Lu 5 - Eleap

SSU 1033
MEMORY
PREPARED BY:
DR. THARSHINI SIVABALAN

LESSON OBJECTIVE
Upon completing the lesson student should be able to:
Discuss different stages of memory
List types of memory
Describe types of forgetting

INTRODUCTION
 Memory is the ability to take in information, store it and recall it at a later time.
Generally, memory is divided into three stages:
MEMORY
Encoding Storage Retrieval

ENCODING (Stage 1)
 Encoding = the process of receiving, processing and combining information.
 Encoding allows information from the outside world to reach our senses in the
forms of chemical stimuli.
 When you encode (store) a memory, association is formed.

ENCODING (Stage 1)
 There are three main ways where information can be encoded:
Visual Sound Meaning

ENCODING (Stage 1)
Example:
 Police use encoding specificity while

questioning crime witnesses.
 They start by asking the witnesses to image the

original conditions as closely as possible –
the location, the weather, the time, etc.
 Getting back to the original event at least in

imagination, helps people to remember more
details of what they saw.
ENCODING – TIPS!
Sleep and Memory
 Research indicates that sleep is important for

the brain to consolidate (more stronger)
information into accessible memories.
 While we sleep, the brain analyzes, categorizes,

and discards recent memories.
 One useful memory-enhancement technique

is by audio recording the information you
want to remember and play it while you are
trying to go to sleep.
 The things you hear on the recording just before

you fall asleep are more likely to be retained
due to the relaxed and focused state of mind.
STORAGE (Stage 2)
 Storage = the creation of a permanent record of

the encoded information.
 In this stage information will be maintained over

a periods of time.
 As time passes, some memories change in a way

that makes them available much later, perhaps
forever  this process is called consolidation
(more stronger).
STORAGE (Stage 2)
 How long does consolidation continue?
 Studies found that people in their 60’s and 70’s

remember events from their adolescence and early
adulthood better than remembering the recent
events.
 Research/Finding  older adults generally

remember the music, movies and politicians when
they were young.
#Memories during young adulthood formed more

strongly in the first place.
STORAGE – TIPS!
 You can try a couple of ways to enhance

consolidation after learning something. One of the
way is by taking some caffeine shortly after
learning something.
 A study found that 200mg to 300mg of caffeine

from an average cup of coffee enhances the details
of people’s memories when tested a day later.
 Another strategy is to sleep or rest quietly shortly

after learning.
RETRIEVAL (Stage 3)
 Retrieval (recall) = the calling back of stored information in response to some

cue.
 Distraction can prevent the process of encoding information thus causing

trouble while retrieving information.
TYPES OF MEMORY
Sensory
Memory
TYPES OF Short-Term
MEMORY Memory
Long-Term
Memory
TYPES OF MEMORY
Sensory Memory
 Sensory memory is not a part of higher cognitive

functions (short and long-term memory).
 Sensory memory allows individuals to recall great

detail about a complex stimulus immediately
following its presentation.
 The information represented by sensory memory is

the “raw data” which provides a snapshot of a
person’s overall sensory experience.
TYPES OF MEMORY
 Information from sensory memory has the shortest retention time, ranging
from mere milliseconds to five seconds.
 Sensory memory is retained long enough before it is transferred to short-term

memory.
TYPES OF MEMORY
Short-Term Memory
 Short-term memory is also known as “working

memory” that stores information for a brief
period of time for things that happened recently.
 Short-term memory has the capacity for holding a

small amount of information (research shows a
range of 2 - 7 items) and only lasts for about 20
seconds).
 Unlike sensory memory, short-term memory is

capable of temporary storage  How long the
storage lasts?  depends on the conscious effort
taken by the individual.
TYPES OF MEMORY
 Continues rehearsal can make a

information more likely to be held in
short-term memory.
 Example:
 When someone gives you a phone number

verbally  you say it to yourself
repeatedly until you can write it down.
 If someone interrupts your rehearsal by

asking a question  you can easily forget
the number  since it is only being held in
your short-term memory.
TYPES OF MEMORY
 Chunking of information also increases the short-term memory capacity.
 When information is repeated each time  information re-entered into the

short-term memory  thus keeping/retaining the information for another 10
to 20 seconds.
 Distractions from rehearsal often cause disturbances in short-term memory

retention.
TYPES OF MEMORY
Long-Term Memory
 Long-term memory is all the memories hold

for a period longer than a 20 seconds.
 Long-term memory encompasses everything

that you have learned in standard one  your
old house address  what you wore to class
yesterday.
 Long-term memory has incredibly vast storage

capacity and some memories can last from the
time it was created until the end of your life 
unlike sensory and short-term memory.
DAILY LIFE APPLICATION
Did you ever experienced it?
 You read something over and over.
 You are sure that you have studied it

hard and know it well.
 Then you take a test and you don’t

remember nearly anything.
#What went wrong???

DAILY LIFE APPLICATION
How Do You Organize Your

Studying???
TIPS 1
 Studying all at once is okay if you need to remember it immediately and never
again. However, if you care about long-term memory, studying all at once is worse
for every kind of learning (including language, math, music and sports).
TIPS 2
 How long should you wait to study again?
 It depends. To remember something next week, you get the best result if you
review it three days before.
 To remember something next month, you should wait a week and a half before you
review it.
TIPS 3
 When you are reading a textbook or note, you should occasionally go back to the
previous subtopics and try to answer the review questions or quiz.
 Varying the conditions of learning helps you in a longer run.

