Memory (Chapter 6) Flashcards
Unit 1
Memory
Ability to store and retrieve information over time
Long-term memory (LTM)
Holds information up to yeas later; has no known capacity limits
Short-term memory (STM)
Storage that holds non-sensory information for more than a few seconds but less than a minute (about 7 items)
Working memory
STM storage that actively maintains information
Working memory model
active maintenance of info in short-term storage; visuo-spacial sketchpad & phonological loop coded by episodic buffer
Rehearsal
Keeping info in STM by repeating it mentally
Chunking
Combining small pieces of information into larger chunks that are more easily held in STM
Encoding
Transforming what we think, feel, or perceive into an enduring memory
Semantic encoding
Actively relating new info in a meaningful way to knowledge that is already in memory
Visual encoding
Storing new info by converting it into mental images
Organizational encoding
Categorizing information according to relationships among a series of items (grouping items together)
Explicit memory
Consciously/intentionally retrieving past experiences
Implicit memory
The influence of past experiences on later behavior, even without an effort or awareness of recollection (ex: muscle memory)
Storage
Maintaining information in memory over time
Sensory storage
Storage that holds sensory information for a few seconds or less
Iconic memory
fast-decaying store of visual information
Echoic memory
Fast-decaying store of audio information
Consolidation
Process by which memories become stable in the brain (enter LTM)
Retrieval
Bringing to mind information that has been previously stored
Reconsolidation
Following recollection of a memory, it must once again be stabilized in the brain (return to LTM)
Anterograde amnesia
Inability to transfer new info from STM into LTM
Retrograde amnesia
Inability to retrieve information before a particular date (usually the date of an injury or operation)
Synapses between neurons between neurons (in hippocampus) do what?
Strengthen memories
Long-term potentiation (LTP)
Process whereby communication across the synapse between neurons strengthens the connection, making further communication easier
Karl Lashley concluded that…
Memories are spread all over the cerebral cortex, throughout the tissue
NMDA receptor
Serial position effect
We best remember the first and last items in a series and find it hard to remember the middle items
Hippocampus role
Formation of new explicit memories
Mnemonic device
Strategies and tricks for improving memory
