Chapter 7 - Memeory

what is memeory

the ability to store and retrieve information

what is amnesia

an inability to retrieve vast quantities of information from memory as a result of brain injury or psychological trauma

what are the two types of amnesia, define them.

1. retrograde amnesia: people lose past memories (ppl awake and don’t know who they are)

2. anterograde amnesia: more common, people lose the ability to form new memories (H.M.)

regions inside the ______ lobes, specifically the ____ are important for the ability to store new memories, but they are less important for memories expressed by _____ or after _____

temporal, hippocampus

motor skills or after priming

(think H.M.)

what are explicit memeories

memories that are consciously retrieved

what are implicit memories

memories that are expressed through responses, actions, or reactions

memories that are not consciously retrieved

memory is divided into

explicit and implicit memories

what brain systems mediate implicit memories

1. basal ganglia

2. amygdala

3. cerebellum

the simple form of nonassociative learning represents another type of _____ memory that depends on changes in the responsiveness of neurons involved in perceived the repeated stimulus

implicit

what is procedural memeory? what brain systems are involved?

think driving while zoning out

a type of implicit memory that involves skills/habits

basal ganglia and cerebellum (motor skills)

This Unit 2 PSYC 1300 exam tests what type of memeory?

explicit memory, ability to consciously recall information

what are the two types of explicit memeory

episodic and semantic memeory

what is episodic memeory

memory for past experiences that are identified by time and place (where/when)

(ex: remembering aspects of your 16th birthday)

episodes of your life

what is semantic memeory

memory for facts independent of personal experience

(you don’t remember where/when you learned it, but you know it)

what is the brain region thought to be critical for episodic memories? is this required for retrieving new ones or forming old ones? why?

hippocampus, required for forming new episodic memories

hippocampus forms links between different brain regions involved in sensation (ex: visual + auditory), once the link is strengthened, hippocampus becomes less important for retrieval of episodic memeory

____ is associated with knowing that while _____ is associated with knowing how

explicit memories = knowing that

implicit memories = knowing how

you know that a bicycle has two wheels, you know how to ride a bike

what are the three stages of memeory

1. encoding/acquisition (when you experience an event that results in a memory)

2. storage (forming the memory)

3. retrieval (when the memory is expressed)

what does the dual-coding hypothesis state

information that is coded both visually and verbally will have a higher likelihood of being remembered and recalled

maintenance rehearsal vs elaborative reharsal

maintenance: repeated the item over and over

elaborative: making deeper connections and actually understanding

what are the three memory stores? explain in depth

1. sensory storage (recalling d/dx(sinx)=cosx for a few seconds after viewing it in the textbook)

2. short-term storage (comes from attention, contains 7+-2 items of information, lasts 20 seconds)

3. long-term storage (results from maintenance + elaborative rehearsal, lasts unlimited amount of time and stores unlimited amounts of information)
   
   during test, we take info from long-term storage and put into short-term storage

what are schemas

cognitive structures based on past experiences in semantic memory that help us perceive, organize, understand, and use information.

help us understand events in the world

ex: schema for grocery shopping or schema for eating at fast food places

• based on past experiences!

what is chunking

process of breaking down information into meaningful units

(ex: Magnus reproducing a chessboard after only viewing it for a few seconds, they chunk the board into a number of meaningful subunits)

what are mnemonics

learning aids or strategies used to improve memory

what is method of loci

a type of mnemonics that results from associated a piece of information with a physical location

what is iconic memeory

when you can visual sensory memory

what is echoic memeory

when you can hear auditory sensory memory

iconic and echoic memory are both types of ____ memories associated with which stage of memory?

sensory memories

sensory stage

what is working memeory

represents what we are consciously focusing on at any point in time; it is very limited

how long does working memory last?

~20 seconds

what is long-term memory

memory that can last from a few minutes to forever

what is the serial position effect

the ability to recall items in a list depends on their order (with beginning and end items being able to be recalled better)

the serial position effect is made up of two effects called ____ and ____.

primary effect: better memory for items presented at the beginning of the list

recency effect: better memory for items presented at the end of the list, or more recent, hence recency effect

what is consolidation

the process of forming the lasting connections that represent long-term memory

long-term memory involves the creation of ___________.

neural circuits

what is long-term potentiation

strengthening of synaptic connection by making the post-synaptic neurons be easily activated pre-synaptic neurons

what are flashbulb memories

vivid (clear/detailed), episodic memories of the circumstances in which people first learn of a surprising and consequential or emotionally arousing event

ex: where was I during the assassination of JFK

what is reconsolidating? what are the two main functions of it?

the re-storage of memory after retrieval

1. memory updating

2. memory strengthening

what are retrieval cues

things that make us recall information from memory

what is the encoding specificity principle

any stimulus encoded with the environment/an experience can later trigger the memory of that environment/experience

any stimulus can be a retrieval cue

what is the difference between state-dependent memory and context-dependent memory

1. this word’s definition is: memory can be enhanced when the emotional state is the same as the state it was originally encoded in

2. memory can be enhanced if it is being recalled in the same context as when it was encoded

what is prospective memory

remembering to do something in the future

(using cell phone for appt reminders)

what is retrieval-induced forgetting

when retrieving information reduces the memory of a similar piece of information

what term does the phrase “cells that fire together wire together” explain

this phrase explains long-term potentiation

LTP: as you recall information over and over, neural connections are strengthening, confirming that information has entered the long-term storage

forgetting typically is the result of interference from other information, what are the two interferences called? define them.

proactive interference: old information prevents storing new information

retroactive interference: new information prevents old information retrieval

what is blocking

the temporary inability to remember something

(I’m “blanking” on this)

what is absentmindeness

when you forget something because you were not paying attention

what is persistance

when we are not able to forget memories

(forgetting when we were embarrassed at a party)

what is memory bias

when you change your memories so that they align with your current beliefs

what is source misattribution

when people misremember the source (time/location/place) a memory was encoded

what is source amnesia

when people cannot remember the source (time/place/person) a memory was related to

what is cryptomnesia. it is a type of source ______

when you think you created something, but you are really recalling it from past learned information. it is a type of source misattribution

what is suggestibility

people have the tendency to form biased memories when fed misinformation