Associative Network Memory

Memory is never a literal recount of past experiences. Rather, it is dependent on the constructive processes present at the time of encoding that are subject to potential errors and distortions. Essentially, the constructive memory process functions by encoding the patterns of physical characteristics that are perceived by the individual, as well as the interpretive conceptual and semantic functions that act in response to the incoming

How is memory encoded and what methods can lead to greater recall? There have been many different models suggested for human memory and many different attempts at defining a specific method of encoding that will lead to greater recall. In this experiment subjects are asked to do a semantic task on a word related to them and an orthographic task in which they analyze the letter in the word. The results of the experiment indicate that the words which where encoded semantically and are related to the self have greater recall.

Memory refers to the persistence of learning in a state that can be revealed at a later time (Squire, 1987). A memory is a network of neocortical neurons and the connections that link them. That network is formed by experience as a result of the concurrent activation of neuronal ensembles that

Research has shown that there is “greater activation in the left inferior frontal and medial temporal lobes” (Stanford, 2006, p. 208) during the encoding of words which were later remembered as compared to those which were forgotten. The sensations perceived by sensory nerves are decoded in the hippocampus of the brain into a single experience (Mastin, 2010). The hippocampus analyses new information and compares and asssociates it with previously stored memory (Mastin, 2010). Human memory is associative in that new information can be remembered better if it can be associated to previously acquired, firmly consolidated information (Mastin, 2010). The various pieces of information are then stored in different parts of the brain (Mastin, 2010). Though the exact method by which this information is later identified and recalled has yet to be discovered, it is understood that ultra-short term sensory memory is converted into short term memory which can then later be consolidated into long term memory (Mastin, 2010).

Recall a time in your life, are you certain it happened, or do you think it happened because someone told you the story so many times that it became a part of your past memories. We rely on are memories to be true and complete but the truth is that what we may remember is not actually real. Memories are processed in are brains by encoding; making codes about what a specific object is, for example a dachshund has a long body with short legs, we encode this in are memories as the breed dachshund. After we encode this memory, we store it, and then we can retrieve the memory at a later time. For the brain to do the process of recording memories the brain must have the connections of the billions of neurons that the brain holds, it’s like a train,

In experiment 1, we manipulated the context in which interrelated events occur to be same or different, examining how increased similarity across episodes shape the structure of memory representations. It was hypothesized that overlapping contexts promote the reactivation of the prior knowledge during encoding, and therefore strengthen the connection between two memory representations and result in memory integration. In experiment 2, we sought to investigate the consequences of the establishment of an integrated network on other expressions of memory, such as the perceptual and semantic details for a specific encoding event. Our hypothesis of this experiment was that the formation of the integrated memory representations merges related memory traces and thereby can cause idiosyncratic detail

Your examples and the way you describes explicit and implicit memory greatly helped me to understand the meaning of both. However, your examples of context-dependant memory did confuse me. I'm not saying they are right or wrong, just that I was confused by them. A context-dependent memory is when memories are triggered by a certain thing. For example, say you were studying French beside a blue curtain. Every time you pass a blue curtain it would trigger memories of French words. Other than that great

Have you ever forgotten something that you wish you could remember? Or you're someone who puts something down in a “safe place” where you will remember where it's at then forget where that “safe place” was? Are you one of those people who everyone remembers something you said or did but you have no idea what they are talking about because you can't seem to remember it ever happening. You might just think that you have a bad memory but that isn’t the case. There’s actually no such thing as a having a “bad memory”. In your brain you have about one billion neurons which lead into forming about one thousand connections just for one neuron. So in the long run you have about a trillion connections for memories to go. You are

The research says we can be moved by music at a personal level, to the point that musical melodies evoke autobiographical information associated with it, and we get a strong ‘feeling of knowing’, especially if the music we heard is associated with our past. There seems to be a link between text and music, since we remember the titles of music we listen to better than recalling the melody by reading or hearing the title. In remembering vocals, we remember titles better than melodic cues. This can suggest that music is encoded in semantic memory like text – by the brain’s perceptual memory system, where meaning is encoded. Even if it is not directly related to semantic information, musical information can also be associated with associative memory.

