory?
College students wonder about the best ways to study, which usually involve multitasking. Chewing gum has been proven to have a positive correlation with cognitive enhancement (Scholey 2004). Listening to music is another condition that is presumed to correlate with memory recall while studying. However, its effects extend much further than studying. Auditory stimulation could help aid in treatment of symptoms for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients, which include lack of short term memory and confusion (Boone K). Research about conditions that aid memory recall is important for these patients and for those who simply want to increase their memory power, such as college students. Auditory stimuli can either hinder or distract the brain …show more content…
Memory recall was not as good when text was spoken, compared to recall when the words were memorized to a melody. This correlates with the findings that music without words was the next best condition to silence. It can be theorized that music with lyrics are distracting to the part of the brain that processes speech, so therefore memory recall is not as reliable. Multitasking seems to not be efficient because of the potential for interruptions in memory. In the music without words condition, the brain seems to be able to recall better, perhaps because the rhythmic pattern of music allows the brain to associate a memory with a particular sound or rhythm. If that sound is repeated, continued recall