Memory super memorist 20 The persistence of learning

Memory super memorist: 20 The persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information.

Memory in the Brain • The Physical Basis of Memory – No one area houses memories – Ongoing Electrical Activity – Synaptic Changes • Long-term Potentiation (LTP) – increase in a synapse’s firing potential after stimulation (engram) • program 17

Procedural vs. Declarative Memories • Procedural Memory: (implicit memory) houses memory for actions, skills, conditioned responses and emotion responses. – Procedural memories stored in the cerebellum.

Procedural vs. Declarative Memories • Declarative Memory: (explicit memory) handles factual information; recollections of words, definitions, names, dates, faces, etc. – Declarative memories stored in the hippocampus.

Two Types of Declarative Memories • There are two distinct types of declarative (explicit) memories • Episodic memories – made up of chronological, recollections of personal experiences • A record of things one has done, seen and heard. • Semantic memories – knowledge that is not tied to the time when the information was learned. • Ex. Christmas is December 25 th, dogs have four legs and Phoenix is in Arizona

Three Stage Theory of Memory

Memory Sensory Iconic Short-Term (Working Memory) Long. Term Echoic Declarative Episodic Procedural Semantic

Sensory Memory • Sensory Memory: it’s the initial recording information from the senses • Two types of sensory memory: • Iconic: momentary sensory memory of VISUAL stimuli • Lasts no more than a second • Echoic: momentary sensory memory of ACOUSTIC stimuli • Can last 3 -4 seconds

Short Term Memory • The stuff we encode from the sensory goes to STM. • Events are encoded visually (images), acoustically (sounds) or semantically (meanings). • George Miller discovered STM holds about 7 (plus or minus 2) items for about 20 seconds. • We recall digits better than letters.

The Memory Process crash course Three step process…. 1. Encoding: The processing of information into the memory system. 2. Storage: The retention of encoded material over time. 3. Retrieval: The process of getting the information out of memory storage.

Encoding: The Role of Attention • Attention: focusing awareness on a narrowed range of stimuli or events • Two types of attention involved in memory: • Focused: Giving “full” attention to a stimuli – Information likely to progress to long-term memory • Divided: splitting attention between two or more stimuli – Information less likely to progress to long-term memory – Multi-tasking is not performing two tasks at once, but rather switching attention back and forth

Encoding: Two Types of Processing • Automatic processing: unconscious encoding of information such as space, time and frequency of events (familiar objects, concepts or behaviors) – Done by “accident” Ex: Who was the first person you spoke to today? • Effortful processing: encoding that requires attention and conscious effort (new objects, concepts or behaviors) – Done purposefully Ex: Last unit you hopefully used effortful processing to remember which part of the brain moves memories from short term to long term.

Effortful Processing: A Closer Look • Hermann Ebbinghaus: German philosopher who pioneered studies in memory (“nonsense syllables”) • Rehearsal: conscious repetition; practice • Two types of rehearsal: • 1. maintenance rehearsal: repeating an item to maintain in STM and subsequently forget • 2. elaborative rehearsal: relating new items to memories already in LTM or applying meaning to items to enhance future recall

Transferring from STM to LTM • Chunking - organizing items into familiar, manageable units • Mnemonic Devices 1 -4 -9 -2 -1 -7 -7 -6 -1 -8 -1 -2 -1 -9 -4 -1 "Mary Very Easily Makes Jam Saturday Unless No Plums. " • Rehearsal – repetition, repetition

Encoding: Levels of Processing • Shallow Processing: – Structural encoding: (visual); emphasizes the physical structure of a stimulus – i. e. what the words physically look like – Phonemic encoding: (acoustic) emphasizes what a word sounds like • Deep Processing: – Semantic encoding: emphasizes the meaning of verbal input or creating associations between new memories and existing memories (elaborative rehearsal) – Self-reference encoding: relating new information to ourselves or our own experiences

Encoding Processes • Visual Encoding: the encoding of images example • Acoustic Encoding: the encoding of sound • Semantic Encoding: the encoding of meaning ü the most effective ü encoding with multiple process types is even more effective

Memory Strategies start @ 7: 04 • Mnemonic devices are strategies to improve memory by organizing information – Method of Loci: ideas are associated with a place or part of a building example – Peg-Word system: peg words are associated with ideas (e. g. “one is a bun”) – Word Associations: verbal associations are created for items to be learned

Chunking & other methods • Organizing items into familiar, manageable units. • Often it will occur automatically. # 1 -4 -9 -2 -1 -7 -7 -6 -1 -8 -1 -2 -1 -9 -4 -1 Do these numbers mean anything to you? Chunk- from Goonies 1492, 1776, 1812, 1941 how about now?

