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the four steps to forming memories
Encoding: taking in info from our 5 senses and integrate new info : first stage of long memory formation
What activities are related to retrieval?
Retrieval, attention, and working memory (sometimes memories require conscious effort)
Aids to memory formation
- attention
- depth of processing (repetition, memorization, studying)
- sleep
- emotion (wedding, first date, graduation)
give an example of a flashbulb memory
Asking grandma "What were you doing on the day of 9/11?"
How can emotion aid and impede encoding and memory?
It can aid memory because emotions are easier to recall; they aren't factual. It can help us remember more but will not always be accurate.
It can impede because sometimes emotions distort our memories.
autobiographical memory
the memory for events and facts related to one's personal life story (we tend to remember the pleasant times rather than the negative ones--remembering the good readily and the bad not as much).
Can we unconsciously recall experiences ?
Yes, many things we know are outside of conscious awareness. (ex tying a shoe).
three-stage model of memory
the classification of memories based on duration as sensory, short-term, and long-term
memory
the ability to take in, solidify, store, and use information; also store the info that has been learned and remembered.
types of processing
automatic: where we have to encode info with little effort ot conscious attention to the task "what I ate for breakfast this morning"
effortful: encoding info that occurs with careful attention and conscious effort. (ex studying for exam)
mnemonic device
method for helping us remember info such as a rhyme or acronym.
What is the second stage of memory?
Consolidation
Consolidation is...
the process of establishing, stabilizing or solidifying memory; the second stage of long-term memory formation
true or false: sleep plays important role in memory consolidation
True. (We recall information better if we "sleep on it" . Not only stabilizes memory but also strengthens and enhances it. Sleep deprivation is detrimental to building memory.)
What is the third stage of memory formation?
Storage: keeping information
Storage
the retention of encoded information over time; third stage of long term memory formation.
How do we organize related pieces of information from most specific feature they have in common to most general?
Hierarchies
associative network
a chain of associations between related concepts. Each concept or association in a network is referred to as a node. The links between the nodes are associations. Nodes activate when people think of a concept.
What is the fourth stage of memory?
Retrieval: getting and using information
Retrieval
recovery of stored information; the fourth stage of long-term memory.
sensory memory
the immediate, very brief recording of info in its original sensory form. (usually for about a half a second or less).
short term memory
the part of memory that temporarily (for 2 to 30 seconds) stores a limited amount of information before it is either transferred to long-term storage or forgotten
long-term memory
the part of memory that has the capacity to store a vast amount of information for as little as 30 seconds and as long as a lifetime
What do we do after we sense information ?
We either ignore it or start to process it more deeply.
what is working memory?
the part of the memory required to attend to and solve a problem at hand. (ex used for when we are following a recipe or solving a math problem).
What is the difference between short term memory and working memory?
working memory makes use of info in the short term memory. working memory is associated with intellectual ability and intelligence.
chunking
The process of grouping items to be remembered in a smaller set so it is easier to remember.
stages of the working memory
1) attending to a stimulus
2) storing info about the stimulus
3) rehearsing the stored process to help solve a problem.
The attention system
supported by 3 storage systems:
1. (phonological loops) for sounds and language
2. (visuospatial sketchpad) images and spatial relations
3. (episodic buffer)for providing temporary storage for specific events
the central executive
(baddeley's model of working memory) Decides where to focus attention (being bombarded with so many sesnes).
Once the central executive has taken in and attended to info, what happens next?
it is sent to the temporary store:
a) the visuospatial sketchpad if it is visual or spatial info
b) the episodic buffer if it is a specific event or experience
or, c) the phonological loop if it is a sound or linguistic information.
visuospatial sketchpad
briefly provides storage for visual and spatial relations (images, photos, scenes, and three-dimensional objects).
episodic buffer
provides storage info that will become long-term memories of specific events. (think of when you type something on microsoft shit word and the type letters reside in a temporary store; buffer; until you click save for it to transfer the material to your files for the long term).
phonological loop
the part of working memory that holds and processes verbal and auditory information. assists the central executive by holding limited number of words, numbers for up to 30 seconds. (ex remembering what was on your shopping list)
rehersal
the process of reciting or practicing info repeatedly
serial position effect
the tendency to have better recall for items in a list according to their position in the list
long term memory
the most complex form of memory: 2 distinct types and 4 distinct stages of processing.
non-declarative memory (implicit memory)
Memories that cannot be consciously accessed. Made up of knowledge based on previous experience, such as skills we perform automatically once we've mastered them.
What forms do non-declarative memory (implicit) come in?
procedural memory: knowledge we hold of almost any behavior or physical skill we learn.
priming: the king of implicit memory that occurs when recall is improved by prior exposure to the same or similar stimuli.
(long-term memory:) Explicit memory
the conscious recall of facts and events.
(long term memory): semantic memory
a form of memory that recalls facts and general knowledge , such as what we learn in school.
What is HSAM
highly superior autobiographical memory:
people who can recall in considerable detail from almost any day in their adolescent and adult life. But these people are not better in recalling after short periods of time compared to most.
Neuroplasticity
the ability within the brain to constantly change both the structure and function of many cells in response to experience or trauma
long-term potentiation
Occurs when the synapse of one neuron repeatedly fires and excites another neuron. When synapses fire more rapidly, learning becomes easier and more efficient .