TIPS 4
 Taking notes in class makes you focus and pay attention and provides extra
studying material later.
 Is it good to bring a laptop to class? Most people type faster than they write.
Unfortunately, laptop provides distraction and many students who bring laptops to
class use it for checking FB, email and other tasks unrelated to class.
TIPS 5
 How to have a better memory?
 Use of imagery
 Imagery involves creating the mind’s mental pictures of things that are not
physically present.
TYPES OF FORGETTING
 Memory is not static.
 Memories is not necessarily permanent  they can disappear over time  this
process is called forgetting.
TYPES OF FORGETTING
Cue-
Dependent
Forgetting
Neurocognitive
Absentmindedness
Disorder
Types of
Forgetting
Amnesia Blocking
TYPES OF FORGETTING
Cue-Dependent Forgetting
 When we store a memory, we also store our

mood and emotional state.
 Our current mood will affect the process of

recalling a memory.
 When we are in a good mood, we recollect good

memories and when we are in a bad mood we
recollect bad ones.
 At times we are cued to remember certain things

depends on our emotional state or our
environment.
TYPES OF FORGETTING
Absentmindedness
 Have you ever put down your house key

somewhere and couldn’t find them later? 
experienced absentmindedness.
 Attention and memory are closely related to one

another.
 Absentmindedness occurs during the encoding

process especially when sufficient attention is
not given while doing something.
 Common errors of these types include misplacing

objects or forgetting appointments.
TYPES OF FORGETTING
Blocking
 Blocking happens when the brain tries to retrieve

or encode information, but another memory
interferes with it.
 Blocking is the failure to retrieve a word from

memory, combined with partial recall and the
feeling that retrieval is imminent (overhanging).
 People who experience blocking can often recall

one or more features of the target word, such as
the first letter, words that sound similar or
words that have a similar meaning.
TYPES OF FORGETTING
Amnesia
 Amnesia refers to the loss of memories such as

facts, information and experiences.
 Amnesia can be caused by damage in the areas of

the brain that are vital for memory processing.
 The two main features of amnesia are:
 Difficulty learning new information following the

onset of amnesia.
 Difficulty remembering past events.
 Most people with amnesia have problems with

short-term memory — they can't retain new
information. Recent memories are most likely to
be lost, while more deeply ingrained memories
may be spared.
TYPES OF FORGETTING
Neurocognitive Disorders
 Neurocognitive disorders are a broad category

of brain diseases typical to old age.
 Neurocognitive disorders causes a long-term

and gradual decrease in the ability to
think and recall memories which eventually
affect their daily functioning.
 The most common type of neurocognitive

disorder is Alzheimer’s disease which makes
up 50% to 70% of cases.
 People with Alzheimer’s have trouble with

reasoning and judgment.
RECOMMENDED READING MATERIAL
Matlin, M.W. (2005). Cognition. Crawfordsville: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Miller, G.A. (1956). The Magical Number Seven, Plus or Minus Two: Some Limits on
our Capacity for Processing Information. Psychological Review; 63(2): 81–97.
Sternberg, R.J. (1999). Cognitive Psychology (2nd Ed). Fort Worth, TX: Harcourt Brace
College Publishers.

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SSU 1033

DR. THARSHINI SIVABALAN

Upon completing the lesson student should be able to:

Discuss different stages of memory

List types of memory

Describe types of forgetting

Encoding Storage Retrieval

 Encoding = the process of receiving, processing and combining information.

 When you encode (store) a memory, association is formed.

 There are three main ways where information can be encoded:

Visual Sound Meaning

 Police use encoding specificity while

 They start by asking the witnesses to image the

 Getting back to the original event at least in

Sleep and Memory

 Research indicates that sleep is important for

 While we sleep, the brain analyzes, categorizes,

 One useful memory-enhancement technique

 The things you hear on the recording just before

 Storage = the creation of a permanent record of

 In this stage information will be maintained over

 As time passes, some memories change in a way

 How long does consolidation continue?

 Studies found that people in their 60’s and 70’s

 Research/Finding  older adults generally

#Memories during young adulthood formed more

 You can try a couple of ways to enhance

 A study found that 200mg to 300mg of caffeine

 Another strategy is to sleep or rest quietly shortly

 Retrieval (recall) = the calling back of stored information in response to some

 Distraction can prevent the process of encoding information thus causing

 Sensory memory is not a part of higher cognitive

 Sensory memory allows individuals to recall great

 The information represented by sensory memory is

 Sensory memory is retained long enough before it is transferred to short-term

 Short-term memory is also known as “working

 Short-term memory has the capacity for holding a

 Unlike sensory memory, short-term memory is

 Continues rehearsal can make a

 When someone gives you a phone number

 If someone interrupts your rehearsal by

 Chunking of information also increases the short-term memory capacity.

 When information is repeated each time  information re-entered into the

 Distractions from rehearsal often cause disturbances in short-term memory

 Long-term memory is all the memories hold

 Long-term memory encompasses everything

 Long-term memory has incredibly vast storage

Did you ever experienced it?

 You read something over and over.

 You are sure that you have studied it

 Then you take a test and you don’t

#What went wrong???

How Do You Organize Your

 Varying the conditions of learning helps you in a longer run.

 When we store a memory, we also store our

 Our current mood will affect the process of

 When we are in a good mood, we recollect good

 At times we are cued to remember certain things

 Have you ever put down your house key