Qbit Technologies Blog Memory palaces in VR

Macnux VR gets funding for Virtual Reality memory palaces   Macunx Technologies, an UK-based education company, got funding for its virtual reality project on Kickstarter. The company plans to build a virtual reality Unity-based platform, which will allow users to create and share virtual memory palaces. A memory palace is essentially a mental library for memorizing a large amount of information. It is a very old technique that uses spatial memory to increase retention and recall, but typically it is done simply by imagining the palace. Virtual reality lets people create and tour their memory palaces, or visit memory palaces created by others. Macunx is being developed by Linguisticator, a company specialized in memory and language training. The money will be used to hire Unity developers in order to speed up the development of the core platform called “free build mode” which is used to allow users to choose their own mnemonic images and manipulate virtual spaces. Over time, the company will also add guided modules and will eventually open up the platform to instructors from all disciplines and all corners of the globe. Numerous studies have shown that virtual reality experiences don’t just distract patients from their pain, they can actually reduce the pain signals that reach the brain. Now, with the availability of low-cost, mobile-based virtual reality headsets such as Samsung’s Gear VR and Google Cardboard, the technology is leaving the research labs and getting real-world applications. Last week, for example, the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center rolled out the Pain RelieVR products by AppliedVR, which are virtual reality applications that help reduce the pain and stress of medical procedures. The hospital plans to use the apps in its Spine Center, its Department of Surgery and its Orthopaedic Center.