Learning refers to a process by which new information about the world is acquired, while memory describes how knowledge is retained. Memory can be explicit or implicit. In explicit form, there is conscious recall of information about things, people and places, while in implicit type, there is non-conscious recall of tasks such as motor skills(Broadbent et al., 2004).
Explicit memory depends on the integrity of structures such as the hippocampus, subiculum, and entorhinal cortex. Implicit memory relies on the functioning of the cerebellum and basal ganglia. Spatial learning and memory refers to the ability to find objects and locate different locations, is dependent on the hippocampus(Squire et al., 2007).
Dellu et al., 2000 reported that different species utilize spatial information about the environment to facilitate performance. Research has also shown the importance of the hippocampus and related structures, which use spatial information in learning and memory tasks. For example, spontaneous alternation occur due to damage on the hippocampus (Gilbert et al., 2001)and this affects learning of a spatial nature and
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The concentrations of calcium important in neuronal excitability are maintained by ATPase (Nori et al., 1996) or through the Na+/ Ca 2+ exchanger system (Blaustein et al, 1999).When neurones are stimulated there will be an increase in calcium release which acts by activating different types of proteins. Neuronal death can arise due to alteration in Ca2+ homeostasis and as such malfunctioning of Ca 2+ channels or Ca 2+ ATPase are a cause several neurological diseases (Jacobsen et al., 1999). It has been reported that pathogenesis of diabetes mellitus type II is a result of a decrease in this enzyme activity or expression due to inactivation of ATPases. This directly impairs neurotransmitter signalling leading to memory and behaviour defects (Jafari,
Eichenbaum, H., Otto, T., & Cohen, N. J. (1992). The hippocampus—what does it do? Behavioral
= Memory is the process of storing information and experiences for possible retrieval at some point in the future. This ability to create and retrieve memories is fundamental to all aspects of cognition and in a broader sense it is essential to our ability to function properly as human beings. Our memories allow us to store information about the world so that we can understand and deal with future situations on the basis of past experience. The process of thinking and problem solving relies heavily on the use of previous experience and memory also makes it possible for us to acquire language and to communicate with others. Memory also plays a basic part in the process of perception, since we can only make sense of our perceptual input by referring to our store of previous experiences.
Cognition refers to the process required for acquiring and comprehending of knowledge, this involves the use of high-functioning parts of the brain such as memory, perception, recall and attention. As speculated by cognitive psychologists, scientists and approaches, the process of cognition is defined by an interface between our internal learning processes and sensory processes, which can be also referred to as top-down and bottoms up processing. . These processes occur consciously and unconsciously and help us as individuals to function. Memory plays a big role in cognition and is described as our ability to learn new experiences as well as recall and retain past occurrences (Webster 1992), it is required for everyday learning, thinking and recalling of information in the mind, as without memory we would be learning things anew every day, even though we carry out the same routines daily. Therefore, our experiences turn into memories and are stored in our minds, but how does this process work?
The hippocampus has been associated with memory formation and consolidation, through lesions studies of bilateral medial temporal lobectomy patients, such as the famously amnesic H.M. In 1971 with the discovery of place cells by O’Keefe and Dostrovsky, spatial navigation was recognised as one of the primary roles of the hippocampus, with their 1978 book ‘The Hippocampus as a Cognitive Map' O’Keefe and Nadel’s hypothesis has since commanded great influence in the field.
Explicit memory is memory that we can recall consciously with our minds. Explicit memories are stored permanently in the neocortex after being processed by the hippocampus. These memories are divided in two different subcategories: Semantic Memory and Episodic Memory. Semantic memory can be described as universal knowledge. This can span from knowing the colors of fruits to knowing facts about animals. Episodic memories can be described as firsthand experiences. This can be anything from your first car or your wedding.
According to these two cases, these inspire us to understand that the hippocampus is an important brain region that is used for converting short-term memory into long-term memory.
Definition of memory and it's functions is difficult to illustrate by a single sentence. Consequently we use several metaphors to describe memory implicitly. Our beliefs, perceptions and imagination influence memory. The fact gave rise to memory being described as a reconstructive process, explaining that memory is not an exact record of a particular experience. Instead we bring various components together and fill in the blanks with our predisposed schemas while recalling.
