Vision dominates all senses from "summary" of Brain Rules (Updated and Expanded) by John Medina
Vision is the most dominating sense out of all the senses. It is not just a little more important than the other senses - it is an order of magnitude more important. The brain processes visuals 60,000 times faster than text. This means that when information is delivered in a visual form, like a picture or a video, the brain is able to understand and remember it much more efficiently compared to when the information is presented in textual form. One reason for this dominance is that the brain has a huge amount of processing power allocated to vision. Roughly half of the brain's resources are devoted to seeing. This highlights the importance of visual stimuli in our everyday lives. In addition, the brain's visual system is highly developed and specialized, enabling us to quickly and accurately process visual information. This specialization allows us to interpret complex visual scenes in a fraction of a second, making vision our primary way of interacting with the world around us. Furthermore, our brains are wired to prioritize visual information over other sensory inputs. When multiple senses are engaged, vision almost always wins out. This phenomenon is known as the "McGurk effect", where what we see overrides what we hear. Our brains automatically give more weight to visual information, even when it conflicts with other sensory inputs. Given the brain's natural inclination towards visual stimuli, it is no surprise that visuals are more likely to be remembered than text. Studies have shown that people remember 80% of what they see and do, compared to just 10% of what they hear and 20% of what they read. This further emphasizes the power of vision in shaping our memories and perceptions.- The dominance of vision in our sensory experience has profound implications for how we process and remember information. By harnessing the power of visuals, we can effectively communicate ideas, evoke emotions, and create lasting impressions on our brains. Vision truly reigns supreme among all the senses, shaping our understanding of the world and influencing our thoughts and actions.
