Learning And Memory Flashcards
Define the term “Learning”
Acquisition of new information
Define the term “memory”
Retention of learned information
What are the 2 types of memory?
- Declarative memory (explicit): Facts and events - Hippocampus
- Non-declarative memory (implicit): Procedural memory, motor skills, skills - Stratium
List some types of declarative memories
- Working memory: Temporary storage, lasting seconds
- Short term memories: Facts and events in STM, Subset are converted to LTM
- Long term memories: Recalled months or years later
List some non declarative memories
- Procedural memory: Skills & habits
- Skeletal musculature (Classical conditioning)
- Emotional response (Classical conditioning)
Describe the process of memory being converted from the STM to the LTM
Sensory information -> either working memory or STM -> LTM via consolidation and with time
Where is the prefrontal cortex found?
What is special about this area of the brain in regards to humans?
- Found in the frontal lobe
- Primates have a large frontal lobe
- Meaning they’ve got a large/well developed prefrontal cortex
What is the function of the prefrontal cortex?
- Self awareness
- Capacity for planning and problem solving
- Higher order thinking
- Rational thinking
How does the working memory activity in the monkey prefrontal cortex work?
- Produces a delayed response
- First there is a cue period
- This is then followed by a 10 second delayed response
- Finally the monkey undergoes a choice period
What other brain regions are involved in the delayed response saccade task?
- Anterior intraparietal area
- Lateral intraparietal area
- Parietal region reach
How does these areas affect and cause the delayed response?
- First the target is flashed whilst the monkey is staring at the fixation point
- The target then moves whilst the monkey is still staring at the fixation point (delay stage)
- The monkey then finally started to look at the target (Saccade stage)
Where are memories stored?
- In general, they can be stored throughout the brain
- In neurons, they can be stored in the engram
Describe Hebb’s cell assembly and memory storage model (PART 1)
- Came up with the idea neurons don’t exist in isolation but instead in a network
- As a consequence, he presented an external stimulus (circle)
- This resulted in the activation of the cell assembly by a stimulus
Describe Hebb’s cell assembly and memory storage model (PART 2)
- revertibrating activity continues activation after the stimulus is removed
- The hebbian modification then strengthens the reciprocal connections between neurons that are active at the same time
- The strengthened connections of the cell assembly contain the engram for the stimulus
Describe Hebb’s cell assembly and memory storage model (PART 3)
- After learning, partial information activation of the assembly leads to activation of the entire representation of the stimulus
- Producing a circle in the end
What occurs in the consolidation stage of memory?
Memory is moved to different parts of the brain so they can be retrieved for long term memory
What does the consolidation stage involve?
Involvement of the temporal medial lobe
How does information flow from the cortex to the hippocampus?
There is a flow of information into the hippocampus via
- Parahippocampal cortex
- Perirhinal cortex
- Entorhinal cortex
These structures flow into the hippocampus
How does information flow through the medial temporal lobe?
Sensory information -> Cortical association areas -> Parahippocampal and rhinal cortical areas -> Hippocampus -> Thalamus, hippocampus via fornix
Describe amnesia
A serious loss of memory or ability to learn
- Causes: Concussion, chronic alcoholism, encephalitis, brain tumours, stroke
What are the 2 types of amnesia?
- Retrograde amnesia: No memory before the time of trauma
- Anterograde amnesia: No new memories after the time of trauma
Who was Henry Molaison (HM)?
- Had a bicycle accident at age
- Developed epilepsy
- In 1953 was referred to William Scoville at Hartford hospital
- Scoville localised the epilepsy to the right and left medial temporal lobes of HM’s brain and removed both LTMs
What was the result of the surgery?
- The surgery was effective in reducing occurrence of seizures
- However it had a devastating side effect
- HM lost the ability to form new long term memories but remembered events before the surgery
- However he was able to learn new motor skills but didn’t remember learning them
What was the impact of HM on memory research?
- Findings from HM shaped subsequent memory research
- Established the memories separateness from other cognitive functions
- No overall intellectual loss or perceptual disorders in HM
