MEMORY

MEMORY

Memory: is a mental ability by which sensations, impression and ideas
are recalled. Without memory, we will living with principle of (here and now).

Physiological aspect:

Memory areas present in the hippocampus in the limbic system ,in association with thalamic regains.

Hippocampus plays role in memory ,removing of hippocampus will effect the memory of new events ,but it does not affect long term memory .

Steps of memory process:

Memory depends on three sequential processes : encoding , storage, retrieval

Encoding: Getting information into memory 1-

Encoding: Is the process of perceiving information and bringing it into the memory system .Encoding is not simply copying information directly from outside world in to the brain .Rather ,the process is properly conceived as recoding ,or converting information r from one form to another .The human visual system provides an example of how information can change in forms. Light from the outside world enters the eye in the form of waves of electromagnetic radiation .the retina of the eye converts this radiation to bio electrical signals that are brain interprets as visual images .Similarly ,when people encode information into memory ,they convert it from one form to another to help them remember it later .For example ,a simple digit ,such as 7 ,can be recorded in many ways :as the word seven ,the roman numeral VII ,a prime number ,the square root of 49 ,and so one .
Recoding is routine process in memory .Each of us has a unique background and set of experiences that help us in learning new information .

2-Storage:Maintaining information in memory

Storage: Involves retention the encoded information in the memory over time .Three types of memory storages: sensory, short _term ,and long term memory

3-Retrieval . Getting information out of memory :

Retrieval refers to the processes involved in using stored information . Whenever people successfully recall a prior experience ,they most have encoded ,stored and retrieved information about the experience ..On the other hand, memory failure- for example ,forgetting an important fact reflects breakdown in one of these stages in memory .

Two main classes of retrieval processes :explicit memory and implicit memory :

A- Explicit memory

Explicit memory refers to the deliberate ,conscious recollection of facts and past experiences .If someone asked you to recall everything you did yesterday ,this task would require explicit memory process . To diagnostic the failure in explicit memory , there are two basic types of tests :recall tests and recognition tests .

B- Implicit memory

Implicit memory refers to using stored information without trying to retrieve it .People often retain and use prior experiences without realizing
It .for example ,suppose that the word super is not a part of your normal working vocabulary ,and one day you hear the word used in a conversation .A day later you find yourself using the word in conversation and wonder why .The earlier exposure to the word primed you to retrieve it automatically in the right situation without intending to do so .


Types of memory

Human memory behaves as it's organized into three kinds:

Sensory memory Short-term memory- long-memory

MEMORY

Rehearsal



A-Sensory memory:

Sensory memory refers to the initial ,momentary recording of information in our sensory system .When sensation strike our eyes ,they stay briefly in the visual system .This kind of sensory memory is called iconic memory and refers to the usually brief visual persistence of information as it is being interpreted by the visual system .Echoic memory is the name applied to the same phenomenon in the auditory system :the brief mental echo that persists after information has been heard .Similar systems are assumed to exist for other sensory system (touch ,taste ,and smell),although researchers have studied these senses less thoroughly
Sensory memory systems typically function outside of awareness and store information for only a very short time . Iconic memory seems to last less than second. Echoic memory probably lasts a bit longer ,estimates range up to three or four seconds

B:Short term memory (S.T.M); working memory:

Psychologists used the term short term memory (STR) to refer to the ability to hold information in mind over a brief period of time.
We can keep information circulating in working memory by rehearsing it. For example ,suppose you look up a telephone number in a directory .You can hold the number in memory almost indefinitely by saying it over and over to yourself . But if something distracts you for a moment ,you may quickly lose it and have to look it up again .Forgetting can occur rapidly from working memory. In a typical experiment , people are presented with a series of words, one every few seconds. Most people remember the words at the beginning and end of the series better than those in the middle .This phenomenon is called the serial position effect because the change of recalling an item is related to its position in the series


Working memory has a basic limitation :

1:It can hold only a limited amount of information at one time (memory span)

2:Studies have also shown that working memory changes with age .
As children grow older ,there working memory capacity increase .
Working memory declines in old age and in some types of brain diseases ,such as Alzheimer 's disease.

