[quoting Marcinkiewicz, 24 Oct 96] Since media are directed towards one or more of our senses, perhaps it would be informative to review the literature on learning among those with sensory impairments in order to understand media effects. I wonder if the blind learn more or less effectively than the deaf, for example.
Slightly off the point but related more at the biological and psychological level, for those that would like some anecdotal accounts (with what I think are some amazing insights) on the complexity of the human sensory system, I recommend Oliver Sacks book, An Anthropologist on Mars.
After reading this book I was left with the impression that we still far from understanding our own sensory systems, let alone how we integrate these inputs into some form of learning.
By the way, his other books also have related themes with applications in understanding and learning.