The Misery Machine

Intention

This project explores the accuracy of memory. I chose this topic because I'm particularly interested in Julia Shaw's studies on the Illusion of Memory and how accurate eyewitness accounts truly are. My project is designed similar to the game, Simon Says, and will be easy to use. By using an experimenter to tell players the correct order is wrong, I am intentionally challenging their memory to see if I can convince them that their memory is incorrect.

This project is intended to challenge assumptions about memory and to see how accurate our memories are. Can the people who try my project actually remember the correct order of the light display and even if they can will they trust their memory? With this project, I am challenging player's memories and on a larger scale, I'm raising questions of whether memory should be trusted in our criminal justice system since innocent people have been convinced that they are guilty and confess to crimes they never committed.

Prototype:

My prototype uses the following components:

- 3 yellow LED lights

- 1 green LED light

- Particle system (rme 17)

- 1 side switch

- 1 push button

- 2 10K Ω resistors

- 4 330 Ω resistors

- Wires

To use my device, the particle system must be connected with a USB to the computer. After connecting it, flip the switch up to view the light display, which will repeat after 3 seconds if you leave the switch flipped. After showing someone the light display, flip the switch and have the "test subject" repeat the pattern to the "experimenter" (the person who knows the correct order). The "test subject" is told that if they get it correctly that the "experimenter" will click a button to light up a green light that they were correct. However, in actuality, the "experimenter" will continuously tell the person their answer is wrong.

See link below for a video of it in motion:

int led1 = A0;
int led2 = D5;
int led3 = D1;
int ledGreen = D0;
int ledRed = D3;
int switchPin = A4;
int button1 = A2;

void setup() {
    pinMode(led1, OUTPUT);
    pinMode(led2, OUTPUT);
    pinMode(led3, OUTPUT);
     pinMode(ledGreen, OUTPUT);
    pinMode(ledRed, OUTPUT);
    pinMode(switchPin, INPUT);
    pinMode(button1, INPUT);

}

void loop() {
    // switch on for light display
    int switchRead = digitalRead(switchPin);
    int button1Read = digitalRead(button1);
    
    if (switchRead == HIGH) {
    digitalWrite(led1, HIGH);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led1, LOW);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led2, HIGH);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led2, LOW);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led1, HIGH);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led1, LOW);
     delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led3, HIGH);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led3, LOW);
     delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led2, HIGH);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led2, LOW);
     delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led1, HIGH);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led1, LOW);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led1, HIGH);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led1, LOW);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led3, HIGH);
    delay(200);
    digitalWrite(led3, LOW);
    delay(3000);
    }
    else {
        if (button1Read == HIGH) {
            digitalWrite(ledGreen, HIGH);
        }
        else {
            digitalWrite(ledGreen, LOW);
        }
        
    }
    
    
}

Click to Expand

- https://vimeo.com/318658083

Precedents

To create my project, I explored research surrounding the question: How accurate is memory and can a person's memory be led astray? I looked into Julia Shaw's study on Memory Illusion and constructing false memories of committing crimes. Her research and experiments have shown that adults can be convinced in a few hours that they committed crimes in their teenage years, while in reality they never have. In one study, 30 college students were tested to see if they could implant false memories of committing crimes. The students went through three 40-minute interviews. In the first interview, the researchers told the students about two events that happened in their past with one being true and the other completely made up with a few true events from the student's life mixed in. In the second and third interview, the students were asked to recall as much about both events as they could. The results of the experiment showed that of the 30 participants that were told they committed crimes as a teenager, 21 developed a false memory of the crime. This experiment shows just how fragile and easily manipulated our memories are. From this general concept, I attempted to create a working project to further explore this idea and challenge people to see how accurate our memory truly is.

I got the specific idea for having people repeat a light pattern from the game, Simon Says. This game works by showing people a light pattern and having them repeat it back correctly for as long as they can. I included a picture of the game below:

Process

This project was only a week long, so there weren't too many iterations done.

I did have two design changes though. Originally, I intended to have the game be completely autonomous with the players clicking the corresponding buttons to the LED lights in the correct order of the light display after the switch was flipped instead of having someone verify it. The "test subjects" (people playing the game) would be told that if they entered the pattern in correctly a green light would go on, while if they were wrong, a red light would go on when in reality, I intended to reverse the lights, so if they were wrong, a green light would go on telling them they were right. I slightly altered this idea because if the person actually remembered it wrong they'd get the green light on the first try and be done with it. Instead, I decided it was more useful to have one light and to tell the players that it will go on if they get it correct when it will never go on. This is why I changed the project's name to misery machine because there is no way to be correct instead the person will be told they are always wrong, which can be very frustrating.

I didn't make the project completely autonomous though because of a technical issue with my breadboard. I could not use the bottom of the breadboard, which I tested and verified that something was off and there wasn't enough time to get a new breadboard, so I changed the idea slightly to make do with the materials I had.

Open Questions and Challenges

The main questions I hope to explore are:

How accurate is a person's memory really?
Is it possible to trick someone into believing something false or implanting a fake memory?
Can a person's memory actually be led astray?
Can I actually convince someone that his/her memory is incorrect?

Reflection

I learned a lot from this project. It was a nice refresher for me in coding and wiring in C. I also learned how to use the particle system, which was really similar to an Arduino Uno, which was nice since I worked with that in the past in Physical Computing. This project also more importantly taught me how fragile memory is since I looked into researching surrounding that topic and ended up testing it out on people.

Going forward with this project, I think it would be interesting to look into the effect the "verifier" has on the players. I would like to create another project with the same pattern and everything, but no external validater instead the machine is completely autonomous. This new one would work with the buttons like originally planned. After I would have the same number of test subjects try one of the projects and compare their reactions to see what the effect is. I think the "verifier" adds an extra pressure to the player and a extra sort of legitimacy to their answer being wrong, so they'll think that they really are wrong instead of the machine being broken in the other case. I also think it makes the player less likely to drop the game, but it would be interesting to see if my guesses are right. I'd also like to work on the aesthetic of the project and make it better looking by hiding the wires and making the lights more visible and the buttons easier to press when making the autonomous one.

I also think it would be interesting to put the autonomous one in public places and get people to try it out and then afterwards explain to them the purpose of the project and direct them to research surrounding false memories in an effort to raise awareness on this question and get people talking.

Attribution and References

Research on False Memories:

https://www.falsememoryarchive.com/

https://www.psychologicalscience.org/news/releases/people-can-be-convinced-they-committed-a-crime-they-dont-remember.html

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About

My project is designed to question and challenge the accuracy of memory. I designed a light display with lights that light up in a specific order and then ask someone to replicate the design to me, the experimenter, in order like in Simon Says. However, the point is to intentionally tell the person that the correct order is wrong hence the name of the project. I then see how much a person's memory can be influenced.