Unconscious Listening
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34 participants divided into two groups.
One group listened to a six-minute excerpt
of a Mozart symphony.
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The other group sat in silence for six minutes
under identical circumstances.
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Immediately following this period,
all participants completed a guided questionnaire
that gauged the amount and type of day-dreaming that
had occurred.
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Both groups reported extensive day-dreaming activity.
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For the music group, 2/3 of time spent thinking
thoughts other than music:
"This sounds like Mozart -- maybe Haydn but probably Mozart.
A symphonic work, no solo instrument so not a concerto.
Um, what should I do after school tonight? ...
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Note that setting biased participants toward music-related
thinking.
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Lots of "untapped" cognitive bandwidth in listening.