Associative activation is ideas that can spread other ideas in your brain. When you hear a word your brain starts recalling memories of this word which in return will produce reactions, both of physical and mental awareness of this word. This is called associatively coherence, which means that an idea will make you have a sense of something because it fits with the associations that we already made around a certain product. It is here that we are learning that not only do we think with our brain but when our bodies react to an idea, it is also thinking as well. Ideas form links in the brain that are called associative memory, each idea is linked to many others, such as: Virus will be linked to a cold (which is called an effects link); Lime will be linked to green (which is demonstrated as a properties link); Banana will be linked to fruit (which is also known as a categories link). An idea that has been activated does not merely evoke one idea or reaction; it activates many which in turn activate others.

Since the availability of semantic information depends directly on episodic information, it is not clear that two types of memories are needed when one would probably be sufficient. Barsalou and Bower discuss specific ways in which particular processing episodes may affect the psychology of lexical semantics. To start with, a word can refer to different kinds of instances. "Car" can refer to cars with or without air conditioning. Consequently, the accessibility of "air conditioning" should depend on the type of car someone is used to. In general, properties of a concept not typically found for familiar referents may become CD through disuse.

Context-Dependent Memory is an improved recall of specific information when the context is present at both encoding and retreival (an individuals ability to recall a memory is greater because the same surroundings have been recreated from when the created the memory) e.g. retracing your steps to find a lost item. Some theories towards context dependent memory include: Context-dependency effects for memory recall are typically interpreted as showing that the characteristics of the surroundings are encoded as part of the memory trace and can be used to improve retrieval of information in the trace (Eich, 1980; Smith, 1988); a number of factors are thought to affect how contextual information interacts with the recall of memory, an analysis of the literature on environmental context-dependency memory by Smith and Vela (2001) infers that in cases where contextual information is not particularly prominent, the context-dependent effects on memory are reduced; Johnson et al's (1993) Source Monitoring Framework proposes that the ability of an individual to remember the source of an episode will affect the likelihood of that memory to be recalled. Therefore, in the case of context-dependent memory, this framework implies that the effects of context on memory may also be limited by cognitive factors such as the ability of an individuals to differentiate between separate

A person can distinguished between scenes they have already scene from one that they have not. However, people can distinguished a scene but is not able to tell a descriptive information whether it has been changed or not in a specific scene. Descriptive information can lead to schema consistent or inconsistent information to be processed into the memory. Dual-Coding theory states that a person has verbal associations and visual imagery and that given a person both of these encoding enhance memory and have a higher recall rate. Different methods have been used to enhance memory such imagery and mnemonic devices. Memory plays an essential part of everyday life; several factors can effect or influence the way a person remembers a memory.

Associationism is one of the oldest and most commonly held theories of thought. It explains that memory depends on the formation of linkages between elements such as events, sensations or ideas, and by remembering or experiencing one member of the elements will trigger a memory or anticipation of the other. As J.R. Anderson and G.H. Bower wrote in the book “Human Associative Memory”:

Memory makes us. It is, to an extent, a collection of unique and personal experiences that we, as individuals, have amassed over our lifetime. It is what connects us to our past and what shapes our present and the future. If we are unable remember the what, when, where, and who of our everyday lives, our level of functioning would be greatly impacted. Memory is defined as or recognized as the “sum or total of what we remember.” Memory provides us the ability to learn and adjust to or from prior experiences. In addition, memory or our ability to remember plays an integral role in the building and sustaining of relationships. Additionally, memory is also a process; it is how we internalize and store our external environment and experiences. It entails the capacity to remember past experiences, and the process of recalling previous experiences, information, impressions, habits and skills to awareness. It is the storage of materials learned and/or retained from our experiences. This fact is demonstrated by the modification, adjustment and/or adaptation of structure or behavior. Furthermore, we as individuals, envision thoughts and ideas of the present through short-term memory, or in our working memory, we warehouse past experiences and learned values in long-term memory, also referred to as episodic or semantic memory. Most importantly, memory is malleable and it is intimately linked to our sense of identity and where we believe we belong in the world.