Unit Six: Cognition Flashcards
Memory
the persistence of learning over time through the encoding, storage, and retrieval of information
Encoding
the processing of information into the memory system—for example, by extracting meaning
Storage
the process of retaining encoded information over time
Retrieval
the process of getting information out of memory storage
Parallel processing
the processing of many aspects of a problem simultaneously; the brain’s natural mode of information processing for many functions, including vision. Contrasts with the step-by-step (serial) processing of most computers and of conscious problem solving
Connectionism
views memories as products of interconnected neural networks
Sensory memory
the immediate, very brief recording of sensory information in the memory system
Short-term memory
activated memory that holds a few items briefly, such as the seven digits of a phone number while dialing, before the information is stored or forgotten.
Long-term memory
the relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of the memory system. Includes knowledge, skills, and experiences
Working memory
a newer understanding of short-term memory that focuses on conscious, active processing of incoming auditory and visual-spatial information, and of information retrieved from long-term memory
Information processing models
analogies that compare human memory to a computer’s operations
Explicit memories
memory of facts and experiences that one can consciously know and “declare.” (Also called declarative memory.)
Effortful processing
encoding that requires attention and conscious effort
Automatic processing
unconscious encoding of incidental information, such as space, time, and frequency, and of well-learned information, such as word meanings
Implicit memories
retention independent of conscious recollection. (Also called nondeclarative memory.)
Iconic memory
a momentary sensory memory of visual stimuli; a photographic or picture-image memory lasting no more than a few tenths of a second
Echoic memory
a momentary sensory memory of auditory stimuli; if attention is elsewhere, sounds and words can still be recalled within 3 or 4 seconds
Chunking
organizing items into familiar, manageable units; often occurs automatically
Mnemonics
memory aids, especially those techniques that use vivid imagery and organizational devices
Spacing effects
the tendency for distributed study or practice to yield better long-term retention than is achieved through massed study or practice
Testing effects
enhanced memory after retrieving, rather than simply rereading, information. Also sometimes referred to as a retrieval practice effect or test-enhanced learning
Shallow processing
encoding on a basic level based on the structure or appearance of words
Deep processng
encoding semantically, based on the meaning of the words; tends to yield the best retention
Hippocampus and side for visual vs verbal
a neural center located in the limbic system; helps process explicit memories for storage-> storage is elsewhere
Visual is right, verbal is left
Role of cerebellum in memory
implicit memories created by classical conditioning
Role of basal ganglia in memory
procedural memories for skills
Infantile amnesia
we do not have conscious memories of our first three years of life (we retain implicit while removing explicit)
Flashbulb memories
a clear memory of an emotionally significant moment or event
Long-term potentiation (LTP)
an increase in a cell’s firing potential after brief, rapid stimulation. Believed to be a neural basis for learning and memory
Recall
a measure of memory in which the person must retrieve information learned earlier, as on a fill-in-the-blank test
Recognition
measure of memory in which the person need only identify items previously learned, as on a multiple-choice test
Relearning
a measure of memory that assesses the amount of time saved when learning material again
Priming
the activation, often unconsciously, of particular associations in memory
Mood-congruent memory
the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with one’s current good or bad mood
Serial position effect
our tendency to recall best the last (a recency effect) and first (a primacy effect) items in a list
Atkinson and Shriffrin Theory
three types of memory- sensory, short-term, long-term
Central executive
handles focus, what we are trying to remember
Anterograde amnesia
an inability to form new memories
Retrograde amnesia
an inability to retrieve information from one’s past
Proactive interference
prior learning disrupts recall of new information
Retroactive interference
new learning disrupts recall of old information
Positive transfer
previously learned information often helps our learning of new information
Misinformation effect
incorporating misleading information into one’s memory of an event
Source amnesia
attributing to the wrong source an event we have experienced, heard about, read about, or imagined. (Also called source misattribution.) Source amnesia, along with the misinformation effect, is at the heart of many false memories
Déjà vu
that eerie sense that “I’ve experienced this before.” Cues from the current situation may unconsciously trigger retrieval of an earlier experience.
Cognition
all the mental activities associated with thinking, knowing, remembering, and communicating
Concept
a mental grouping of similar objects, events, ideas, or people
Prototype
a mental image or best example of a category. Matching new items to a prototype provides a quick and easy method for sorting items into categories (as when comparing feathered creatures to a prototypical bird, such as a robin).
Creativity
the ability to produce novel and valuable ideas.
Convergent thinking
narrows the available problem solutions to determine the single best solution.
Divergent thinking
expands the number of possible problem solutions (creative thinking that diverges in different directions).
