Improving Memory Essay example

Outline and evaluate research in to the duration, capacity and encoding information in short term memory.

Only the data that catches our attention or something we only need to know for a minute goes into short-term memory. Short-term memory is stored in the brain for about half a minute. Short-term storage is small; it can hold about seven independent items at one time, an example being "carry" numbers in math.Information that may help us in the future will go into long-term memory, where it can last a lifetime.Long-term memory involves three processes: encoding, storage and retrieval.

Memory is the retention of information over time and it changes through our lifespan, from infancy through adulthood (Santrock 218). There are two types of memory, explicit and implicit.

There are 3 necessary steps/types that are crucial to forming a lasting memory. Step 1: sensory memory, step 2: short-term memory, and step 3: long-term memory. These are the three types of memory that are needed to build a lasting memory. Sensory memory is the shortest memory in the shortest- term memory element.One of the types of memory allows you to remember information through the 5 senses. The brain will remember anything that happened from 1 second to 60 seconds using the sensory part of your memory. An example of sensory memory is: I got hit in the head with a purple yo-yo. After sensory memory comes the short-term memory. Short-term memory acts as a “scratch- pad” for temporary recall. Short- term memory holds small amounts of information. Anything something that took place in front of your eyes for longer than 60 seconds, the short-term memory section of the brain will remember it. This section of your brain will allow you to recall that information in the next few hours or days. An example of short-term memory is: time on the clock 10 minutes ago. Lastly, comes long– term memory. Long- term memory, is used to store information of a set time

Short term memory refers to a memory system that stores a limited amount of information in conscious awareness for a brief period of time, (McLeod, 2007). Short term memory is integral to cognitive activities such as reading, comprehension & problem solving & language as without it we would be unable to recall the beginning of a sentence by the time we reach the end of it, nor e.g. perform simple mental mathematical calculations (Hedden,et al, 2004). Interestingly because language , reading and problem solving occur sequentially (Hedden,et al, 2004) , information stored in short term memory is stored and retrieved sequentially.( McLeod, 2007) for example, when asked to recall the 3rd digit in a numeric sequence, one would go through the sequence in the order that it was heard in order to retrieve the 3rd digit in a numerical sequence, one would go through the sequence in the order that it was heard to retrieve the 3rd digit.

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).

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).

In general our long-term memory is relatively more stable than short-term memory “Because STM is an active, conscious process, limited in both duration and capacity, it is easily disrupted by external events, as is clear every time we become distracted. LTM, on the other hand, is not easily disrupted. If you remember the capital of Denmark today, you are still likely to know it next month, next year, maybe even next decade” (LeFrancois, 2011, p. 5.2). In most cases, what we are able to learn now, can be remembered through repetition, reflection, and word association for decades to come. Although our memory continues to grow as we learn more, as we grow older we still process and retain new information, however, it just takes allot longer to learn as well as retrieve new information from memory. “Memory is involved in all aspects of human functioning. In fact, it is very difficult to separate memory and learning, so closely are they linked. Learning is a change in behavior that results from experience; and, in a sense, memory is the effect of experience. More precisely, it is the system that allows us to retain and retrieve the effects of experience. There will be no evidence of learning without something having happened in memory; by the same token, something happening in memory implies learning” (LeFrancois, 2011, p. 5.1).

Steve Jobs once said, "You and I have memories longer he road that stretches out ahead". The brain is so detailed and holds so much information in every little area. There are so many things happening in the brain at once, and one of the most fascinating things would be memory. The memory has various abilities that make it so complex, including the memory system, how it functions, and memory retrieval, along with the capacity to memorize certain ideas easier

The short-term memory is the lead to our long lasting remembers. Short-term memory is the second stage in the memory processing (Huffman). The short-term memory is the part of the memory that temporarily stores and processes information from the sensory memory and holds it until it decides if the information will be sent to the third stage or long-term memory (Huffman). The short-term memory stores a mixture of perceptual analyses information (Huffman). The short-term memory works in different ways to increase its small capacity; it uses rehearsal and chunking to be able to remember more

The generally accepted classification of memory is based on how long you can remember an item or experience (memory retention), and identifies three types of memory: sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory

Having short term memory is an important thing to have. Without short term memory we wouldn’t be able to recall things from only moments before. Short Term Memory is the ability to recall things from moments to days before. Imagine having a conversation with someone and then as soon as your attention is redirected you forget what you’ve just been told.

In this system there are three separate components that combine to enable us to process memories. These three components of memory are sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory (Reisberg, 2013). Of the three, sensory memory has the shortest time-span in our memory lasting roughly 300 milliseconds. The purpose of the sensory memory is to interpret the sensations coming to the body, and then transfer them to short term if there is enough attention placed on them (Reisberg, 2013). Short-term memory has a longer time-span in which it can be remembered. In short term memory we are able to remember 7 items +/- 2. These items can be remembered for up to a minute and that length of time can be increased if they are rehearsed. Rehearsal allows memories to be consolidated and be placed in long-term memory where they can be later retrieved and placed in working memory. Long term-memory are memories that can be retrieved with a hint or cue (Reisberg, 2013)

Memory is defined as "the persistence of learning over time through the storage and retrieval of information." Our memory can be compared to a computer's information processing system. To remember an event we need to get information into our brain which is encoding, store the information and then be able to retrieve it. The three-stage processing model of Richard Atkinson and Richard Shiffrin suggests that we record information that we want to remember first as a fleeting sensory memory and then it is processed into a short term memory bin where we encode it ( pay attention to encode important or novel stimuli) for long-term memory and later retrieval. The premise for the three step process is that we are unable to focus on too much