Memory Memory is the retention of information over time. ENCODING Getting information into memory STORAGE Retaining information over time RETRIEVAL Taking information out of storage

The Basic Stages of Memory The Modal Memory Model

Short-Term Memory Components of Working Memory  Phonological loop Encodes information (from reading, speaking, or repeating words to memorize them  Visuospatial sketchpad Processes information (e.g., the location and features of objects)  Central executive Controls the interactions between the subsystems and long-term memory

storage Sensory store

storage Sensory store  working STM

storage Sensory store  working STM  LTM

storage Sensory store  working STM  LTM Strategies for actively using WSTM –Rehearsal –Chunking

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HOW DID THEY DO IT? Input: … … “I said a flat mile, a good high school mile” 799 “I said 79 was an age, almost 80” 810 “And 8:10 was a 2-mile, and I said it was a really fast two mile” 6938 “Then this was a 10-mile, it was up there, a really slow 10-mile”.

Types of memory

The “seven sins” of memory Transience Absent-mindedness Blocking Misattribution Suggestibility Bias Persistence Weakening or loss Breakdown of attention Thwarted memory search Assigning to wrong source Implanted by a leading question Editing and rewriting Repeated recall of disturbing information After Schacter (2001)

“Seven Sins of Memory” First 3: sins of omission Next 3: memory is present, but wrong Final sin: unwanted memories

1 st Sin Transcience Memories become decreasingly accessible over time Interference –Retroactive interference –Proactive interference e.g. No longer remembering 3 rd grade teachers name at age 50

2 nd Sin Absentmindedness Lapses of attention that result in memory failure.

3 rd Sin Blocking Information that has not faded out of memory but is temporarily inaccessible

3 rd Sin Blocking Information that has not faded out of memory but is temporarily inaccessible Ex. That word on the tip of your tongue you just can not remember to save your life

4 th Sin Misattribution  Assigning memory/idea to the wrong source –Source memory Late to develop –False recognition Associative connections –Historical overlap –Serious implications: eyewitness testimony

5 th Sin Suggestibility Implanted memories that are produced by leading questions or suggestions e.g. “Didn’t Joe break up with you with a post-it note?” Rare cases people will recall traumatic events that never happened to them

6 th Sin Bias  Distorting influences of present information to memory recollection. –Consistency bias –Change bias –Egocentric bias Current knowledge and beliefs can skew our memories “I DID NOT vote Bush for President!”

7 th Sin Persistence Unwanted memories of difficult or traumatic experiences that can not be forgotten In extreme cases it changes the perception of their world- i.e. war veterans

Memory CONSTRUCTING IMAGES DEEP PROCESSING Deeper processing, better memory REHEARSAL Consistent repetition of information over time ELABORATION Adds to distinctiveness ORGANIZATION ENCODING ATTENTON Concentrate and Focus 34

Memory “Getting People to Pay Attention” Focus on active learning and be aware of individual differences Encourage attention and minimize distraction Use cues and gestures for important material Be interesting Use media and technology to make learning enjoyable 35

Memory Sensory Memory Retains information for an instant Short-Term Memory Limited capacity; retain for 30 seconds without rehearsal Long-Term Unlimited capacity over a long Memory period of time Memory’s Time Frames 36

Memory Atkinson and Shiffrin’s Theory

Memory Representing Information in Memory -Nodes stand for labels and concepts -Network is irregular and distorted -Long-term searches are not exact -Retrieved information is fit into an existing formation (schema) -Schemas: Concepts, knowledge, or information about events that already exist in the mind and influence the way we encode Schema TheoriesNetwork Theories

Memory Retrieval and Forgetting Retrieval Recognition: identify learned information, as in multiple choice Serial position: recall better at the beginning and end of list Recall: previously learned info., as in fill-in-the-blank Specificity: associations form cues Primacy effect: items at the beginning remembered best

Memory Retrieval and Forgetting Cue Dependent Forgetting Interference Theory Decay Theory Caused by a lack of retrieval cues Other information (new or old) gets in the way of what we are trying to remember Passage of time allows “memory trace” to disintegrate

The Information-Processing Approach 41 Expertise Acquiring Expertise Expertise and Learning Expertise and Teaching

Expertise and Learning 1. Have superior recall, use “chunking” of information 2. Organize around important ideas and concepts 3. Demonstrate effortless retrieval by taking the time to formulate a plan 4. Are flexible rather than having a rigid, fixed routine 5. Though talented, develop learning and study strategies - Spread out learning Practice 42 Experts...

