Neuroscientists, user experience designers and anthropologists are being drawn to work in the attractions industry. Their expertise is opening up the potential for us to create a new generation of even more immersive experiences which are emotionally rewarding

This month we reported on work by Disney Research which has created a haptic system that enables people to ‘feel’ fireworks using computerised water jets sprayed on flexible screens.

The technology has been developed for use by blind and visually impaired people, but is part of an emerging interest in harnessing the senses to create a new generation of sensory experiences for use in visitor attractions.

In this issue, we examine a number of projects in which experts are turning to science and neuroscience to find new ways to connect with guests and create more powerful, immersive experiences.

On page 16, neuroscience researcher Tedi Asher from the Peabody Essex Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, talks to Attractions Management about using neuroscience to create the best experience for visitors – the aim being to display collections in a manner that complements the way the brain functions.

Asher’s work has been made possible by a grant from the Barr Foundation, a Boston-based private institute that works to elevate the arts and creative expression.

Applying the latest neuroscientific research and neuroaesthetic theory to enhance visitor experiences across the museum’s permanent collection, Asher will publish her findings so they can be shared with museums worldwide.

Elsewhere in this issue, the science behind sensory design and ways in which it can be harnessed to create compelling attractions is examined by our expert panel on page 82.

Composer Joel Beckerman, architect and writer Gordon Grice and researcher and anthropologist Scott A Lukas talk us through ways to understand the five senses and highlight how they can be used to create more resonant experiences.

They reveal fascinating sensory facts, for example: unlike most memories, sensory memories are not subject to ‘retroactive interference’ – ie, they can’t be disturbed or altered by memories which are acquired later, so your grandma’s cookies will always smell as good as they did on the day they were baked, when it comes to your memory of them.

When it comes to taste, experiments show people experience different flavours when drinking the same wine in different coloured environments – it tastes richer in a darker, room.

The main objective is to get all of the senses working together, combining aromatic elements with visual, auditory and tactile ones, to create a total experience which delivers ‘environmental authenticity’.

Understanding visitor psychology and how guests use our attractions can also feed into the science of safety, and on page 64, Dr Kathryn Woodcock of Ryerson University explains the theory of ‘human factors engineering’, looking at how to best design attractions to ensure people use them safely by adjusting and anticipating their perceptions of risk and danger.

Welcoming scientists into our industry will enable the creation of a new generation of safer and more engaging experiences, which will, in turn, make the memories of tomorrow.

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Editor's letter: Science of Attraction Design Neuroscientists, user experience designers and anthropologists are being drawn to work in the attractions industry. Their expertise is opening up the potential for us to create a new generation of even more immersive experiences which are emotionally rewarding

Liz Terry, MD, Leisure Media,Neuroscientists, user experience designers, anthropologists, immersive experiences,