id,activity,category,level,human_figure,year,item,items_per_second,bits_per_item,method,bits_per_second,bits_per_second_low,bits_per_second_high,source_paper_figure,how_calculated,source,record_holder
speech-17,"Speaking, average of 17 languages",language,typical,39.15 bits/s (SD 5.10) from 170 speakers reading 15 texts,2019,syllable,6.63,5.905,paper,39.15,34.05,44.25,39.15,Paper's model estimate; low and high = 1 SD across speakers; bits per syllable = 39.15 / 6.63 (IQ Metrics calculation),"Coupe et al. 2019, Science Advances",
listening,"Listening to narration, English, 160 words per minute",language,typical,160 words per minute,2024,character,13.333,1.0,paper,13.0,,,13,Zheng & Meister: 160 words x 5 characters x 1 bit per character,"Zheng & Meister 2025, Neuron",
read-nonfiction,"Silent reading, English non-fiction (adults)",language,typical,"238 words per minute (190 studies, 18,573 readers)",2019,character,22.213,1.0,text,22.213,13.328,28.877,,238 wpm x 5.6 characters (4.6 letters + space) / 60 x bits per character,"Brysbaert 2019, J. Memory and Language",
read-fiction,"Silent reading, English fiction (adults)",language,typical,260 words per minute,2019,character,22.533,1.0,text,22.533,13.52,29.293,,260 wpm x 5.2 characters (4.2 letters + space) / 60 x bits per character,"Brysbaert 2019, J. Memory and Language",
read-aloud,"Reading aloud, English (adults)",language,typical,"183 words per minute (77 studies, 5,965 readers)",2019,character,17.08,1.0,text,17.08,10.248,22.204,,183 wpm x 5.6 characters / 60 x bits per character (non-fiction word length assumed),"Brysbaert 2019, J. Memory and Language",
read-eyes,"Reading, from eye fixations (7-9 letters per 200-250 ms)",language,typical,28 to 45 characters per second,2024,,,,paper,36.5,28.0,45.0,28-45,Zheng & Meister's range; central = its midpoint (IQ Metrics),"Zheng & Meister 2025, Neuron",
read-random-words,Reading lists of words aloud as fast as possible,language,record,about 43 bits/s for rapid readers (a lower bound),1957,,,,paper,43.0,40.0,45.0,43,"Pierce & Karlin's own figure; range = ""between 40 and 45 bits/sec""","Pierce & Karlin 1957, Bell System Technical Journal",
type-avg,"Typing, average of 168,960 volunteers",motor,typical,51.56 words per minute (SD 20.2),2018,character,4.297,1.0,text,4.297,2.578,5.586,,51.56 wpm x 5 characters / 60 x bits per character,"Dhakal et al. 2018, CHI",
type-fast,"Typing, fastest 10% of volunteers",motor,record,89.56 words per minute (group mean),2018,character,7.463,1.0,text,7.463,4.478,9.702,,89.56 wpm x 5 characters / 60 x bits per character,"Dhakal et al. 2018, CHI",
type-slow,"Typing, slowest 10% of volunteers",motor,typical,20.91 words per minute (group mean),2018,character,1.742,1.0,text,1.742,1.045,2.265,,20.91 wpm x 5 characters / 60 x bits per character,"Dhakal et al. 2018, CHI",
type-120,"Typing, advanced typist (120 words per minute)",motor,record,120 words per minute,2024,character,10.0,1.0,paper,10.0,,,10,Zheng & Meister: 2 words/s x 5 characters x 1 bit per character,"Zheng & Meister 2025, Neuron",
bci-handwriting,"Brain chip: imagined handwriting (Stanford, 2021)",brain-chip,record,90 characters per minute,2021,character,1.5,1.0,paper,1.5,,,1.5,Zheng & Meister's figure: 90 characters / 60 s x 1 bit per character,"Willett et al. 2021, Nature",
bci-speech-utah,"Brain chip: attempted speech, Utah arrays (Stanford, 2023)",brain-chip,record,62 words per minute,2023,character,5.683,1.0,text,5.683,3.41,7.388,,62 wpm x 5.5 characters (4.5 letters + space) / 60 x bits per character,"Willett et al. 2023, Nature",
bci-speech-grid,"Brain chip: attempted speech, surface grid (UCSF, 2023)",brain-chip,record,78 words per minute,2023,character,7.15,1.0,text,7.15,4.29,9.295,,78 wpm x 5.5 characters (4.5 letters + space) / 60 x bits per character,"Metzger et al. 2023, Nature",
bci-speech-daily,"Brain chip: everyday speech over 248 hours (UC Davis, 2024)",brain-chip,typical,32 words per minute,2024,character,2.933,1.0,text,2.933,1.76,3.813,,32 wpm x 5.5 characters (4.5 letters + space) / 60 x bits per character,"Card et al. 2024, NEJM",
bci-grid-2017,"Brain chip: point-and-click on a 6x6 grid of random targets (Stanford, 2017)",brain-chip,record,3.7 bits per second (best of 3 participants; others 2.2 and 1.4),2017,,,,paper,3.7,1.4,3.7,3.7,Paper's own information throughput; low = the slowest participant,"Pandarinath et al. 2017, eLife",
