How Human Memories Work

“Information flows from the outside world through our sight, hearing smelling, tasting and touch sensors. Memory is simply ways we store and recall things we 've sensed.” When we recall memories, the original neuron path that we used to sense the experience that we are recalling is refined, and the connection is made stronger. Sensory information in stored for only a few seconds in the cortex of the brain. This information can then progress to short-term memory, and then long-term memory, depending on the importance of the information received.

The part of the brain that is in charge of memory is called the hippocampus, which is part of the cerebral cortex. The cerebral cortex is in charge of thinking, problem solving, and many different kinds of language skills. People that have a problem with their hippocampus can have trouble remembering new details they have taken in. There are also many different parts of the hippocampus that apply directly to the memory. These parts include short-term memory, long-term memory, sensory memory, and the constructive processes. Short-term memory is the information that stays in your brain only when you are thinking about it, about 20 to 30 seconds. After this, it is most likely forgotten. Long-term memory is when your hippocampus keeps track of facts you learn, ideas you have, and experiences. Even when people stop thinking about these things, the memory can last a lifetime. Another part of the hippocampus, sensory memory, remembers information only for one or two seconds. The brain creates a mental image that disappears when you stop directly thinking about a particular thing. The last part of the hippocampus is the constructive processes. Constructive processes are memories that your brain makes up in order to make sense of a detail in which you only remember some of the details. The few details that the brain remembers are combined with other small details that your brain adds in order for it to

During recall, the brain "replays" a pattern of neural activity that was originally generated in response to a particular event, echoing the brain's perception of the real event. In fact, there is no real solid distinction between the act of remembering and the act of

One can never forget their first kindergarten field trip, or the way your grandma’s house smells, your favorite song, or your first love, but how do we store and remember so many memories throughout our lifespan, in our brain? A memory is a “faculty by which the mind stores and remembers information”, but how? Memories are stored in direct braincells and brain structures, which allow us to remember our memories. Some memories can depend on one single molecule for their life long remembrance, and replay of episodes. Memories are stored in two ways, short term memory and long-term memory. These three different stages of memory allow us to take in and handle each little thing we learn in just one day. They keep us sane.

Memory in the human brain is a complex process which is easier understood by the use of theoretical constructs. Memories begin as sensory stimuli which become sensory memory which only last about one second, from there it moves into working memory which lasts for about twenty to thirty seconds and is used to process information. Within working memory there are a few separate processes, the central executive which directs attention, the episodic buffer which is a secondary storage lasting ten to twenty seconds, this area communicates with long term memory as well as the central executive. The visuospatial sketchpad which is used to visualise visual and spacial

So, what does all this have to do with amnesia? Well, I'm glad you asked. Information flows in through the middle of our brain and branches out like a tree. Before that information goes to different areas, it goes through a channeling/filter system. In this regard, the brain is like a mailroom - this information goes into this box, and that letter goes into that box. (4). In order for short-term memory to become long-term memory, it must go through a process know as consolidation. During consolidation, short-term memory is repeatedly activated - so much that certain chemical and physical changes occur in the brain, permanently "embedding" the memory for long- term access. It is believed that consolidation takes place in the hippocampi, located in the temporal-lobe regions of the brain. Medical research indicates that it is the frontal and temporal lobes that most often damaged during head injury. (3).

In order to understand why, I need to understand how. How are memories retrieved or, in my case, forgotten? As I explained earlier, long-term memories are stored in the cerebral cortex of the brain while the short-term memories, as long as they’re repeated and not replaced with new memories, are retained in the prefrontal cortex. In order to use these memories, there has to be a process to retrieve them because it’s impossible to use something that you don’t have. In order to recall memories, they need to be actively encoded into our working memory, meaning that they need to be copied from specific storage locations into the working memory where they can be used. The more these memories have been encoded and structured, the easier they are to retrieve. The retrieval of information is divided into two subcategories which are recall and recognition. Recall, or actively constructing the information, requires the activation of all neurons which are involved in the memory. With recognition, or the determination of whether you have encountered something before, if a part of an object activates a piece of the neural network concerned, it may be enough to activate the entire neural network (Dubuc, 2002). When you encode a memory, the hippocampus, a central part of the brain involved in memory function, takes a snapshot which is preserved in a set of neurons which can be activated later, says Kenneth

