characteristics of memory Flashcards
what is memory?
faculty of the mind by which data or info is encoded, stored and retrieved
sensory memory (SM)
first part of the system, all stimuli pass into it, 5 stores for each of the senses, lasts 2-4 secs
short term memory (STM)
temporary info store, lasts up to 30 secs, can be passed into LTM if repeated enough
long term memory (LTM)
potentially permanent info store, can last a lifetime, repeated info is stored here
SM capacity
very high (the retina has over 100 million cells and they store sensory data
STM capacity
limited, stores between 5-9 items at a time
LTM capacity
unlimited, anything can be remembered with the right cues
SM encoding
initial learning of info, how info coming from the sensory input is changed into a form so it can be stored in the brain, transferring internal thoughts and external events into STM and LTM
STM encoding
mainly acoustic
LTM encoding
mainly semantic
encoding
how info is stored in the memory
capacity
how much info can be stored at one time
decay
the degradation of memory over time
semantic
where the memory is encoded according to its meaning
multi store model of memory (MSM)
describes flow between 3 permanent storage systems of memory, SM, STM and LTM