Chunking Write down as many of the states of the US as you can remember!

Take out a piece of paper and name all the Presidents

Encoding Information • Serial Positioning Effects – the tendency for recall to be affected by the order of encoding – Primacy Effect –more likely to recall items at the beginning of a list – Recency Effect – likely to recall items at the end of a list – What else influenced your ability to recall?

Serial Positioning Effect • Our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list. Presidents Recalled If we graph an average person remembers presidential listit would probably look something like this.

Encoding – The Spacing Effect • distributed study or practice yields better long term retention • cramming is minimally effective ü What, then, would be good strategies for preparing for AP Psych tests? ü For the AP Exam in the spring?

Storage: Long-Term Memory • Long-term memory: relatively permanent and limitless storehouse of memory • Severe stress is thought to increase memory of a particularly stressful event. – Role of hormones and the amygdala • Flash-bulb memories: unusually vivid and detailed recollections of emotionally significant events

The Context Matters!!! crash course • Mood Congruent Memory – the tendency to recall experiences that are consistent with your current mood • State Dependent Memory – memory that is recalled under the consciousness conditions it was formed

Prospective v. Retrospective Memory • Prospective Memory: remembering to perform actions in the future • Retrospective Memory: remembering events from the past or previously learned information

Retrieval- Getting Memories Out of Storage

Was it easy or hard? • It depends on several things…. • If you like Disney movies? • When was the last time you have seen the movie? • Are people around you being loud so you cannot concentrate?

Take out a piece of paper…. . • Name the seven dwarves…. . Now name them…. .

Recall vs. Recognition Recall • you must retrieve the information from your memory • fill-in-the blank or essay tests Recognition • you must identify the target from possible targets • multiple-choice tests

Retrieving Stored Memories • Retrieval Cues – anchor points used to access specific needed information • Tip-of-the-Tongue phenomenon: temporary inability to remember something you know, accompanied by a feeling that it’s just out of reach • TOT can be “cured” with retrieval cues

Retrieving Stored Memories • Priming: retrieval cue that activates associations in memory.

Memory Construction • Memories are not always what they seem. • Misinformation Effect – incorporating misleading information into one’s memory of an event • Elizabeth Loftus- leading researcher in misinformation effect, false memories and the reliability of eyewitness testimony • Can involve confabulation (filling in memory gaps by substituting memories from unrelated events)

Misinformation Effect Depiction of Accident Leading Question: About how fast were the cars going when they hit each other?

Misinformation Effect Leading Question: About how fast were the cars going when they smashed into each other?

Forgetting – Encoding Failure

Which is the Right Penny? AUTOMATIC ENCODING (From Nickerson & Adams, 1979)

Forgetting – Retrieval Failure • Retroactive Interference: recent information blocks out old information. • Proactive Interference: previous information blocks out new information. Getting a new bus number and forgetting old bus number. Calling your new girlfriend by old girlfriend’s name.

• Repression – Freud’s concept of the basic defense mechanism that banishes from consciousness anxiety arousing thoughts, feelings, and memories

Forgetting - Storage Decay • Even after encoding something well, we sometimes forget it. • Herman Ebbinghaus’ experiments with non-sense syllables – Showed the memory fades quickly, but then the speed at which it fades levels out.

Ebbinghaus’s Forgetting Curve

Types of Amnesia Clive Wearing • • Causes: Brain Damage, Shock, Repression, Stress and Illness Amnesia is forgetting produced by brain injury or trauma – Retrograde amnesia refers to problems with recall of information prior to a trauma – Anterograde amnesia refers to problems with recall of information after a trauma – 50 1 st dates trailer – Infantile Amnesia: Before 3 years old – Source amnesia-where did I hear or read that? ?