Chapter 12: Learning & Memory

Classical Conditioning

Involuntary responses; behavior is elicited by a stimulus (e.g., Pavlov’s dog).

Operant Conditioning

Voluntary behavior; behavior is performed due to expected consequences (reinforcement or punishment).

memory consolidation

Strengthening a memory to make it longer lasting.

Emotional events consolidate faster due to:

• Norepinephrine, dopamine, epinephrine, and cortisol release.

• “Flashbulb memories” are vivid and emotionally intense.

Working memory (WM)

Active, temporary storage for processing information.

Short-term memory (STM)

Brief storage of recent events, limited capacity.

Long-term memory (LTM

Durable memory storage with no capacity limit.

Anterograde

Inability to form new memories after brain damage.

Retrograde

Loss of old memories from before the brain damage.

What do studies of patient H.M. reveal about memory systems in the brain?

H.M. had severe anterograde amnesia and partial retrograde amnesia.

Showed a divide between explicit and implicit memory systems.

Episodic Memory

Memories of personal experiences and events

Implicit Memory

Unconscious influence of experience on behavior.

Hippocampus

Episodic and spatial memory.

Entorhinal cortex

Supports semantic memory; connects hippocampus to cortex.

Striatum

Important for procedural and implicit memory, like motor skills.

Korsakoff’s syndrome

Due to thiamine deficiency (often from alcoholism), causing memory loss and confabulation.

Alzheimer’s disease

A neurodegenerative disorder that impairs explicit memory (especially semantic and episodic) due to amyloid plaques and tau tangles.

Habituation vs Sensitization

• Habituation: Weakened response due to repeated, harmless stimulus → less neurotransmitter release (similar to LTD).

• Sensitization: Enhanced response after strong stimulus → more neurotransmitter release (similar to LTP).

Why is calcium important for LTP?

activates CREB, which can lead to long-term genetic changes supporting memory.

AMPA vs NMDA

• AMPA: Lets in Na+ during normal stimulation.

• NMDA: Blocked by Mg²⁺; opens during depolarization, allowing Ca²⁺ in.

Radial Maze

Tests memory by seeing if an animal remembers which arms have rewards.

Morris Water Maze

Tests spatial memory by having animals locate a hidden platform in murky water.

What is the difference between early and late onset Alzheimer’s disease?

• Early onset: Before age 65, often genetic (PSEN1, PSEN2, APP).

• Late onset: After age 65, influenced by APOE gene and environment.

Hebbian synapse

A synapse that strengthens when presynaptic and postsynaptic neurons fire together

• Basis for associative learning, such as classical conditioning.

why human brains enable greater intelligence than the brains of other animals?

Because total number of neurons