Learning and performing new skills are easy; Problem solving is not
We have two minds. Not literally. That’d be creepy. Our brain is split into three primary functional areas:
The old (croc) brain separates all of our surroundings into three categories — consisting of edible, dangerous or sexy. It also regulates primal functions such as breathing, digestion and reflexive actions. The second part is the midbrain and it controls emotions. Finally, the third section is the new brain. The new brain is responsible for intentional, purposeful actions such as planning.
Recognition Is Easy; Recall Is Hard
We are far better at recognition than we are at recall. Our brain has been designed with the ability to recognize things faster than recalling memories. Our perceptual system works in such a way that similar perceptions in similar contexts cause similar patterns of neural activity.
We perceive what we expect
Our outlook on our surroundings are influenced on three primary factors, which are our past experiences, our present — current context and our future goals.
Our past experiences influence how we react given a certain situation. EULAs as well as how people use the web are great examples of this. Our experience with EULAs tell us that they are not interesting, so they shouldn’t be read even though they contain important information regarding use of that service or application.
Reading is unnatural
We’re wired for language, but not for reading
Because reading and writing weren’t common until four or five centuries ago, our natural tendency to learn how to read. Reading is an acquired skill that takes practice to master, whereas learning how to speak a language is second nature.
We can learn a language simply by listening to what is being spoken around us.
Peripheral vision and UX design
I mentioned in my previous post that our eyes work almost like a video camera. But unlike a video camera, our vision is not spread out uniformly across a tight visual matrix; instead, it is primarily focused within the center of the retina known as the fovea, which has the highest concentration of cone cells.
Vision optimization: Structure
Our visual system is configured in such a way that we see patterns even if they don’t exist and at the same time see whole, continuous shapes. Gestalt principles come from the German word for shape or figure.