Unit 2: Memory (Cognition)

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Unit 2 Memory (Cognition)

• Essential Task 2-3
• Describe the physiological systems of memory with
  specific attention to long-term potentiation and
  the brain regions where memories are stored.

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Essential Task 2-
Outline

• Physiology of Memory
• Process
• long-term potentiation
• Stress hormones
• Where Brain Structures
• Hippocampus
• Where the memories are processed

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How are the Memories Stored?Synaptic Changes

• Long-Term Potentiation (LTP) A long-lasting
  change in the structure or function of a synapse
  that increase the efficiency of neural
  transmission.

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Stress Hormones Memory

• Heightened emotions (stress-related or otherwise)
  make for stronger memories.
• Hormones such as Epinephrine act on brain centers
  in the brain
• Extreme stress undermines learning and later
  recall
• How does this apply to an exam?

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Brain structures

• Hippocampus turns STM into LTM
• The hippocampus (named after its resemblance to
  the seahorse, from the Greek hippos meaning
  "horse" and kampos meaning "sea monster")

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Where Are Memories Stored?
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Biological Forgetting Factors

• Damage to the Hippocampus
• Difficulty forming new memories
• Diminished in Alzheimers patients
• Neurotransmitters play a role
• Acetylcholine
• Alzheimers patients show low levels of this
• Decay theory
• Memories deteriorate because of the passage of
  time
• Distractor Studies information fades from STM