2.3 - Introduction to Memory

Memory: How We Store and Retrieve Information

• Memory: The ability to store and retrieve information over time. It's like a mental filing cabinet.

• Flashbulb Memory: A vivid, detailed memory of an emotionally significant event.

Types of Memory

• Implicit (Nondeclarative) Memory: Memories we don't consciously recall, but influence our behavior. Example: Riding a bike, typing, classical conditioning.

• Explicit (Declarative) Memory: Conscious memories of facts and experiences we can declare or state.

  • Semantic Memory: General knowledge and facts about the world. Example: Knowing the capital of France.

  • Episodic Memory: Personal experiences and events. Example: Remembering your high school graduation.

• Prospective Memory: Memories of events or plans for future actions.

Memory Trace (Engram): The physical change in the brain that occurs when a memory is formed.

Long-Term Potentiation (LTP): The strengthening of connections between neurons with repeated stimulation, believed to be a key mechanism for forming memories.

Note: Memories are not stored in one single location; they are distributed across the brain in networks.

Stages of Memory: How Information Becomes a Memory

1. Encoding: Converting information from our senses into a form that can be stored.

2. Storage: Holding onto encoded information.

3. Retrieval: Accessing and recalling stored information.

Revised Model: Baddeley's Working Memory

• Replaces Short Term Memory: Instead of a simple storage space, working memory is an active workspace for processing and manipulating information.

• Components: Includes a central executive that directs attention and coordinates information flow, as well as specialized storage systems for visual and auditory information.

  1. Central Executive: The "boss" of working memory, controlling attention and coordinating information flow.

  2. Phonological Loop: Holds and processes verbal and auditory information (like repeating a phone number in your head).

  3. Visuospatial Sketchpad: Holds and processes visual and spatial information (like mentally rotating an object).

Levels of Processing

Note: The deeper the processing, the better the memory.

• Semantic Encoding (Deepest): Encoding the meaning of information.

• Phonemic Encoding (Intermediate): Phonemic encoding focuses on how words sound.

• Structural Encoding (Shallowest): Structural encoding focuses on what words look like. For instance, one might note whether words are long or short, in uppercase or lowercase, or handwritten or typed.