The company Skinlearning claims (in German), that one can learn "over the skin" with their uSonic device.
Their site says:
So können Sie Ihren Lernstoff permanent wiederholen und damit in Ihrem Gedächtnis besser verankern und das ganz einfach neben Ihren sonstigen Beschäftigungen (Arbeiten, Fernsehen, Schlafen, …).
Translation:
That way you can permanently repeat what you are learning and therefore memorize it better, all of that alongside your other activities (work, watching tv, sleep, ...).
They also mention on their website:
- [...] you can repeat vocabularies passively
- learn alongside you other activities unobtrusively and unnoticed
They provide these references:
- Medical College of Virginia, Summer 1991, names and papers not mentioned closer
- Patrick Flanagan, the inventor (?)
- Alfred A. Tomatis
How I understand it works: One inserts the desired audiofile into the device and applies the body pads to the skin (preferredly temple, lower arms, or hips). Now the pads generate ultrasound which somehow gets to the sacculus which is perfectly capable of perceiving the audiofile.
The manufacturer of the device doesn't seem to repeat the claims, but makes their own extraordinary clams.
The whole setup seems like a scam, but I'm no scientist.
