12 Memory

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What do we store in the “filing cabinet” of the brain?

HOW IS MEMORY ORGANIZED?

There are three different types of memory: sensory memory, working memory, and long-term memory.
According to the information-processing model, our brains encode information, store it as a memory, and retrieve it when we need to remember it.

Sensory memory consists of sights, sounds, smells, and other information that the senses transmit to the corresponding sensory cortices in the brain. Sensory memories last for no more than a few seconds.
Working memory contains memories that we can access immediately. Images, sounds, and meanings can all be encoded in working memory.
Long-term memory includes both implicit and explicit memories. Meaningful or emotional information is often encoded into long-term memory. Long-term memories can last a lifetime but can be difficult to retrieve.

Attention enables us to consciously or unconsciously encode memories.
We use rehearsal, mnemonics, and other organizational strategies to store memories.
The frontal lobe, hippocampus, basal ganglia, and cerebellum are active in memory encoding and storage.
Retrieval cues such as the context effect help us move long-term memories into working memory, where stored information is “at the ready.”

Stress can inhibit memory storage and recall.
Brain damage can lead to retrograde and anterograde amnesia.
Memories are easily forgotten and prone to distortion, and they can persist even when we try to forget them.