Human memory is short and terribly fickle

[Mikhail Thatcher]

Quote is by Janine di Giovanni
Psychology B
Cara-Jean Kitchi
Honor Noel Matthews
Isaiah Beringer
Martijn van der Berg
Tinsley Elena Rutherford

Mikhail Thatcher walked into his classroom and released a long breath. This would be his first time as a teacher and he didn’t even have Belle there to take support from – not that he would have had the canine in his classroom, the feeling would have been there.

He set up his laptop, ready to load up the power point when it was needed, but for now put it into sleep mode. He sat down behind the desk and greeted the students as the entered.

Once the bell had sounded to begin the lesson, he rose to his feet and did just that. “Good morning ladies and gentlemen, I’m Mr Thatcher, and you’re here to learn about psychology.” He looked over the students, wondering if they wanted to know why he was teaching this subject, but decided against it and went straight into the lesson. “For the next could of weeks we’re going to look into how the memory works. Until recently, memory has been compared to a computer and defined by an information-processing model in which information goes through three discrete stages: encoding, storage, and retrieval. Additionally, Atkinson and Shiffrin (1968) posited that information goes through three stages: sensory, short-term memory, and long-term memory. Today, researchers have integrated this model with findings from cognitive neuroscience to include the idea that memory has been found to be created by a collection of systems, working interdependently. There is no one portion of the brain solely responsible for all memory, though there are certain regions related to specific memory subsystems.

“The multiple systems model posits that memory is not a single, unitary system that relies on one neuroanatomical circuit; rather memory is made up of multiple memory systems that can work independently of one another. The systems include declarative memory and nondeclarative memory. Each of these has several subsystems.

II. Declarative memory
A. Declarative memory or explicit memory is a memory system that is controlled consciously, intentionally, and flexibly. Declarative memory generally involves some effort and intention, and we can employ memory strategies such as mnemonics to recall information.

1. It is mediated by the hippocampus and frontal lobes, and, thus, damage to these areas may compromise declarative memory. For example, people with damage to the hippocampus have difficulty forming new long-term declarative memories, while those with frontal lobe damage may experience deficits in working memory.
2. Explicit memory is measured with explicit memory tests, such as recall and recognition, in which an individual is fully aware that he or she is being tested.
3. It generally declines with age.

B. Examples include recalling the name of an old friend, remembering a list of items to pick up at the store, remembering information for a test, learning a phone number, and recalling your ATM password.

III. Declarative memory subsystems
A. Working memory is a short-term memory system that allows us to store and process limited amounts of information of an immediate sense. Working memory lasts anywhere from 2 to 18 seconds. Working memory is used for mental calculations, such as figuring a tip; retaining information briefly, such as when dialling a phone number; and processing incoming information, such as when listening to a newscast. It also allows us to temporarily process information we have previously learned in a class and access it to learn and associate new information.
B. Episodic memory is a long-term memory system that stores information about specific events or episodes related to one’s own life.
1. Episodic memory is used to recall past events, such as a movie you saw last week, the dinner you ate last night, the name of the book your friend recommended, or a birthday party you attended.
2. In the laboratory, psychologists study episodic memory by exposing participants to material and then testing the participants’ memory of it. For example, in the first part of an experiment, participants could be shown pictures of 20 simple objects and then asked to name the pictures (e.g., dog, table, shoe). After a delay, for part two of the experiment, participants could be asked to recall all the pictures they had seen in the first part of the experiment, or they could be tested on their recognition of the items they had seen. For example, participants can be presented with 20 pictures (10 old pictures and 10 new pictures) and asked to circle the objects they had seen in the first part of the experiment. Note that both the recall and recognition tests ask participants to consciously remember what had been presented earlier.
C. Semantic memory is a long-term memory system that stores general knowledge. Examples of what semantic memory stores are vocabulary or facts such as 2+2 = 4 and Michigan is a state in the United States.

IV. Nondeclarative memory
A. Nondeclarative memory or implicit memory is a memory system that influences our current perceptions and behavior without our knowledge, awareness, or intention. Nondeclarative memory is not used intentionally and involves no effort. It is assessed with an implicit memory test in which the individual is unaware she or he is taking a memory test.

1. It is mediated by cortical areas, the cerebellum, and the basal ganglia. Just as damage to the hippocampus and frontal lobes can compromise performance on declarative memory tasks, so, too, can damage to the visual cortical area impair visual priming. Damage to the cerebellum and basal ganglia can impair classical conditioning and procedural memory.
2. It was first discovered in work with people who had anterograde amnesia (an inability to form new, long-term declarative memories) and seemingly could not form new memories.
3. It is assessed with implicit measures such as priming, in which participants do not know their memory is being tested. Generally, these measures test for the effects of prior exposure on behavior without asking for conscious recollection. a. For example, the first part of an experiment could be identical to the episodic memory experiment described above. That is, you could show participants pictures of 20 simple objects and have the participants label the pictures (e.g., dog, table, shoe). After a delay, for part two of the experiment, you could tell participants they will now perform a speeded naming task in which their task is to name pictures as quickly as possible. You could then present a number of new pictures (e.g., one of a cat) and a number of old pictures (e.g., one of a dog) and measure participants’ speed in naming the pictures. You will find effects of repetition priming, that is, old items will be named more quickly than new items.
b. Another way to say this is that the prior exposure and naming of pictures enhances (in this case, speeds up) later processing of those items. Note that you are not asking participants to remember the pictures that occurred in the first part of the experiment—that kind of test would be a declarative or explicit memory test.
4. Nondeclarative memory is used synonymously with implicit memory.
5. It remains relatively stable with normal aging.
6. Examples of nondeclarative memory include riding a bike, driving a stick-shift car, using the same verbal patterns as friends (e.g., saying “like” repeatedly), and classical conditioning.” He paused in his lecture and a smile tugged at his lips. “Now, before I bore the lot of you to sleep, I’d like you, with the knowledge I’ve just given you, to please write down everything you did yesterday that did not involve your memory.”

Giving the students a chance to think and write down, he walked over to the desk and took a marker from the top drawer and walked up to the white board. “Ok, fire them at me.” He said with a grin, he knew that he was possible asking to be given a million things to write down at once, but he didn’t care, the class wasn’t that big.