Donald Hebb-- "Hebb's law"
neurons that fire together wire together
How memories stick (concept)
When a neuron fires more rapidly , it strengthens the synapse by activating a protein called CREB. This protein activates genes causing them to get copied into versions that leave the nucleusand starts a process to "tattoo" the events to our brains
where are sensory memories processed?
in various sensory cortexes
where is short-term memory processed?
in the hippocampus and frontal lobes
where are long-term memories stored?
stored in different parts of the prefrontal cortex(important for attention, social behavior, working memory, impulse control). (mainly hippocampus)
sensory memory and the brain (concept)
first: sensation travels to the thalamus
second: the thalamus relays the sensory info to the cerebral cortex for further processing
Processing regions of sensory cortex for sensory stimuli:
Visual cortex --> occipital lobe
auditory cortex --> temporal lobes
somatosensory (touch) cortex --> parietal lobes
(Taste and smell do not have their own processing regions)
Short-term and working memory and the brain (concept)
Hippocampus: where the repeated firing of neural impulses occurs that is necessary in order to convert a short-term memory into a long-term memory.
Working memory: requires the hippocampus and attention and focus which requires the prefrontal cortex.
How is the hippocampus like a librarian?
(with aid of frontal lobes), it processes or organizes, and directs memories and then returns them to the appropriate location in the cortex for long-term storage.
Long-term memory and the brain (concept)
How long term memory begins:
1) when sensations are processed they turn into output which is then directed to different brain regions. (ex; learning how to type on a computer. That output gets sent to the cerebellum and striatum. Or, when we experience an emotional event, that output goes to the amygdala. Or, remembering personal , episodicial info that output gets sent to the hippocampus).
2) That long-term memory gets stored.
Explicit long-term memory: memory gets stored in the area where the original sensation was processed.
Implicit memories: memory gets stored in the striatum (part of basal ganglia), the amygdala, and the cerebellum. n
Prefrontal cortex and working memory
retrieving info requires attention and focus (working memory), which is an activity of the prefrontal cortex.
transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS)
A method of treatment that can stimulate both cortical and deeper brain structures; unlike rTMS it can be used during movement.
reconsolidation
memories can become vulnerable to disruption when they are recalled, resulting in a slightly different memory to the original, requiring them to become consolidated again
divided attention occurs when...
we are trying to focus on multiple activities at once
selective attention
the focusing of conscious awareness on a particular thing due to our differing values, attitudes, beliefs and experiences.
false memories
memories for events that never happened, but were suggested by someone or something. (People with HSAM are still prone to having false memories).
recovered memories
a memory supposedly from a real event that was encoded and stored but no retrieved (remembered) for a really long time until some event.
Suggestibility and Misinformation
the development of biased memories from misleading information-- leading questions, comments, or suggestions made by someone else.
What is the misinformation effect?
occurs when misleading information has corrupted one's memory of an event
Forgetting
the weakening or loss of memories over time
Describe interference
(a form of forgetting) Occurs when other information competes with the information we are trying to recall.
retroactive interference
Occurs when new experiences or information cause the person to forget previously learned experiences or information.
(Ebbinghau's) Forgetting curve
A graph curve that shows with each passing day, we remember less , but the rate of decline slows.
absent-mindedness
form of forgetfulness that involves attention as well as memory; It is a result from inattention. Increases with age; only an issue by age 70 .
What are attributes/activities that act as a buffer against age-related memory decline?
aerobic exercise, higher education level, certain personality traits.
Blocking
a failure to retrieve information that is available in memory even though you are trying to produce it.
An example of blocking is the "tip of the tongue phenomenon".
Repression
(form of blocking). The unconscious act of keeping threatening thoughts, feelings, or impulses out of consciousness. Traumatic memories are more likely to be repressed than other memories.
Amnesia
When people forget due to injury or disease to the brain
anterograde amnesia
an inability to form new memories after the injury. They can recall an experience for only 10 minutes, then forget about it again.
retrograde amnesia
the inability to recall events that happened prior to the injury. (Examples are victims of car accidents, who say they can't remember being in the accident)
In Alzheimer's disease...
experiences are lost due to anterograde amnesia, which can be caused by retroactive interference and absent-mindedness.
What is learning
Described as an enduring change in behavior that comes with experience.
associative learning
you learn through pairing
What is classical conditioning?
(Learning by association) More reflexive / automatic behaviors
What is operant conditioning?
More for conscious / effortful behaviors
Pavlov's experiment
-unconditioned stimulus (meat) caused unconditioned response (salivation) in dogs
-Pavlov repeatedly rang a bell (neutral stimulus) before placing meat in the dogs' mouth
- initially, the dogs didn't react much when they only heard the bell w/o receiving meat
-After repeating procedure several times, dogs began to salivate when they heard the bell (even if he did not deliver meat)
-turned the bell (neutral) into a conditioned stimulus
What was the result of Pavlov's experiment ?
Any stimulus is capable of triggering any type of learned reaction that you are capable of
(Classical conditioning) Neutral Stimuli
- Different from desired response (doesn't elicit the desired response); the bell in pavlov's experiment
(Classical conditioning) Unconditional Stimuli (UNS)
- The stimuli that causes a natural, reflexive response; the food in pavlov's experiment
(Classical conditioning) Conditioned Stimuli (CS)
- What the neutral stimulus becomes through repeated pairing; pairing of bell + food in Pavlov's experiment
- What makes associative learning possible
(Classical conditioning) Unconditional response (UR)
- The natural, reflexive response that the Unconditional stimulus elicits ; the salivating of the dogs in Pavlov's experiment