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Science 23 December 1966:
Vol. 154. no. 3756, pp. 1583 - 1585
DOI: 10.1126/science.154.3756.1583
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Articles

Pupil Diameter and Load on Memory

Daniel Kahneman 1 and Jackson Beatty 2

1 Center for Cognitive Studies, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138
2 Human Performance Center, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

During a short-term memory task, pupil diameter is a measure of the amount of material which is under active processing at any time. The pupil dilates as the material is presented and constricts during report. The rate of change of these functions is related to task difficulty.


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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)