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Memory Essay

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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 …show more content…

The amount remembered depends on the time-spent learning. Even after we learn material/names, additional rehearsal increases retention. For novel verbal information, practice- effortful processing- does indeed improve our memory. We also retain information better when our rehearsal is distributed over a period of time, known as "spacing effect." People who have experienced "serial position effect" strengthen the benefits of rehearsal. When shown a list of words/names and then immediately asked to recall the items in any order, they struggle to recall the list. They remember of the first and last words/names better than those in the middle. This is probably due to the fact that the last names/ items are still in short-term memory; people briefly recall them especially quickly and well. But after a delay, after they shift their attention from the last names/items their recall is best for the first names/items. We must remember that our memory system processes information not just by repetitive rehearsal but also by encoding its significant features.

Strategies and devices that help us remember information that requires effortful processing are: encoding its meaning, visualizing, and mentally organizing the

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