Is it harder to remember what you read on ereaders?

Barty · 03-17-2012, 02:09 PM

http://healthland.time.com/2012/03/1...#ixzz1pDAmC4XV

Summary: due to lack of spatial context, it may be harder to retain what you read on ereaders vs pbooks.

I basically just read novels on my kindle, nothing technical or scholarly, and I'm not in school any more so it's not like I need to write a paper afterward, so it's hard to say. I do think the small size of my kindle and the larger font I use take away a lot of context. I dont know how people can read on the phones. It's why I don't like audiobooks except for very easy popcorn stuff, because I just get lost.

Synamon · 03-17-2012, 02:27 PM

Nope. As proof, I remember seeing a thread on this topic a couple of days ago: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=172179

Nate the great · 03-17-2012, 04:38 PM

The answer is no. I even have a paper to prove it:
http://www.the-digital-reader.com/20...ead-answer-no/

pidgeon92 · 03-17-2012, 07:45 PM

Interestingly, for non-fiction I find audiobooks much better for my memory retention.

apbschmitz · 03-18-2012, 06:14 PM

There's a Billy Collins poem that starts out on the problem of remembering anything about a book:

The name of the author is the first to go
followed obediently by the title, the plot,
the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel
which suddenly becomes one you have never read, never even heard of…

Quelch · 03-18-2012, 07:01 PM

It would depend on the impact the novel had on you

Whether it was a dead tree book or an eBook would not make one iota of difference !

I read 'First and Last Men' by Olaf Stapledon decades ago when I was a teenager and I still remember it well, whereas the libraries of books I've read since then, most I've forgotten !

Fozzybear · 03-19-2012, 02:27 AM

I tend to remember the covers so not really seeing those on the kindle probably would affect me once I've read a lot of books. I know that when I browse the free book charts on amazon I pay most attention to the covers and can usually spot the ones I've downloaded from those. The worst ones are the classics which all have the same basic cover.

For me having the physical book does make remembering the book easier, it's the same with films and music albums. I have some CDs that were bought cheap in a shop because there was no original case, so I just had the disc. I have terrible trouble remembering if I have that CD or not compared to the others by the same artist as I don't have the cover art to aid memory.

anamardoll · 03-19-2012, 12:47 PM

Spatial context is an interesting psychological quirk, but it's very subtle. For instance, you're more likely to remember a text while sitting in the chair you read it in, so they encourage students to sit in their "usual" seats when taking tests, BUT the effect is so small that it's barely noticeable and it's really no substitute for traditional studying.

It's also worth remembering that memory can be false. I've had strong memories of a quote being "near the end" of a book, only to later see (courtesy of a search function) that it's much closer to the middle of the text. (Possible explanation: the quote occurred near the "end" of reading, but thanks to copious footnotes in the actual physical "middle" of the book.)

I would certainly not discount eBooks as a learning device simply because of contextual memory. Especially not when things like adjustable font, text size, and search functions probably more than make up any learning deficit.

xg4bx · 03-19-2012, 09:15 PM

i have a hard time remembering things from books either way. i can remember if i read it/own it, remember a general plot but when it comes to things like character names i draw a complete blank, even if i just finished the book.

Joykins · 03-19-2012, 10:23 PM

I'm having a harder time remembering on the Kindle than the nook.

Why?

The nook always displayed the title of the book on every page. Using the Kindle, you have to ask for it. I have trouble remembering the titles, apparently, if I don't see them on every page!

But as for remembering content, it seems about the same. I've been reading electronically for a long time, if you count newsgroups I've been doing it since the 1980s.

J. Strnad · 03-19-2012, 11:05 PM

I'd like to have two things on the Kindle:

1. A screensaver that shows the book I was reading when it turned off, and,
2. An optional title/author line on each page.

Quelch · 03-24-2012, 01:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by J. Strnad

I'd like to have two things on the Kindle:

1. A screensaver that shows the book I was reading when it turned off

Because the Kobo Touch does this I assumed all eReaders did, I'm surprised the Kindle doesn't

Note to self: Never assume

RainingLemur · 03-26-2012, 12:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xg4bx

i have a hard time remembering things from books either way. i can remember if i read it/own it, remember a general plot but when it comes to things like character names i draw a complete blank, even if i just finished the book.

Same thing happens to me, especially with character names. I'll be talking about a book I just finished, and I'll have to stop and try to remember what a character was named...and then I'll give up and give them some snide nickname, or something.

And, of course... When I'm doing something completely unrelated, the name will hit me in the head like a bag of rocks.

crossi · 03-26-2012, 05:47 AM

No. They really do disappear. For fiction or the kind of non-fiction you read straight through anyway.

03-17-2012, 02:09 PM	#1
Barty doofus Posts: 2,543 Karma: 13089041 Join Date: Sep 2010 Device: Kobo Libra 2, Kindle Voyage	Is it harder to remember what you read on ereaders? http://healthland.time.com/2012/03/1...#ixzz1pDAmC4XV Summary: due to lack of spatial context, it may be harder to retain what you read on ereaders vs pbooks. I basically just read novels on my kindle, nothing technical or scholarly, and I'm not in school any more so it's not like I need to write a paper afterward, so it's hard to say. I do think the small size of my kindle and the larger font I use take away a lot of context. I dont know how people can read on the phones. It's why I don't like audiobooks except for very easy popcorn stuff, because I just get lost.

