The weeding test is used to assess spatial memory and is inspired by the CBTT, which determines memory breadth. Specifically, the weeding test is divided into two main sessions, a forward and a backward session. The test uses simulation teaching to help beginners better understand the rules and methods of the test. The American psychologist, George A. Miller, proposed that the maximum capacity of short-term memory lies between 5 and 9 items (Manoochehri, 2021 (link)). Based on this hypothesis, the longest span of the weeding game was set to nine in this study. Specifically, a background image of nine sections of grass in the form of squares with weeds growing on them appeared on the screen. The system automatically demonstrated the square jumping, with the jumping interval set to 1 s. After the demonstration, the participants were instructed to reproduce the sequence in the same or reverse order. When participants clicked correctly, the weed on the square automatically disappeared. However, when the participants clicked incorrectly, the weed exhibited an “×” (Figure 3 ).
The system randomly generated squares to jump, with the number of squares starting at two. Subsequently, the weeding sequence to be memorized gradually increased as the difficulty of the test increased. The sequence length increased progressively; namely, each sequence had two levels, and the game automatically proceeded to the next level when one of the two levels was passed. The game automatically stopped when two sequences of the same level failed or the maximum click limit sequence set by the game was reached. The system automatically registered the dependent variables of the longest series (span) recalled, the total number of blocks clicked, and the total time for the correct item in the forward and backward directions. The weeding test collected two metrics, namely, the longest correct series (span) and the clicking speed (total blocks/total time). Specifically, the longer and faster the longest correct series (span), the better the spatial memory.
The system randomly generated squares to jump, with the number of squares starting at two. Subsequently, the weeding sequence to be memorized gradually increased as the difficulty of the test increased. The sequence length increased progressively; namely, each sequence had two levels, and the game automatically proceeded to the next level when one of the two levels was passed. The game automatically stopped when two sequences of the same level failed or the maximum click limit sequence set by the game was reached. The system automatically registered the dependent variables of the longest series (span) recalled, the total number of blocks clicked, and the total time for the correct item in the forward and backward directions. The weeding test collected two metrics, namely, the longest correct series (span) and the clicking speed (total blocks/total time). Specifically, the longer and faster the longest correct series (span), the better the spatial memory.
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