Memory is a group of related mental processes that are involved in acquiring, storing, and retrieving information (Hockenberry and Hocenberry page 232). I will be addressing two specific types of memory: short-term memory and long-term memory. Short-term memory holds temporary information transferred from sensory memory or long-term memory. Sensory memory is the first stage of memory and obtains information for a brief amount of time. Short-term memory is also called active memory and is stored in the prefrontal cortex which is the most active part of the brain during an activity. Short-term memory can hold information for roughly twenty seconds, but sensory memory holds information for a shorter amount of time. We usually store things such
Memories are scattered across the brain in the many regions we have. However, there are a few different types of memories which are: Declarative (also known as Explicit) which this type of memory is about facts and events, and then there's Nondeclarative (also known as implicit) which has more to do with your skills and habits, priming, simple classic conditioning, which is where your emotional response and skeletal musculature comes in, also, nonassociative learning. The common ones that most know of are short-term and long-term memory. Have you ever wondered how the brain develops as you get older and why we remember the things we do? Our memories
The hippocampus is the seahorse shaped part of the limbic system involved in forming and retrieving memories. The hippocampus helps individuals determine where they are, how they got to that particular place, and how to navigate to the next destination. Like the rest of the brain, it's made of neurons. These neurons communicate with each other by sending little pulses or spikes of electricity via connections to each other. The hippocampus is formed of two sheets of cells, which are very densely interconnected. Neurons in the hippocampus fire a little spike of electricity when are bodies have gone into one particular place in its environment. It then signals to the rest of the brain by sending a little electrical spike. Together they form a map for the rest of the brain, telling the brain continually where you are within your environment. Sensing the distances and directions of boundaries around you is important for the hippocampus. If we look for this grid like firing pattern throughout the whole brain, we see it in a whole series of locations which are always active when we do all kinds of autobiographical memory tasks. The neural mechanisms for representing the space around us are also used for generating visual imagery so that we can recreate the spatial scene of the events that have happened to us. Your memory starts by place cells activating each other via these dense interconnections and then reactivating boundary cells to create the spatial structure of the scene around your viewpoint. The grid cells then move this viewpoint through that space. The head direction cells fire like a compass according to which way you're facing, defining the viewing direction from which you want to generate an image for your visual imagery. You can then imagine what happened when you were trying to remember where you parked your
Hippocampus plays an important job in the formation of new memories about experienced events such as the episodic or the autobiographical memory. It is also a part of larger medial temporal lobe memory system responsible for general declarative memory. General declarative memory is a type of memories that can be explicitly verbalized. If damage to hippocampus occurs only in one hemisphere, our brain can still retain near-normal memory functioning. But even so the hippocampus is damage; some types of memory such as abilities to learn new skills will not be affected. The reason is because, some abilities depends on different types of memory and different regions of the brain such as procedural memory. Hippocampus also plays role in spatial memory and navigation. Many hippocampal neurons have “place fields” and the discovery of place cells in 1970’s led to the theory that hippocampus might act as cognitive
Explicit memory is a conscious, recollection of an event or an item of information. It is usually measured using recall or recognition methods. Recalling has the ability to retrieve and reproduce information. Recognizing has the ability to identify information you have previously learned, read, or heard about.
In order to understand the functional relationship between learning and memory we have to first define what both learning and memory are. Learning can be described as “the acquisition of knowledge or skills through experience, practice, or study, or by being taught” (Merriam-Webster, 2014). “Memory is the means by which we draw on our past experiences in order to use this information in the present” (Sternberg, 1999). Base on this definitions one can conclude memory is essential part of our lives. Without any memory of the past, we would not be able to operate in the present or reminisce about the future. We would not be able to remember what we did a few days ago, what we have accomplished today, or what we intend to do tomorrow. Without memory our ability to learn would not exist. Learning and Memory are linked to our cognitive abilities as well as that of animals. An example that can be used to show the relationship between learning and memory is the study of how a rat behaves in a maze. As we all know rats have been used in experimental mazes since at least the early 20th century. Hundreds if not thousands of studies have looked at how rats run different types of mazes, from T-maze, to radial arm mazes, and to water mazes. These maze studies help scientist study spatial learning and memory in rats. Maze studies helped us uncover general principles about learning that can be applied to several species, including mankind. In today’s modern societies, mazes tend to be used to determine whether different treatments affect learning and memory in rats. According to Kolata al, 2005 case study the tasks that comprise the learning battery were specifically chosen so that each one placed specific sensory, motor, motivational, and info...
Music facilitates the convergence of space, place, and memory in composition and performance. As a cultural artefact, music preserves, and so performing music is an act of conservation. Music belongs to a larger soundscape, which encompasses the nuances of sound in space. Yet, music and soundscapes are often ignored in the criticism of wartime literature. Carolyn Birdsal maintains that an inquiry into the soundscape “can be studied to gain insights into social organisation, power relations and interactions with urban space” (12). The role of sound and sound’s relation to spatial memory is essential in Half-Blood Blues by Esi Edugyan, and The Cellist of Sarajevo by Stephen Galloway. In both texts,
Learning to tie shoes and ride a bike requires the encoding, storing, and retrieving of past observations of the procedure. With a lot of practice, children master these skills so well that they are able to remember them the rest of their lives. Memory is the storing of information over time. It is one of the most important concepts in learning; if things are not remembered, no learning can take place. As a process, memory refers to the "dynamic mechanism associated with the retention and retrieval of information about past experiences" (Sternberg 260). We use our memory about the past to help us understand the present. The study or memory in psychology is used in different ways, as well as there are many different ways to study how memory works in humans. In psychology there are many tasks used to measure memory, and different types of memory storages that human's use, such as sensory storing, or short term storing. There are also a lot of techniques that humans use to improve their memory, which they can use to learn, such as mnemonic devices. All these things can be classified as important issues in the study of human memory and ways of learning.