Memory span for binary, quaternary, octal, and hexadecimal digits, containing 1, 2, 3, and 4 bits of information per item respectively, was determined for 4 independent groups of 25 college Ss. Except for comparison of quaternary and octal digits, memory span in item units decreased as a function of amount of information per item. The results were interpreted as inconsistent with a “constant-chunk” hypothesis and providing further support for an explanation based on reduction of redundancy.
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