What kind of thinking does the left parietal lobe do? (Convergent vs Divergent)
convergent thinking-IQ
What kind of thinking do certain areas of the frontal lobe do? (Convergent vs Divergent)
divergent thinking-CQ
Five components of creativity (we probably do not need to know this)
expertise, imaginative thinking skills, a venturesome personality, intrinsic motivation, a creative enviornment
Self-reference effect
we encode information better when it relates to ourselves
Ebbinghaus
his forgetting curve of how well he remembered his nonsense syllables dropped quickly, then leveled off-forgetting in initially rapid, then levels off with time
Loftus
memory studies, misinformation effects, released due to DNA when they were put in from eyewitness
Reconsolidation
everytime we remember something it changes
Algorithm
a methodical, logical rule or procedure that guarantees solving a particular problem. Contrasts with the usually speedier—but also more error-prone—use of heuristics
Heuristic
a simple thinking strategy that often allows us to make judgments and solve problems efficiently; usually speedier but also more error-prone than algorithms
Insight
a sudden realization of a problem’s solution; contrasts with strategy-based solutions-temporal lobe
Mental set
a tendency to approach a problem in one particular way, often a way that has been successful in the past
Confirmation bias
a tendency to search for information that supports our preconceptions and to ignore or distort contradictory evidence
Fixation
an inability see a problem from a new perspective
Intuition
an effortless, immediate, automatic feeling or thought, as contrasted with explicit, conscious reasoning
Tversky and Kahneman
representativeness and availability heuristics, decision studies
Representativeness heuristic
judging the likelihood of things in terms of how well they seem to represent, or match, particular prototypes; may lead us to ignore other relevant information
Availability heuristic
judging the likelihood of events based on how mentally available they are
Overconfidence
the tendency to be more confident than correct—to overestimate the accuracy of our beliefs and judgments
Belief perseverance
clinging to one’s initial conceptions after the basis on which they were formed has been discredited
Framing
the way an issue is posed; how an issue is framed can significantly affect decisions and judgments
Imagination inflation
each time you tell something, you change it; repeatedly imagining nonexistent action and events can create false memory
Sternberg
five components of creativity
Language
our spoken, written, or signed words and the ways we combine them to communicate meaning
Phoneme
in a language, the smallest distinctive sound unit
Morpheme
in a language, the smallest unit that carries meaning; may be a word or a part of a word (such as a prefix)
Grammer
in a language, a system of rules that enables us to communicate with and understand others. In a given language, semantics is the set of rules for deriving meaning from sounds, and syntax is the set of rules for combining words into grammatically sensible sentence
Receptive language
the ability to understand what is said to and about yourself
Productive language
the ability to produce words
Babbling stage (age)
beginning at about 4 months, the stage of speech development in which the infant spontaneously utters various sounds at first unrelated to the household language
One-word stage (age)
the stage in speech development, from about age 1 to 2, during which a child speaks mostly in single words
Two-word stage (age)
beginning about age 2, the stage in speech development during which a child speaks mostly in two-word statements
Telegraphic speech
early speech stage in which a child speaks like a telegram—“go car”—using mostly nouns and verb
Aphasia
impairment of language, usually caused by left-hemisphere damage either to Broca’s area (impairing speaking) or to Wernicke’s area (impairing understanding)
Broca’s area
controls language expression—an area of the frontal lobe, usually in the left hemisphere, that directs the muscle movements involved in speech.
Wernicke’s area
controls language reception—a brain area involved in language comprehension and expression; usually in the left temporal lobe
Linguistic determinism, scientist
the hypothesis that language determines the way we think, Whorf
Bilingual advantage
they are more skilled at inhibition attention to irrelevant information, due to inhibiting one of their two languages
Semantics
meaning from sounds
Syntax
ordering words into sentences
Chomskey
no specific language, born to learn any language (we lose this ability), universal grammar (nouns, verbs, adjectives), language acquisition device (any language), critical period
Frontal lobe and memory- side for numbers and visual
Working memory, left side numbers and right side visual
AP-Language mechanics
Written rules
AP-Language pragmatics
Unspoken, words you use for friends vs boss
AP-Denotation
Dictionary meaning
AP-Connotation
The general meaning
AP-Linguistic competence
The ability to produce and understand without hearing the specific sentence before
Order the following abilities- recognize differences in sounds+read lips, segment sounds into words, ID household language, three stages, word learning is one per day, recognize simple sentence structures, lose the ability to master any language.
(This is beyond what we will need to do)
Lips~4 mo Babbling S~4 mo Sounds into words~7 mo Simple sentences~7 mo Household~10 mo One-Word S~12 mo One per day~18 mo Two-Word S~24 mo Lose bilingualism~7 yrs
