Learning and Memory Flashcards
What is memory?
The outcome of learning
What is learning?
The process of acquiring new information
What brain regions were surgically removed in Patient H.M.?
Bilateral Medial Temporal Lobes (whole hippocampus)
What did Patient H.M. struggle with before surgery?
Epilepsy
What couldn’t H.M. do after surgery?
Couldn’t form new long-term memories (anterograde amnesia)
What could H.M. do after surgery?
- Could remember things for a few minutes (short-term memory)
- Could learn new procedural/implicit memories
- Intact intelligence/personality
What did we learn from H.M.?
Hippocampus/MTL is critical for forming new explicit memories
Different types of memory are supported by different structures
What are the 4 broad types of memory?
Long-term memory
Sensory memory, short-term memory, and working memory
What is the time course of sensory memory?
Milliseconds to seconds
Do we have conscious awareness of sensory memory?
No
What are the 2 types of sensory memory?
Visual: Iconic (<200 ms)
Auditory: Echoic (several seconds)
Is sensory memory high or limited capacity?
High capacity
What is MMN and MMF?
Mismatch negativity (MMN)
Mismatch field (MMF)
What is the difference between MMN and MMF?
MMN is associated with ERP
MMF is associated with MEG
What is MMN (or MMF)?
They are a neural response to deviant stimuli
What did MMN/MMF tell us
After 10s the brain can’t distinguish MMN/MMF from noise
The Echoic memory time course is about 10 seconds
What is Sperling’s partial report task?
There is an array of letters flashed very briefly and tones used to indicate which line to report (partial report)
What did Sperling’s partial report task tell us?
Performance was much better than expected from full report and provided evidence for brief high capacity iconic memory
What is the time course for short-term and working memory?
Seconds to minutes
Do we have conscious awareness of short-term and working memory?
Yes
Is short-term and working memory high or limited capacity?
Limited Capacity (~ 7 items)
What is a characteristic of short-term memory?
Decays rapidly without rehearsal
Longer than sensory memory but still brief (10 sec - 5 min)
What is a characteristic of working memory?
Sometimes refers to a more active process (you have to work and working memory)
Maintenance and Manipulation
What is a short-term memory test?
Forward digit span (memorizing series of digits forwards)
What is a working memory test?
Backward digit span (memorizing a series of digits backwards)
What is the Baddeley-Hitch Model?
The idea that there is a 3 part system to WM. There is a central executive which control 2 subordinate systems (Phonological loop -acoustical and Visuospatial sketchpad - visual)
What is the phonological loop task?
Remembering a string of numbers
What is the visuospatial sketchpad task?
Remembering colors and locations
What is the result of both of these tasks?
Combining the 2 task was not that much harder but it is easier to remember 6 colors and 6 numbers than 12 of one type
–> evidence for independent systems
What is the PET evidence for multiple WM systems?
Verbal and spatial memory tasks activate different brain networks
What did Fedorenko et al. 2012 tell us about multiple WM systems?
That the behavioral evidence is strong but neural underpinnings need more work
What are the 3 hypotheses for the relationship/difference between STM and LTM?
Hypothesis l: Info first in STM then transferred to LTM
Hypothesis ll: STM and LTM are the “same” memory system; LTM simply places greater demands on the memory system
Hypothesis lll: STM and LTM are relatively independent learning and memory systems
What is one broad piece of evidence toward STM and LTM being independent systems?
H.M. had intact STM but impaired LTM
What did Patient K.F. tell us?
They had left hippocampal damage to cortical areas which led to poor STM and normal LTM
What is the relationship between H.M. and K.F?
There was a double dissociation of STM/LTM (2 different brain legions and there were opposite deficits)
What is the relationship/difference between STM and LTM?
Hypothesis lll: STM and LTM are relatively independent learning and memory systems
LTM not just an extension of STM and not just a harder version of STM
What brain areas are involved in explicit/declarative memory?
Hippocampus, frontal and parietal
What brain areas are involved in implicit/non-declarative memory?
Basal ganglia (striatum) & other structures
What is the water maze-test?
Version 1: Platform is in the same spatial location but ball looks different
Version 2: Platform is in different location, but ball is the same
Which version is explicit and implicit?
Version 1 is explicit and Version 2 is implicit
What happened after the rats experienced lesions?
Version 1 rats experienced hippocampal lesions and were unable to perform the task
Version 2 rats experienced striatal/BG lesions and were unable to perform the task
Rats could perform opposite task
What did this task tell us?
Provided more evidence for distinct systems (explicit and implicit)