3:Working memory capacity is correlated with intelligence (as measured by intelligence tests ).This correlation has led some psychologist to argue that working memory abilities are essentially to those lie under general intelligence

C:Long term memory (L.T.M).

Which receives information that has been selected for more permanent storage .IT has a large capacity and holds information for long time ,some are processed and stored according to (verbal)such as meaning ,sound or words; others according to vision(visual).

Psychologists have different theories about how information enters long- term memory:

1- The traditional view is that information enters short-term memory and, depending on how it is processed, may then transfer to long-term memory.
2- Another view is that short-term memory and long term memory are arranged in a parallel rather than sequential fashion. That is, information may be registered at the same time in the two systems.

There are three long term memory systems :episodic, semantic, and procedural memory

1- Episodic memory:
- Episodic memory refers to memories of specific episodes events in one's life and what most think as memory .Episodic memories are connected with a specific time and place (.If you were asked to recount everything you did yesterday ,you would rely on- episodic memory to recall the events) .Similarly ,you would draw on- episodic memory to describe a family vacation .So, episodic memory contains the personal ,autobiographical details of our lives.


2- Semantic memory:
Semantic memory refers to our general knowledge of the world and all of the facts we know .(e.g chemical symbol for salt NaCl).Semantic memories are not tied to the particular time and place.
A-Semantic memory differs from episodic memory ,which is closely related to time and place .
B- Semantic memory also seems to have a different neural basis than episodic memory .Brain- damaged patients who have great difficulties remembering their own recent personal experiences often can access their permanent knowledge quite readily, Thus episodic memory and semantic memory seem to represent independent capacities .

3-Procedural memory:

Procedural memory refers to the skills that humans have .Riding a bicycle ,swimming ,and hitting a baseball are examples of procedural memory.

Kinds of remembering:

1 .Recognition: the subject is present with the correct answer, usually as one of a number of available answers. The subject then responds by selecting the answer , which he thinks, it is correct

2.Recall:In recall ,a minimum cue statement or question is presented and the subject is required to supply additional information (correct or incorrect)

3.Relerarning:in some situations, subjects may have to relearn materials they have learned before. The amount of time or the number of trails required for relearning may then be compared to the amount of time or number of trails required for original learning.

Improving memory:

1.chunking and memory span :for most of us ,the capacity of short term memory cannot be increased beyond( 7+_2)chunks, However ,we can enlarge the size of a chunks by use recording system e.g a familiar date or the age of some person or object (3492as 3:49.2).

2. Imagery and Encoding :the mental images turn out to be particularly useful for connecting pairs of unrelated items, and for this reason imagery is the major ingredient in many mnemonic systems .


3. Elaboration and Encoding :The more we elaborate items, the more we can subsequently recall or organize them. The questions about the causes and consequences of an event are particularly effective elaborations because each question set up a meaningful connection to the event .

4.orgnization:We know that organization during encoding improves subsequent retrieval .This principle can be put to great practical use :we are capable of storing and retrieving massive amount of information if only organize it(e.g. memorize lists of unrelated words by organizing the words in each list into a story ).

5. PQRST Method :One of the best known techniques for improving memory .It is intended to improve student's ability to study and remember material presented in textbook. It involves :P=Preview ,head lines of topics. Q= Questions themselves ,R= Read the answer ,S=Self performance ,T=Test after the entire chapter.

Types of forgetting:

1.Forgetting as failure retrieve :the acquisition of material has taken place ,but there is poor organization in storage ,poor prompting.

2.Forgetting as fading (DECAY)of the memory trace :the loss of retention occurs because of the oldish of learned materials.

3. Forgetting as distortion of the memory trace :When inaccurate labels are provided for learned materials, distorted memories may result .

4.Motiveted forgetting :Some forgetting comes to pass because a person wishes to forget something .According to freud ,this happened as one of ego defense mechanisms .

5. Forgetting as a result of interference :The loss of retention result from interference from other materials. This has been studied with what are known as proactive and retroactive inhibition ,

INCOMING

(SENSORYMEMORY)


SHORT TERM MEMORY
(STM)

SUCCESSFULY

encoded

LONG TERM MEMORY

(LTM)

forgetting