Method of Loci in VR Web Search: Memory Retention Support by Organizing Search Results in a VR Room.

This paper investigates whether the Method of Loci is also effective for Web search in a VR environment. The Method of Loci (often called Mind Palace) is one of the most famous Mnemonic; when memorizing things, placing them in a building reproduced in the brain makes them easier to recall. We implemented a browser that is movable within the VR space, and VR rooms to verify whether such a Mnemonic could be used for Web searches in VR. The subject experiment compared four types of rooms: a Sequential-alignment room, a White room, a 4-colored wall room, and a Realistic room with furniture. In each VR room, users can freely create Web browser windows, and they can place, scale, tilt, and manage the windows anywhere in the room. Six participants searched for many things, compared them, and decided on their opinions in the VR room. The result shows that participants who searched in realistic rooms remembered more details of their searches a week later.