Previous exposure to a novel experience enhances performance in two simple memory tests in humans.

Young healthy human volunteers (N = 52), non-amnesic patients (N = 53), and amnesic patients (N = 52) were submitted once a day on three consecutive days to two simple memory tests: recognition of the pictures of famous faces (actors, politicians, sports figures) cut from newspapers or news magazines, and the recall of the year in which widely publicized major events happened (the Pope's visit to Brazil, a famous fire that destroyed a block downtown, etc.). One, 3 or 6 h prior to testing either on the 2nd or the 3rd day, the subjects were exposed to one of the following experiences: staying in a room where they had never been before for 10 min, or a 5 min digit learning task to which they also had never been submitted. Exposure to either of the two novel experiences 1 or 3, but not 6, h before testing was followed by increased scores in both memory tests.