bci-copy-2017,"Brain chip: copying English sentences by point-and-click (Stanford, 2017)",brain-chip,record,39.2 correct characters per minute,2017,character,0.653,1.0,text,0.653,0.392,0.849,,39.2 correct characters / 60 s x bits per character,"Pandarinath et al. 2017, eLife",
mem-speed-cards,Speed cards: one shuffled deck (IAM record),memory,record,12.74 s for 52 cards,2018,card,4.082,4.338,count,17.707,,,17.7,52 cards / 12.74 s x 4.338 bits per card (memorisation time only),International Association of Memory records,Shijir-Erdene Bat-Enkh
mem-ml-cards-online,"Memory League cards, online (52 cards)",memory,record,12.25 s for 52 cards,2025,card,4.245,4.338,count,18.415,,,,52 cards / 12.25 s x 4.338 bits per card (memorisation time only),Memory League records (IAM mirror),Alex Mullen
mem-ml-cards-live,"Memory League cards, live (52 cards)",memory,record,16.86 s for 52 cards,2016,card,3.084,4.338,count,13.38,,,,52 cards / 16.86 s x 4.338 bits per card (memorisation time only),Memory League records (IAM mirror),Alex Mullen
mem-ml-numbers-online,"Memory League numbers, online (80 digits)",memory,record,11.45 s for 80 digits,2024,digit,6.987,3.322,count,23.21,,,,80 digits / 11.45 s x 3.322 bits per digit (memorisation time only),Memory League records (IAM mirror),Alex Mullen
mem-ml-numbers-live,"Memory League numbers, live (80 digits)",memory,record,16.85 s for 80 digits,2018,digit,4.748,3.322,count,15.772,,,,80 digits / 16.85 s x 3.322 bits per digit (memorisation time only),Memory League records (IAM mirror),Simon Reinhard
mem-numbers-5min,"Random digits, 5 minutes (IAM record)",memory,record,630 digits in 5 min,2021,digit,2.1,3.322,count,6.976,,,,630 digits / 300 s x 3.322 bits per digit (memorisation time only),International Association of Memory records,Andrea Muzii
mem-numbers-15min,"Random digits, 15 minutes (IAM record)",memory,record,"1,300 digits in 15 min",2019,digit,1.444,3.322,count,4.798,,,,"1,300 digits / 900 s x 3.322 bits per digit (memorisation time only)",International Association of Memory records,Munkhshur Narmandakh
mem-numbers-30min,"Random digits, 30 minutes (IAM record)",memory,record,"2,132 digits in 30 min",2026,digit,1.184,3.322,count,3.935,,,,"2,132 digits / 1800 s x 3.322 bits per digit (memorisation time only)",International Association of Memory records,Enrico Marraffa
mem-numbers-hour,"Random digits, 1 hour (IAM record)",memory,record,"3,412 digits in 60 min",2023,digit,0.948,3.322,count,3.148,,,,"3,412 digits / 3600 s x 3.322 bits per digit (memorisation time only)",International Association of Memory records,Orkhan Ibadov
mem-binary-5min,"Binary digits, 5 minutes (IAM record)",memory,record,"1,467 binary digits in 5 min",2019,binary digit,4.89,1.0,count,4.89,,,4.9,"1,467 binary digits / 300 s x 1.000 bits per binary digit (memorisation time only)",International Association of Memory records,Munkhshur Narmandakh
mem-binary-30min,"Binary digits, 30 minutes (IAM record)",memory,record,"6,270 binary digits in 30 min",2017,binary digit,3.483,1.0,count,3.483,,,,"6,270 binary digits / 1800 s x 1.000 bits per binary digit (memorisation time only)",International Association of Memory records,Munkhshur Narmandakh
mem-cards-10min,"Playing cards, 10 minutes (IAM record)",memory,record,550 cards in 10 min,2019,card,0.917,4.338,count,3.977,,,,550 cards / 600 s x 4.338 bits per card (memorisation time only),International Association of Memory records,Andrea Muzii
mem-cards-30min,"Playing cards, 30 minutes (IAM record)",memory,record,"1,270 cards in 30 min",2026,card,0.706,4.338,count,3.061,,,,"1,270 cards / 1800 s x 4.338 bits per card (memorisation time only)",International Association of Memory records,Enrico Marraffa
mem-cards-hour,"Playing cards, 1 hour (IAM record)",memory,record,"1,829 cards in 60 min",2019,card,0.508,4.338,count,2.204,,,,"1,829 cards / 3600 s x 4.338 bits per card (memorisation time only)",International Association of Memory records,Andrea Muzii
mem-spoken-numbers,"Spoken numbers, read aloud at 1 digit a second (IAM record)",memory,record,456 digits in a row,2015,digit,1.0,3.322,pace,3.322,,,,1 digit per second x 3.322 bits for 456 seconds: the reader sets the pace,International Association of Memory records,Lance Tschirhart