Principles for Remembering It is very important that you have an interest in what you learn. Pay attention or you won’t learn anything! Organize the information. Practice what you have learned & organized.

Memory Aids/Methods There are many types of memory aids/ methods that help you remember things, e.g.: 1.Diary 2.Memos 3.Turning numbers into letters 4.Making notes 5.Rote rehearsal. However, some are effective and some are not so effective.

Effective Less Effective Extensive recoding Link-word method Inductive, concept attainment method Method of Loci Simple rehearsal Rote method Tutoring & lecturing

Mnemonics The following slides introduces some mnemonics for enhancing remembering. Mnemonics are: Techniques for helping us to remember. It is the connecting of two ideas, with the second one triggering yet another one, and so on. It is based on the idea of making information meaningful by relating it to what you know.

Keyword Method Select one word to represent a longer thought or several subordinate thoughts. 1.Generate your own keywords. 2.Construct an image between the keyword & the word to learn. 3.Keyword word to learn. 4.Keywords should be visualizable. 5.Keywords should be interacting. image

Keyword Method (example) Word to learn: persuade Keyword: Picture : to learn keyword A woman is being persuaded to buy a purse. purse

Keyword Method (example) This example relies both on rhyme or sound & imagery Spanish word to learn: lapiz (keyword) pencil (meaning of lapiz) trapeze

Keyword Method (example) Spanish word patio (pronounced pot-o) meaning duck patio duck pot

Keyword Method (example) French word pere sounds pear, & it means father. Generate images of father by using the keyword pear

Pegword Method 1.First memorize a set of objects rhyming with integer names. 2.Then generate an of each item to be learned. 3.Link the of the item to learn to the corresponding of the object. 4. Give it a meaning (use picture). image

Pegword Method (examples) Integers-Objects ImageTo Learn Image One-bun Two-shoe Three-tree Four-door Five-hive Six-sticks Seven-heaven Eight-gate Nine-wine Ten-hen waitress coat

Method of Loci (Places) Good for remembering events in a particular order. 1.Construct a sentimental map of your home/ surrounding area. 3.Place the things in these loci. 4.Walk down the street to pick up the things. 5.No more than one item in one place. 6.Places should not be too much alike.

Method of Loci (example step 1) MacDonald Barber Shop Fruit Vendor Drug Store Pet Shop HK Bank China Bank Florist Bakery ParkHome

Method of Loci (example step 2) public recognition privileges extra marks extrinsic reward praise see parents see principal detention copy work reprimand + - Reinforcement

Acronym Remember words by forming one word to represent all of the words. Word formed on the basis of the first letters. POLKA P – pegword O – organizational scheme L – loci K – keyword A – acronym

Acrostics Construct a sentence to remember a sequence of objects. First letter of each word represents the first letter of the object. My Very Educated Mother Just Served Us Nine Pizzas = Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto

Acrostics (example) Biological groupings used in taxonomy King Phillip called out fifty good soldiers. i h l r a e p n y a d m n e g l s e i u c d u s r l s i o m y e m s

Acrostics (examples) Physics Sober Physicists Don't Find Giraffes In Kitchens. ~The orbital names for electrons (SPDFGIK). Computer Science All People in Saskatchewan Turned NDP. ~ The OSI model: Application, Presentation, Session, Transport, Network, Data Link, Physical

Rhymes Make a rhyme to remember information. E.g. Black & Yellow, Kill a Fellow Black & Red, Venom Lack

Ridiculous Association/ Image Bizarreness This method is to remember things by associating objects with bizarre or ridiculous images. Association is enhanced if the image is vivid, ridiculous, impossible, or illogical. Make the associations interactive, such as rule of substitution out-of-proportion rule rule of exaggeration e.g. The dog rode the bicycle down the street.

Imagery Representation Good readers respond to text by constructing images of the meanings conveyed by the text. This method requires making mental pictures of material. No intentional transformation of content is applied here. e.g. “The king led the elves through the driving rain storm.” – form in your mind the actions and the scene of the sentence.

