Memory

Question 1

Define:
Declarative (explicit) memory

Answer 1

available to the conscious mind, can be encoded in symbols and language, can be consciously recalled

Question 2

Define:
Procedural (implicit) memory

Answer 2

skills and association largely unavailable to the conscious mind e.g. juggling, cycling, cannot be consciously recalled

Question 3

Define:
Short-term memory

Answer 3

seconds or minutes (working memory)

Question 4

Define:
Long-term memory

Answer 4

days, months, years

Question 5

Define:
Hebbian synapses

Answer 5

A long-standing hypothesis termed “Hebbian plasticity” suggests that memories are formed through strengthening of synaptic connections between neurons with correlated activity

Question 6

Recall the structures of the temporal lobe implicated in learning and memory.

Answer 6

-Prefrontal cortex - working memory
-Hippocampus - converts short-term to long-term
-Amygdala - multiple, processed sensory inputs, fear
-Cerebellum - procedural, sensorimotor

Question 7

Describe examples of experimental and clinical observations that have indicated such a role for the temporal lobe.

Answer 7

-Hippocampal lesions cause memory loss
-Electrical stimulation of the frontal lobe causes hallucinations and recollections of the past
-Epileptic seizures cause complex sensations and memories
-Temporal lobectomy causes extreme anterograde amnesia, intelligence and personality remained intact