cube-333-single,"Rubik's Cube 3x3, single solve (WCA record)",puzzle,record,2.51 s,2026,cube state,0.398,65.229,count,25.988,3.725,25.988,,"65.23 bits / 2.51 s timed; low adds the 15 s of untimed inspection (WCA A3a1), so the central figure is an upper bound",World Cube Association records,Xuanyi Geng (耿暄一)
cube-333-average,"Rubik's Cube 3x3, average of 5 (WCA record)",puzzle,record,3.51 s,2026,cube state,0.285,65.229,count,18.584,3.524,18.584,,"65.23 bits / 3.51 s timed; low adds the 15 s of untimed inspection (WCA A3a1), so the central figure is an upper bound",World Cube Association records,Yiheng Wang (王艺衡)
cube-333oh-single,Rubik's Cube 3x3 one-handed (WCA record),puzzle,record,5.62 s,2026,cube state,0.178,65.229,count,11.607,3.163,11.607,,"65.23 bits / 5.62 s timed; low adds the 15 s of untimed inspection (WCA A3a1), so the central figure is an upper bound",World Cube Association records,Patrick Ponce
cube-333ft-single,Rubik's Cube 3x3 with feet (WCA record),puzzle,record,15.56 s,2019,cube state,0.064,65.229,count,4.192,2.134,4.192,,"65.23 bits / 15.56 s timed; low adds the 15 s of untimed inspection (WCA A3a1), so the central figure is an upper bound",World Cube Association records,Mohammed Aiman Koli
cube-333bf-single,"Rubik's Cube 3x3 blindfolded, whole attempt (WCA record)",puzzle,record,"11.56 s, look and solve",2026,cube state,0.087,65.229,count,5.643,5.643,11.285,,"65.23 bits / 11.56 s (whole attempt); high = over half the time, the share Zheng & Meister say goes to looking",World Cube Association records,Tommy Cherry
cube-bld-zm,"Rubik's Cube blindfolded, looking phase only (12.78 s record of 2023)",puzzle,record,65 bits in about 5.5 s of inspection,2023,cube state,0.182,65.229,paper,11.8,,,11.8,Zheng & Meister: 65 bits / 5.5 s,"Zheng & Meister 2025, Neuron",
cube-333mbf,Multiple cubes blindfolded (WCA record),puzzle,record,63 of 65 cubes in 58:23,2025,cube state,0.018,65.229,count,1.173,,,,63 solved cubes x 65.23 bits / 3503 s (memorising and solving; WCA result code decoded),World Cube Association records,Graham Siggins
starcraft,"StarCraft, professional at 1,000 actions per minute",game,record,"1,000 actions per minute",2024,action,16.667,1.0,paper,16.7,10.0,16.7,16.7 (text); 10 (Table 1),"Zheng & Meister: 1,000 actions / 60 s x 1 bit (text 16.7); their Table 1 prints 10, used as low","Zheng & Meister 2025, Neuron",
tetris,"Tetris, top-tier players (3-4 pieces a second)",game,record,3 to 4 pieces per second,2024,piece,3.5,2.0,paper,7.0,,20.68,7,"Zheng & Meister print about 7; high = their stated upper-bound method, 4 pieces x log2(4 x 9) (IQ Metrics recalculation)","Zheng & Meister 2025, Neuron",
hick,Choice reaction: press the key for the lamp that lit (Hick 1952),lab,lab,"2 to 10 lamps, reaction times of hundreds of ms",1952,,,,paper,5.0,,,5,As reported by Zheng & Meister (Hick 1952; Hyman 1953); primary papers not read,"Zheng & Meister 2025, Neuron",
fitts,Aimed arm movements between targets (Fitts 1954),lab,lab,10 to 12 bits/s in 20-second sprees,1954,,,,paper,11.0,10.0,12.0,10-12,As reported by Zheng & Meister; central = midpoint (IQ Metrics),"Zheng & Meister 2025, Neuron",
objects,Naming objects in a 0.5-second glimpse (Sziklai 1956),perception,lab,1 to 3 objects in 500 ms,1956,object,2.0,20.0,paper,40.0,30.0,50.0,30-50,As reported by Zheng & Meister: 20 bits per object (1 of about a million nouns) / 0.5 s,"Zheng & Meister 2025, Neuron",
twenty-questions,Thinking of a thing (the Twenty Questions game),perception,typical,20 bits in a few seconds,2024,,,,paper,10.0,,,10 or less,"Zheng & Meister: 20 yes-or-no answers = 20 bits, over a few seconds","Zheng & Meister 2025, Neuron",
memory-short-wiederhold,"Memory athletes, shortest tasks (Wiederhold 2025, preprint)",memory,record,up to 42 bits/s,2025,,,,paper,42.0,,,42,Preprint abstract; not peer reviewed,"Wiederhold 2025, bioRxiv preprint",
mental-calc,"Mental calculation, shortest competition tasks (Wiederhold 2025, preprint)",calculation,record,above 215 bits/s (125 perceiving + 90 calculating),2025,,,,paper,215.0,125.0,215.0,215,Preprint abstract; low = the perception part alone; not peer reviewed,"Wiederhold, Stemmler & Herz 2025, bioRxiv preprint",