Module 25: Storing and Retrieving Memories

Which parts of the brain are important for implicit memory processing, and which parts play a key role in explicit memory processing

The cerebellum and basal ganglia are important for implicit memory processing, and the frontal lobes and hippocampus are key to explicit memory formation

Leslie, who has experienced brain damage in an accident, can remember how to tie shoes but has a hard time remembering anything you say during a conversation. How can implicit versus explicit information processing explain what’s going on here?

Our explicit conscious memories of facts and episodes differ from our implict memories of skills (such as tying shoelaces) and classically conditioned responses. The parts of the brain involved in explicit memory processing (the frontal lobes and hippocampus) may have sustained damage in the accident, while the parts involved in implicit memory processing (the cerebellum and basal ganglia) appear to have escaped harm.

Which brain area responds to stress hormones by helping to create stronger memories?

the amygdala

increased efficiency at the synapses is evidence of the neural basis of learning and memory. This is called ______-_______ ______

long-term potentiation

What is priming

Priming is the activation (often without our awareness) of associations. Seeing a gun, for example, might temporarily predispose someone to interpret an ambiguous face as threatening or to recall a boss as nasty

When tested immediately after viewing a list of words, we tend to recall the first and last items best, which is known as the ______ ____ effect

serial position

The hippocampus seems to function as a

a. temporary processing site for explicit memories

b. temporary processing site for implicit memories

c. permanent storage area for emotion-based memories

d. permanent storage area for unconscious memories

a. temporary processing site for explicit memories

Hippocampus damage typically leaves people unable to learn new facts or recall recent events. However, they may be able to learn new skills, such as riding a bicycle, which is an _____ memory

implicit

Long-term potentiation refers to

a. emotion-triggered hormonal changes

b. the role of the hippocampus in processing explicit memories

d. the potential for learning in late adulthood

c. an increase in a cell’s firing potential

specific odors, visual images, emotions, or other associations that help us access a memory are examples of ______ ______

retrieval cues

when you feels sad, why might it help to look at pictures that reawaken some of your best memories?

Memories are stored within a web of many associations, one of which is mood. When you recall happy movements from your past, you activate these positive links. You may then experience mood-congruent memory and recall other happy movements, which could improve your mood and brighten your interpretation of current events

When tested immediately after viewing a list of words, people tend to recall the first and last items more readily than those in the middle. When retested after a delay, they are most likely to recall

a. the first items on the list

b. the first and last items on the list

c. a few items at random

d. the last items on the list

a. the first items on the list