CPR 1Hunger and Memory Recall Introduction:Hunger is a primal sensation allhumans face and satiate daily.
However,hunger may not prove to be a detriment but rather a potential benefit to human memory.A study has shown that subjects deprivedof food for sixteen hours were more likely to recall pictures of appetizing foodthan pictures of non-food items (Morris & Dolan, 2001). Additionally, during the subjects’ recall period,neuroimaging data showed amygdala activation, indicating its involvement in linkinghunger and memory recall (Morris & Dolan, 2001). Memory recall refers to subjects recallingspecific pictures shown to them some time prior.The knowledge gap in the Morrisand Dolan study is both the amount of time the subjects were deprived of foodand the specific types of pictures the subjects were shown. This study aims to compare two groups ofsubjects, one that had eaten within the past hour and the other that had noteaten in eighteen hours, and their memory recall of various pictures part ofthe Memory Interference Test (MIT).
Though the Morris and Dolan study aimed to find a link between hunger enhancingthe recall of pictures specifically of food, this study aims to show whether hungerin general results in a higher average memory recall of various pictures. If hunger can be shown to lead to better memoryrecall, then studying methods for students could potentially be improved.The null hypothesis states there wasno difference in average memory recall of various pictures between subjects whohad eaten within the hour and subjects who had not eaten in eighteenhours. The alternative hypothesis statesthat subjects who had eaten within the hour had a lower average memory recallthan subjects who had not eaten in eighteen hours.Materials and Methods:The materials included randomlyselected subjects with varying levels of hunger, which are determined by whenthey ate last, and a computer with internet access to the MIT Pictures testlocated at this hyperlink (https://ls23l.lscore.
ucla.edu/MIT/CMIT/MIT/Open_Test.php?MitType=Pictures).
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Once enough subjects with varying levels ofhunger have completed the MIT, comparison between hunger levels and memoryrecall began. The groups being compared weresubjects who had eaten within the hour and subjects who had not eaten in eighteenhours. Memory recall of various pictureswas measured when the MIT quantified an average number of correct responses persubject group and this was the data used in the statistical test. A two sample T-test for differences in means betweenthe group that had eaten with the hour and the group that had not eaten ineighteen hours was performed using the MIT software to compare the groups’memory recall.After performing the two sample T-test,a T value of -3.
243 was obtained with a degree of freedom of 225. Using the critical values table, the p-valueobtained was less than 0.1%. At the 5%significance level, the data provided sufficient evidence to reject the nullhypothesis that there is no difference in average memory recall in favor of thealternative hypothesis that subjects who had eaten within the hour have a loweraverage memory recall than subjects who had not eaten in eighteen hours.Citations:Morris, J. S., and R.
J. Dolan.”Involvement of human amygdala and orbitofrontal cortex in hunger-enhancedmemory for food stimuli.” Journal of Neuroscience 21.
14 (2001): 5304-5310.
