How your Memory Works? To improve our memory and retrieval capacity, it's helpful to understand how we remember.

What is memory? Memory is the mental process of recalling information that you have learned or experienced. It can be short-term or long-term.

Short-term memory (STM) STM is characterized by a limited capacity of up to seven chunks of independent information; the brief duration of these items usually. last within 20 seconds The longer a memory stayed in STM and of well-organized, the more likely it was to be placed into LTM; In this process of organization, the meaningfulness or emotional content of an item may play a crucial role in its retention into LTM.

Long-term memory (LTM) LTM provides the framework to which we attach new knowledge. It allows information to be stored for extended periods of time and the limits of its capacity are not known.

Stages of memory Our brains go through the following stages of memory: Acquisition New information enters your brain along pathways between neurons in the appropriate area of the brain. Here, attention pay the key role in receiving and encoding the information. Consolidation If you’ve paid attention well enough to encode new information in your brain, your brain sends a signal to store the information as long-term memory. It’s more easily to retain the info if it’s related to something you already know, or if it stimulates an emotional response. Retrieval In recalling information, your brain has to activate the same pattern of cells it used to store it. The more frequently you work the information, the easier it is to retrieve it.

Guidelines to improve your memory

Keep a motivated mind and positive attitude Keep a motivated mind and positive attitude. Tell yourself that you want to learn what you need to remember, and that you can learn and remember it. Pay attention. You can’t remember something if you never learned it, and you can’t learn something if you don’t pay enough attention to it. No multitasking when you need to concentrate.

Acquire knowledge with your preferable learning style. Most people are visual learners; they learn best by seeing what it is they have to know. Auditory learners who learn better by listening. They might benefit by recording information they need and listening to it until they remember it.

Make use of different senses to acquire the knowledge. If you’re a visual learner, read out loud what you want to remember. If you can recite it rhythmically, even better. Re-writing information can help enhancing ones’ memory for kinesthetic learners; try to relate information to colors, textures, smells and tastes.

Relate information to what prior knowledge Relate information to what prior knowledge. Connect new data to information you already know. Understand and Organize information. Take your own notes and reorganize them into categories. Make use of words and pictures to process the information. Focus on understanding basic concepts rather than memorizing isolated details.  

Rehearse and over-learn information periodically. Review what you’ve learned the same day you learn it, and then review them periodically. Spacing your studies is more effective than “cramming.” Over-learn the materials / information can lessen your anxiety during examinations.

Reference http://www.helpguide.org/life/improving_memory.htm http://www.sos.net/~donclark/hrd/learning/memory.html