Memory and Language

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Memory and Language

• Unit 5 Chapters 7 and 8

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Overview Class business

• New Material
• Video Super-Memorist
• History of Memory
• Processes of Memory
• Encoding and storing memory
• Video Losing Explicit Memory
• Old exams
• Final projects

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Remember!!!

• THUNSTOFAM

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Memory

• Hermann Ebbinghaus (18501909)
• Learned lists of nonsense syllables such as cac,
  rit, and dax
• Later recalled nonsense syllables to investigate
  forgetting
• Found that syllables early and late in a list are
  most likely to be recalled

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History of memory

• Serial Position Effect
• Primacy effect
• Recency effect
• Ebbinghaus
• Remembering the presidents

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22. Cleveland
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Serial Position Effect
Recency Effect
Primacy Effect
100
Percentage Recalled
50
0
Early Middle Late
Serial Position
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3 Processes of memory

• Encoding is the process of organizing and
  transforming incoming information
• Storage is the process of retaining information
  in memory.
• Retrieval is the process of digging information
  out of memory.
• Computer analogy

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Different Memory Stores

• We have three different memory stages, (perhaps
  sets of neurons that maintain information)
• Each memory stage has a different
• Duration the length of time information is
  maintained
• Capacity the amount of information that is
  maintained

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Different Memory Stores

• Shiffrin and Atkinson 3-stage model of memory

Sensory Memory
Short-Term Memory
Long-Term Memory
Rehearsal
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Characteristics of sensory memory

• Holds very large amount of letters for very short
  time.
• Sperling experiment

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Sensory Memory

• Sperlings partial report technique a tone
  indicated which row to report after the stimuli
  disappeared
• High tone Top
• Medium tone Middle
• Low tone Bottom

Z R A T B S L D Q E K R
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Sensory Memory

• Sperlings partial report technique
• Findings
• Full report 4-5 items correctly recalled
• Partial report 4 items correctly recalled based
  on tone presented after the stimuli disappeared
• Conclusions
• Large-capacity memory store that fades very
  quickly
• Information must be accessed before it fades or
  it is lost
• Attention is necessary to move information from
  SM to STM

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Characteristics of Short-term memory

• Limited channel capacity (7 /- 2)
• Expanding capacity - chunking
• Duration - (30 seconds)
• Extending duration - rehearsal

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Demonstration Limited capacity
Elephant Mother Cottage Grasp Station Telegraph Tr
apeze Popsicle Salmon Drumstick Tomato Gunfire
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Demonstration Chunking Study these items
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Write down all the items you can recall
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Study these items
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Write down all the items you can recall
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Short-Term Memory

• Original conceptualization of STM criticized for
• Not emphasizing active processing
• Rehearsal is relatively passive and does not
  sufficiently explain other processes
• Not emphasizing visual information
• Original focus was on auditory information
• Not emphasizing the role of attention

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Working Memory

• Functions of WM
• Central Executive
• Controls activity of the articulatory loop and
  VSSP
• Articulatory Loop
• Tape recorder
• Most similar to original concept of STM
• VSSP
• Maintains mental images, location of objects,
  etc.

Central Executive
Articulatory Loop
Visuospatial Sketch Pad
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Working Memory v Short-term Memory Baddeley

• Where did you park your car today?
• Where did you park yesterday?

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Long-Term Memory

• Long-term memory store containing the accumulated
  knowledge base
• Characteristics
• Duration Hours to years
• Capacity Huge-possibly limitless

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Process of long-term storage

• Dynamic to Structural Memory
• Consolidation The process of converting dynamic
  to structural memory

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Consolidation

• The process of forming a relatively permanent
  memory trace
• Patients who receive electroconvulsive therapy
  experience disruption of memory for recent
  events, even those that are no longer in STM.
  Older memories are unaffected. (remember dream
  theory)

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Serial Position Effect

• Based on what you now know about the different
  memory stores, how would you explain
• The primacy effect?
• The recency effect?
• The poor recall for words in the middle of the
  list?
• How would the results change if
• The words were presented at a very fast rate?
• After hearing the list of words, you had to count
  backward from 431 before writing down your
  answers?

