Monday, May 05, 2014

Faster Reading

Boston-based start-up company Spritz wants to change the way people read and make communication faster, easier, and more effective. The company focuses on faster reading. Several other reading techniques already exist that attempt to increase reading speeds, such as skimming (not reading every word), avoiding sub-vocalization (talking to yourself while reading) and enlarging the peripheral span (reading an entire page at a time by mental “snapshot”).

While reading normally, the eye seeks a certain point within the word, called the 'Optimal Recognition Point' (ORP). For each new word, the eyes must find the ORP, which takes a significant amount of time. Spritz makes use of ORPs, as the text is presented individually word by word at high speeds (250 to 700 words per minute) without changing the position of the ORP. Therefore, the eyes do not have to move from word to word, allowing faster reading.

Interesting article on a possible future of books at the Washington Post (2014-03-19).

Research paper by M. Brysbaert and T. Nazir termed 'Visual constraints on written word recognition: Evidence from the optimal viewing position effect' (2005).