Some scientists believe that parts of long term memory are permanent while others will eventually weaken over time. (3) Long term memory can be divided into three sections: procedural memory, declarative memory, and remote memory. Procedural memory includes motor skills such as learning how to ride a bike or how to drive a car. "Such memories are slow to acquire but more resistant to change or loss." (4) Declarative memory is used to remember facts, such as names, dates and places. It is easy to learn but also easy to lose. Finally there is episodic memory, which is the record of events that a person stores throughout his or her experience. Recent studies show that these events, as soon as they occur, are sent to a temporary part of the brain called the hippocampus, and that over time they are moved to the neocortex for permanent storage. (5).

The two concepts that I resonated with are Memory and the Psychodynamic theory. Starting with the Psychodynamic theory is an approach to psychology that studies the psychological forces underlying human behavior, feelings, and emotions, and how they may relate to early childhood experience. This theory is most closely associated with the work of Sigmund Freud, and with psychoanalysis, a type of psychotherapy that attempts to explore the patient’s unconscious thoughts and emotions so that the person is better able to understand him or herself. The second one is Memory; understanding how memory works will help you improves your memory. Which is an essential key to attaining knowledge. Memory is one of the important cognitive processes. Memory involves remembering and forgetting. I chose the two concepts because throughout the class they stood out to the most. Understanding the conscious, subconscious mind and also memory. I’m interested in understanding the human behavior.

The brain processes memory in three stages. Think of your brain like a computer. The first stage is called encoding. The brain records usable information in your memory. The second stage is storage. The brain uses that recordable information and stores it to be used later. The final stage is retrieval. The brain the recovers that recordable information that was stored to use at a later date.

Most of us hold the view that “memory is much like a tape recorder or video recorder, holding a perfectly accurate record of what has been experienced. Nothing could be further from the truth” (Thompson and Madigan 6). Memory is amazing; however, the human “memory system is far from perfect,” but it is most certainly adequate (Mlodinow 63). For the most part, it can be described as being accurate and efficient. “We may not intentionally change the details of our memories, but the process of remembering changes our memories. “Just as editing on a computer usually overwrites the original file, revisiting an event can revise your memory” (Kowalski 34).

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.

In film, flashbacks are interruptions that take the narrative back in time from the current point in the story. They are often used to provide background and context to recount current events of a narrative filling in crucial backstories. In its basic form, the flashback is introduced when a presented image dissolves to another image of the past, which can be either as “a story-being-told or a subjective memory.” (Turim, pg. 1) For example, dream sequences and memories are methods used to present flashbacks. They become visual representation to the audience as an act of remembering past experiences of reality. Imagination also plays an important role in shaping the mind and the story similar to memories and the formation of reality. Imagination is usually integrated into animation as an artistic creation to express the artists’ ideas or memory. But where does the use of imagination and memories stop? By examining memory represented in animation and film, through Bartlett’s theory of schema, we can see how the film develops an active organized method to recognize reality through memory. This paper is examining five films based on the theme of memory, thus arguing that imagination does not distorted memory in animation, but create a role as a form of embellishment for the film to help memory.

The two main emotional factors that influence memory and forgetting are flashbulb and repression. A flashbulb memory is a memory that has a high emotional significance they are accurate and long lasting. It is almost a photographic memory of a particularly emotional event that is imprinted on your mind. For example an event such as September the 11th, people can remember things such as how they heard it happened, what clothes they were wearing and who they were with very clearly. This is because it was such a sudden emotional impact when they heard it that it got imprinted in their memory. Repression is an emotional factor in forgetting. It is that we forget because we have great anxiety about certain memories. This is because certain

Memory process is a cycle your memories go through in order to determine if they are long term or short term and attaches emotion to those memories. The first step is called encoding, encoding is the translation of information into a form in which it can be used. The next step is storage, storage is the maintenance of the encoded information over a period of time, this is very similar to a computer. This is where the hippocampus comes in, the hippocampus is the part of the brain where the emotions in Inside Out were located. The hippocampus determines if memories are long term or short term and attaches emotion to the memory, but if the hippocampus isn’t paying attention, it may store that memory incorrectly and make it more difficult to retrieve from