Final answer:
Hermann Ebbinghaus was the pioneering researcher who extensively used nonsense syllables to study human memory. His experiments led to the discovery of the forgetting curve, highlighting the rapid decline in memory retention over time.
Step-by-step explanation:
The pioneering researcher who made extensive use of nonsense syllables in the study of human memory was Hermann Ebbinghaus. He is known for his foundational work in the experimental psychology of memory.
Ebbinghaus conducted groundbreaking research by memorizing lists of nonsense syllables and then testing his recall over various intervals of time. His work resulted in the discovery of the forgetting curve, which demonstrates how memory retention declines over time. The curve showed that, on average, a person tends to forget 50% of new information within 20 minutes and about 70% within 24 hours after learning it. This finding underscores the rapid decay of memory storage and the benefits of repetition in learning.
Ebbinghaus's contribution to memory research is still influential to this day, as it was one of the first studies to approach the study of memory through a rigorous and data-driven method, which has continued to shape our understanding of how memory works.