Memory Strategies Other than mnemonics, there are memory strategies that are useful for remembering. The slides below differentiate the strategies into 2 categories: Elaboration & Organization

Elaboration Note taking ~ construct meaningful paraphrases of important ideas ~ integrate new & old information in personally meaningful way

Story Grammar Who is the main character? Where and when did the story take place? What did the main characters do? How did the story end? How did the main character feel?

PQ4R 1.Preview. Survey headings. 2.Question. Ask yourself as you read. 3.Read. Read the material. 4.Reflect. Make connections to prior know. 5.Recite. Test your memory of the text. 6.Review. Reread portions you don’t understand or remember.

Self-questioning “How does this information relate to what the author discusses in the preceding section?” ~(synthesis) “How can this be applied in a scholarly setting?” ~(application)

Organizing Classifying /Grouping girl heart robin purple finger flute blue organ man hawk green lung eagle child piano  green man piano heart eagle blue girl flute lung hawk purple child organ finger robin

Concept Mapping ~ Diagram concepts relationships ~ Identify important concepts & specify their interrelationship

Major Contrast of Strategies Less Effective Techniques are those that rely on simple rehearsal of material. More Effective Techniques are those that require: ~ extensive recoding, and ~ relating of new content to other knowledge.

Strategies for Improving Memory Pay attention Make sure you understand (Extensive) encoding Make associations (old & new) Impose organizations Involve all senses

Strategies for Improving Memory Practice and d istribute learning (spread out practicing over days) Over-learn (episodic-semantic) Get some sleep (no alcohol or caffeine after 7pm) Use verbal Mnemonics Use visual imagery Diet

Strategies for Improving Memory Avoid stress Exercise (increases the formation of new neurons in the hippocampus and better memory) Fasting (ghrelin) Routine Mental focus (remove distractions) Drugs

Ghrelin Hormone released by fasted stomach and travels in the blood stream to the brain Acts distantly in hippocampus on specific receptors promotes long-term potentiation higher synaptic density in the CA1 region ghrelin improved memory performance in a dose-dependent manner. Performance was improved 20–30% at the highest dose, effectively turning C-grade mice into straight-A students Aged SAMP8 mice—a model for Alzheimer's disease—also showed improved memory performance with ghrelin dosing, and the authors propose ghrelin analogues as potential treatments for memory loss. Of course, over-eating and weight gain would be potential side effects.

Mnemonic Devices Mnemonic (from the Greek for “memory”)—memory-improvement technique based on encoding items in a special way –Method of loci—imagining the different pieces of information as rooms within a house –Peg-word—rhyming words with position on a list (one in a bun, etc.) –Substitute word—i.e., occipital—ox sip it all –Word associations—i.e., Roy G. Biv, etc.

retrieval cues Hints Semantic association Historic association Emotional state association Smells and sounds Psychological/physical state association –Encoding specificity principle –State-dependent learning

memory enhancing drugs Companies compete to find ways to improve memory –increase NMDA/AMPA for LTP –Ghrelin –Amphetamines, (ADHD) –Acetylcholinesterase Inhibitors –Chocolate (dopamine) If they discover them, should they be made available to the general public? Question: Is taking drugs to improve academic performance (through enhanced memory) any different than taking drugs to improve athletic performance?

Adult Neurogenesis Exercise Antidepressants

Liquorice Carbenoxolone tid Increased verbal memories of year old men within weeks Blocks stress hormone (cortisol) BUT high BP side effect and Needs to be altered to enter cells.

BDNF or gene Injected directly into brain AD mice, elderly rats, monkeys (degenrate) Lesioned: rats and monkeys Improved learning and memory Reduced rate of brain cell death Increased neuron connections

Ambidextrous Close left handed relative… RHs better at remembering events Impaired facial recognition

Musician Speech, language. Memory, attention, IQ and empathy After 15m of piano lessons- young children had more highly developed auditory and motor areas. Professional musicians have inceased grey matter volume. Routing info around the brain (motor, audition & visuo-spatial)

Start <7yrs… thicker corpus callosum, the bundle of nerve fibres that shunts info between the brain halves. Musicians… better auditory memory and attention, children have larger vocab and higher reading ability. Increased IQ (early training) Better spatial acuity Increased plasticity Better at language learning More empathic… fine tune ability to recognize emotional nuance in speech

tDCS, transcranial direct current stimulation 1-2 mAmps Increases neuron excitability Enhanced cognition (attention and vision) Math-right parietal lobe –TMS= math disrupted –tDCS= mathenhanced Improvements lasted at least 6months!! Portable implanted gadgets?

