Timing in Episodic Memory : Virtual Characters in Action Ond

In many applications, for instance in role playing games, it is an advantage when “minds” of virtual characters feature an episodic memory system. This system can boost cognitive and learning capabilities of the characters as well as their ability to respond to player’s questions. Recently, several special-purpose memory mechanisms for virtual characters have been published. We have been developing a more generic model, which incorporates hierarchically organized memory for events with gradual forgetting, a component reconstructing plausibly time when an event happened and a spatial memory for “whatwhere” information. One open question that has not been addressed yet in the context of virtual characters is how precisely should an episodic memory store timing information. To answer this question, we have conducted a study to investigate what time categories people use when asking time-cued questions. We hypothesized that humans prefer using fuzzy categories such as “morning” or “after lunch” rather than exact information and this hypothesis was confirmed. Here, we present the results of the study and overview the part of our memory model that is responsible for timing.12