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Rehearsal

• Jane wants to order pizza but he doesnt have the
  phone number.
• She calls 411 but since she doesnt have a piece
  of paper to write down the number.
• She hangs up and keeps repeating 555-1212 over
  and over again and until she has dialed the
  number.

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What memory store is Jane trying to utilize in
this example?

• Sensory memory
• Iconic memory
• Short-term memory
• Long-term memory

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If you think of the mind as being like a
computer, which memory store represents the hard
drive?

• Sensory memory
• Short-term memory
• Long-term memory

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Making Memories How is information represented
in memory?

• A code is a type of mental representation, an
  internal re-presentation of a stimulus or event
  
• You can store information in a visual or verbal
  code

vs. Coffee and a muffin
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Making Memories Code

• Information stored as one type of code does not
  need to match the original input
• Visual stimuli can be coded verbally
• Verbal stimuli can be coded visually

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How does information get into LTM

• Rehearsal
• Use deep processing
• Use elaborative encoding

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Depth of Processing

• The success of learning new information depends
  upon the depth at which it is processed
• Shallow based on characteristics of appearance
• Moderate based on characteristics of the sound
• Deep based on characteristics of the meaning

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Depth of Processing

• An example A word is used as a stimulus in all
  three questions below, each of which requires a
  yes/no response. The difference is in the type of
  processing required to answer the questions.
• Stimulus GAIN
• Depth of processing questions
• Shallow Is this word printed in capital letters?
• Moderate Does this word rhyme with train?
• Deep Does this word fit in the following
  sentence?
• I have nothing to _______ by helping you.

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Breadth of Processing

• Elaborative encoding involves organizing and
  integrating new information into what you already
  know
• THUNSTOFAM

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Context in Memory
A newspaper is better than a magazine. A
seashore is a better place than the street. At
first it is better to run than to walk. You may
have to try several times. It takes some skill
but is easy to learn. Even young children can
enjoy it. Once successful, complications are
minimal. Birds seldom get too close. Rain,
however, soaks in very fast. Too many people
doing the same thing can also cause problems. One
needs lots of room. If there are no
complications, it can be very peaceful. A rock
will serve as an anchor. If things break loose
from it, however, you will not get a second
chance.
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Emotion and memory

• Flashbulb memories

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Von Restorff Effect

• Jump
• Cut
• Run
• Fly
• Duck-billed platypus
• Read
• Build
• Lay

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Organization of Memory Stores
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Implicit vs. Explicit Memories

• Implicit memories
• Cannot be voluntarily called to mind and
  verbalized
• Include motor skills
• Explicit memories
• Can be voluntarily called to mind and verbalized
• Consist of both factual knowledge (semantic) and
  memory for personal experiences (episodic)

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Implicit Memories

• Five major types
• Classically conditioned responses
• Memories formed through non-associative learning
• Habits
• Skills
• Priming

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Habits

• A well-learned response carried out automatically
  when the appropriate stimulus is present e.g.
  biting your nails

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Implicit Memories Skills

• Skills are sets of behaviors that can be applied
  to a variety of stimuli within a domain, such as
  riding a bike
• Initially, skills rely on controlled processing
  and given enough practice shift to rely on
  automatic processing

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Priming

• The result of performing a task that facilitates
  the same or an associated task.
• The alphabet

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Biological Foundations of Memory

• Long-term potentiation (LTP) is the strengthening
  of the connections between the sending and
  receiving neurons that underlies memory storage
• Human genes clearly play a role in memory
• The apolipoprotein E (apo E) gene is present in
  many people who develop Alzheimers disease

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Video Clip Implicit v Explicit Memory

• 18. Living With Amnesia The Hippocampus and
  Memory

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Retrieving information

• Recognition v Recall
• Which is easier

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Using Cues

• Cues stimuli that help you remember
• Tip of the tongue phenomenon (demo)
• Encoding specificity
• State dependent retrieval
• Hypermnesia improval of memory over time

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When Memory fails

• False memories
• How they are implanted

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What causes forgetting

• Failure to encode
• Decay
• Interference
• Intention