CH.7 Memory

            Memory is something that takes place in our everyday lives. Memory is the process of recollecting important experiences, information, and skills learned in the past. Memory goes through as series of steps for it to be stored and retrieved for future reference. There are also several types of memory. Memory can be improved but things in our memory can be forgotten.

            There are three kinds of memory. These include sematic, episodic, and implicit. Episodic memory is a type of memory of a specific event taken place under the person’s presence. Some of these episodic memories are so important that we see them as pictures and remember every detail of them. These are called flashbulb memories, always falling under the category of episodic memories. Another type of memory is the sematic memory. This type of memory is memory of general knowledge such as the alphabet. These two types of memory are examples of explicit memory, which means they are clearly expressed. On the other hand, there is implicit memory, which is the last type of memory.  Implicit memory consists of skills or procedures such as riding a bicycle.

            Memory consists of three processes. The first process is encoding. Encoding is translating the information into a form that can be stored. This can be done through visual codes like memorizing letters, acoustic codes meaning that the information is repeated, and sematic codes in which one makes sense of the information or making insights. The second process after encoding is the storing. Storing is the maintenance of encoded information over a period of time. This can be done through maintenance rehearsal where one repeats the information over and over to keep from forgetting, elaborative rehearsal where one makes the information have a meaning by relating to information that is already known, and organizational rehearsal where this information becomes arranged. Retrieval is the final process in which one locates the stored information ad returns it to conscious thought.

            There are three stages of memory. Sensory memory is the initial recordings of information. These can be seen through mental pictures also called icons. Echoic on the other hand are the ones of sound. The next stage is short- term memory, after the information being held in the sensory memory. The final stage is long-term memory where information is remembered more than briefly.

            There are different ways of forgetting and different ways of improving memory. Forgetting can happen through decay, which is the fading away of memory. It can also happen through repression, where one forgets painful memories as a self-defense system. It can also happen through amnesia, which is severe memory loss. Improving memory can be done through several methods including drill and practice, relating the information to things you already know, forming unusual associations, and by constructing links.

            Memory is something that is complex in the way of enhancing it and comprehending it. It has several processes, stages, and types. Today memory is trying to be enhanced in more ways and also being understood more deeply. However, what would be of humans if it weren’t because of memory?

The brain is the genesis of all memory.