WEEK 3: MEMORY AND FORGETTING Flashcards
Define the following terms:
*Memory
*Learning
*Memory trace
*Cognition
*Active practice/ rehearsal
*Remembering
*Forgetting
*Consolidation
*Reconsolidation
Memory- storage of acquired knowledge for later recall.
Learning- acquisition of knowledge or skills as a result of experience, instruction or both
Memory trace- neural change responsible for retention or storage of knowledge
Cognition- the mental process by which we come to understand and learn (Steve Wheeler)
Active practice or rehearsal- recycling of newly acquired information through the short term memory (STM)
Remembering- process of retrieving specific information from memory stores
Forgetting- inability to retrieve stored information
Consolidation- process of transferring & fixing STM traces into the long term stores
Reconsolidation- addition of new information to the old memory trace
Describe the 3 elements of memory
Encoding
-capture and acquisition of novel information
Storage
-integration and permanent representation of information
Retrieval
-access to information when needed
State the 2 types of memory
short term memory
Long term memory
Describe the two types of long term memory
1.Declarative or Explicit Memory (2 sub-types)
*Explicit memory is a type of long-term memory that’s concerned with recollection of facts and events. You may also see explicit memory referred to as declarative memory.
*Explicit memory requires you to consciously recall information. For example, imagine someone asks you what the capital of France is. To answer, you’d likely access your memory to find the correct answer: Paris.
- Non-Declarative or Implicit Memory (4 sub-types)
*Implicit memory is a type of long-term memory related to the impact that activities and experiences can have on your behavior. You might also hear it referred to as nondeclarative memory.
*You access your implicit memory unconsciously without even thinking about it.
The areas of the brain involved with implicit memory include the:
basal ganglia
neocortex
cerebellum
In addition, the amygdala, a small structure located near to the hippocampus, is involved in both explicit and implicit memory
NB! Explicit memory can be converted to implicit memory
Describe the 2 subtypes of declarative memory
*Facts (semantic)
*Events (episodic)
Names, faces, words, dates
Describe the 4 subtypes of non-declarative memory
1.Priming
Priming refers to the process by which a past experience increases the accuracy or quickness of a response.
Priming is the facilitation of the recognition of words or objects by
prior exposure to them and is dependent on the neocortex .
An example of priming is the improved recall of a word when
presented with the fi rst few letters of it.
Some examples of priming include:
*being able to say the word “automobile” out loud more quickly after reading it
*seeing a supporter of a rival sports team and feeling competitive
*being more likely to think of the word “library” after seeing the word “book”
2.Procedural (skills) memory
Procedural memory includes your knowledge of how to perform various tasks, ranging from simple to complex. You use your procedural memory all the time to carry out basic tasks.
Procedural memory includes skills and habits, which, once acquired, become
unconscious and automatic. Th is type of memory is processed
in the striatum .
Some examples of procedural memory include:
*driving a car or riding a bike
*playing a video game
*speaking to someone in your native language
3.Associative learning (include motor & emotional memories)
Associative learning relates to classical and
operant conditioning in which one learns about the relationship between one stimulus and another.
Associative memory refers to the ability to remember relationships between concepts, and not just the individual concepts themselves.
Th is type of memory is dependent on the amygdala for its emotional responses and the cerebellum for the motor responses
4.non-associative learning (include habituation & sensitization)
Non-associative learning includes habituation and sensitization and is dependent on various reflex pathways.
Non-associative memory is the simplest yet fundamental form of learning that does not require stimuli association or pairing. It means that animal species alter their response upon exposure to a single event or stimulus.
Describe what happens in habituation.
Habituation is a simple form of learning in which a neutral stimulus is repeated many times. The first time it is applied it is novel and evokes a reaction (the orienting reflex or “what is it?” response). However, it evokes less and less electrical response as it is repeated. Eventually, the subject becomes habituated to the stimulus and ignores it.
This is associated with decreased release of neurotransmitter from the presynaptic terminal because of decreased intracellular Ca 2+ . The decrease in intracellular Ca 2+ is due to a gradual inactivation of Ca 2+ channels.
It can be short term, or it can be prolonged if exposure to the benign stimulus is repeated many times.
Habituation is a classic example of non-associative learning.
Describe sensitization
Sensitization is in a sense the opposite of habituation.
Sensitization is the prolonged occurrence of augmented postsynaptic responses after a stimulus to which one has become habituated is paired once or several times with a noxious stimulus.
At least in the sea snail Aplysia, the noxious stimulus causes discharge
of serotonergic neurons that end on the presynaptic endings of sensory neurons. Thus, sensitization is due to presynaptic facilitation.
Sensitization may occur as a transient response, or if it is reinforced by additional pairings of the noxious stimulus and
the initial stimulus, it can exhibit features of short-term or long-term memory.
Th e short-term prolongation of sensitization is due to a Ca 2+ -mediated change in adenylyl cyclase that leads
to a greater production of cAMP
What is post-tetanic potentiation?
the production of enhanced postsynaptic potentials in response to stimulation. Th is enhancement lasts up to 60 s and occurs
aft er a brief tetanizing train of stimuli in the presynaptic neuron. Th e tetanizing stimulation causes Ca 2+ to accumulate in
the presynaptic neuron to such a degree that the intracellular binding sites that keep cytoplasmic Ca 2+ low are overwhelmed.
Post-tetanic potentiation (PTP) refers to an increase in neurotransmitter release after a brief, high-frequency train of action potentials. This large enhancement may last on the order of several minutes and is measured after high-frequency stimulation.
What is long term potentiation?
LTP is a rapidly developing persistent enhancement of the postsynaptic potential response to presynaptic stimulation aft er a brief period of rapidly repeated stimulation of the presynaptic neuron. It resembles post tetanic potentiation but is much more prolonged and can last for days.
Describe ASSIOCIATIVE LEARNING:
CONDITIONED REFLEXES
A classic example of associative learning is a conditioned reflex.
A conditioned reflex is a reflex response to a stimulus that previously elicited little or no response, acquired by repeatedly pairing the stimulus with another stimulus that normally does produce the response.
In Pavlov’s classic experiments, the
salivation normally induced by placing meat in the mouth of a dog was studied. A bell was rung just before the meat was placed in the dog’s mouth, and this was repeated a number of times until the animal would salivate when the bell was rung even though no meat was placed in its mouth. In this experiment, the meat placed in the mouth was the unconditioned stimulus (US) , the stimulus that normally produces a particular innate response. The conditioned stimulus (CS) was the bell ringing.
After the CS and US had been paired a sufficient number of times, the CS produced the response originally evoked only by the US. The CS had to precede the US.
An immense number of somatic, visceral, and other neural changes can be made to
occur as conditioned reflex responses.
What is biofeedback?
Conditioning of visceral responses is often called biofeedback. The changes that can be produced include alterations in heart rate and blood pressure. Conditioned decreases in blood pressure have been advocated for the treatment of
hypertension: however, the depressor response produced in this fashion is small.
State which part of the brain each of the 4 types of implicit memory is dependent on
- Priming : Neocortex
2.Procedural memory : Striatum
3.Associative learning : Cerebellum and Amygdala
4.Non- associative learning : reflex pathways
Which brain areas are involved in memory?
Medial temporal lobe and hippocampus
Striatum: skills and habits
Neocortex: Priming
Amygdala: emotional memory
Cerebellum: simple forms of associative memory
Lower brain regions and spinal cord: simpler forms of learning
Outline the multi-store model of memory
- Sensory memory
2.Short term memory
3.Long term memory
4.Storage
5.retrieval