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03-17-2012, 02:27 PM	#2
Synamon Lunatic Posts: 1,691 Karma: 4386372 Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Land of the Loonie Device: Kindle Paperwhite and Keyboard, Kobo Aura, iPad mini, iPod Touch	Nope. As proof, I remember seeing a thread on this topic a couple of days ago: https://www.mobileread.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=172179

03-17-2012, 04:38 PM	#3
Nate the great Sir Penguin of Edinburgh Posts: 12,375 Karma: 23555235 Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: DC Metro area Device: Shake a stick plus 1	The answer is no. I even have a paper to prove it: http://www.the-digital-reader.com/20...ead-answer-no/

03-17-2012, 07:45 PM	#4
pidgeon92 Wizard Posts: 3,144 Karma: 8426142 Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Chicago, IL Device: Kindle PW2, Kindle Voyage, Kindle DXG, Boox M90, Kobo Aura HD	Interestingly, for non-fiction I find audiobooks much better for my memory retention.

03-18-2012, 06:14 PM	#5
apbschmitz Lord of Frogtown Posts: 149 Karma: 1154748 Join Date: May 2011 Location: St. Paul MN Device: Kindle	There's a Billy Collins poem that starts out on the problem of remembering anything about a book: The name of the author is the first to go followed obediently by the title, the plot, the heartbreaking conclusion, the entire novel which suddenly becomes one you have never read, never even heard of…

03-18-2012, 07:01 PM	#6
Quelch Groupie Posts: 177 Karma: 1656608 Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Brisbane Australia Device: Kobo Touch and iPad 4 hers, Samsung Galaxy S 8.4 mine !	It would depend on the impact the novel had on you Whether it was a dead tree book or an eBook would not make one iota of difference ! I read 'First and Last Men' by Olaf Stapledon decades ago when I was a teenager and I still remember it well, whereas the libraries of books I've read since then, most I've forgotten !

03-19-2012, 02:27 AM	#7
Fozzybear Enthusiast Posts: 48 Karma: 45968 Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: UK Device: Kindle Keyboard 3G	I tend to remember the covers so not really seeing those on the kindle probably would affect me once I've read a lot of books. I know that when I browse the free book charts on amazon I pay most attention to the covers and can usually spot the ones I've downloaded from those. The worst ones are the classics which all have the same basic cover. For me having the physical book does make remembering the book easier, it's the same with films and music albums. I have some CDs that were bought cheap in a shop because there was no original case, so I just had the disc. I have terrible trouble remembering if I have that CD or not compared to the others by the same artist as I don't have the cover art to aid memory.

03-19-2012, 12:47 PM	#8
anamardoll Chasing Butterflies Posts: 3,132 Karma: 5074169 Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: American Southwest Device: Uses batteries.	Spatial context is an interesting psychological quirk, but it's very subtle. For instance, you're more likely to remember a text while sitting in the chair you read it in, so they encourage students to sit in their "usual" seats when taking tests, BUT the effect is so small that it's barely noticeable and it's really no substitute for traditional studying. It's also worth remembering that memory can be false. I've had strong memories of a quote being "near the end" of a book, only to later see (courtesy of a search function) that it's much closer to the middle of the text. (Possible explanation: the quote occurred near the "end" of reading, but thanks to copious footnotes in the actual physical "middle" of the book.) I would certainly not discount eBooks as a learning device simply because of contextual memory. Especially not when things like adjustable font, text size, and search functions probably more than make up any learning deficit.

03-19-2012, 09:15 PM	#9
xg4bx Are you gonna eat that? Posts: 1,633 Karma: 23215128 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Phillipsburg, NJ Device: Kindle 3, Nook STG	i have a hard time remembering things from books either way. i can remember if i read it/own it, remember a general plot but when it comes to things like character names i draw a complete blank, even if i just finished the book.

03-19-2012, 10:23 PM	#10
Joykins Wizard Posts: 1,609 Karma: 9211856 Join Date: Jan 2010 Device: kindle Oasis 2018, kindle 4 NT, kindle PW2, iPhone, iPad mini	I'm having a harder time remembering on the Kindle than the nook. Why? The nook always displayed the title of the book on every page. Using the Kindle, you have to ask for it. I have trouble remembering the titles, apparently, if I don't see them on every page! But as for remembering content, it seems about the same. I've been reading electronically for a long time, if you count newsgroups I've been doing it since the 1980s.

03-19-2012, 11:05 PM	#11
J. Strnad Guru Posts: 915 Karma: 3537194 Join Date: Feb 2009 Device: Kobo, Kindle 3, Paperwhite	I'd like to have two things on the Kindle: 1. A screensaver that shows the book I was reading when it turned off, and, 2. An optional title/author line on each page.

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03-26-2012, 05:47 AM	#14
crossi Guru Posts: 997 Karma: 12000001 Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Seattle Wahington U.S. Device: kindle	No. They really do disappear. For fiction or the kind of non-fiction you read straight through anyway.