Bright Lights Light improves cognition and attention Bright light during the day –Visual searches –Math –Logical reasoning –Reaction time Melanopsin –Alertness hormone

Calm Energy Focus Normal BLUE light most potent –Mimics daylight best “School Vision” – reading speed +35% –Error frequency -45% Calm –Fidgeting -78% in School vision, -10% control Blue light also amplifies emotions

'normal' setting is for day-to-day classroom activities, 'energy' gives an intense blue tint to the light to invigorate pupils when they need to be more active. 'Focus', which is an intense whiter light, is designed to help children concentrate during challenging tasks while ‘Calm', a warmer red tinted color, makes the room more relaxed and is designed to settle a class towards the end of the day, when disruptive behavior is most frequent

Brain Food Omega-3 fatty acids –Oily fish, walnuts, green veg. –Little or no effect on memory Flavonoids –Blueberries, blackcurrants, cocoa, green tea, red wine. –Improved attention –Protect against neurodegeneration Raise levels of BDNF, stimulates axon development

–Lower BP –Increases blood vessel elasticity –Increase brain blood flow Good for mental performance Possibly via hippocampal neurogenesis Magnesium-L-threonate –Increased Mg in brain –Increased spatial and associative memory in young and old rats –Increases plasticity and neurogenesis

Exercise Regular exercise increases brain blood flow… in rats at least Monkey…improved memory (hidden food) –Runners had greater blood vessel volume Humans… ? –Moderate exercise slows age-related decline –Daily walking improved executive functions (planning/abstract thought) in younger adults. Exercise=neurogenesis, ↑BDNF and VEGF Excessive Exercise= decreased BDNF!

Meditation No difference in visual memory Immediately after meditation though –Unbelievable performance 20mins yoga improved visual memory and spatial skills, temporarily. 10hrs a day for 3months –Enhances attention and executive function Four 20min sessions –Improved visuo-spatial processing, working memory and executive function in novices

Brain Training Software Does not work!! You only get better at playing games 11,000 volunteers in the largest study showed no differences between brain trained vs control subjects.

Substance Use and the Brain

1.How is the brain affected long-term? Alcohol Marijuana Stimulants 2.What can we do about this?

 How is the brain affected long-term? Alcohol Marijuana Stimulants Substance Use and the Brain

Drinking & Thinking ~50% alcoholic adults show some problems: –Spatial skills –Planning –Learning and memory IQ and language OK Recovery –Much in 1st month –More in 1st year if sober

Alcohol and Sleep Problems when using and when sober –Falling asleep –Total sleep –Sleep quality Affects memory and thinking Feeling unrested increases relapse risk

Brain Structure Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) –Safe –No injections –Shows small brain parts

Shrinkage: Ventricles Non-alcoholicAlcoholic

Shrinkage: Cerebellum Healthy ControlAlcoholic

Volume Recovery During Treatment 2 Years Later

 How is the brain affected long-term? Alcohol Marijuana Stimulants Substance Use and the Brain

Marijuana & Thinking Modest problems in very heavy users –Learning and memory –Sustained attention –Impulsivity Most recover after 1 month abstinent

Marijuana & Brain No evidence of brain shrinkage Altered brain waves related to attention  brain blood flow  brain response while learning

 How is the brain affected long-term? Alcohol Marijuana Stimulants Substance Use and the Brain

Stimulants &Thinking Motor skills Planning Switching tasks Decision making Working memory Impulsivity Learning and memory

Stimulants & Brain Structure Volume reductions: –Cingulate –Hippocampus –No overall gray matter changes Volume increase: –Subcortical areas

Stimulants & Blood Flow High blood flow Low blood flow Healthy Control Cocaine-dependent Gottschalk, 2001, Am J Psychiatry

Blood Flow Recovery Non users Cocaine users, 10 days sober Cocaine Users, 100 days sober High blood flow Low blood flow

Substance Use and Brain Summary: Thinking problems Tissue loss Decreased blood flow Altered brain response to task Much recovery with abstinence

Part F: Dolphin Test for Stress in Medical Staff Two seconds exposure time. You see two dolphins, jumping together. Unstressed people often report they see the dolphins as identical. The more differences you pick up, the more stressed you are. FOCUS NOW