Decoding the Neural Mystery

Of Memory
By: Erin Curtis


Lets face it, we all want to know
how we can better remember that one guy-
from-the-barber-shops name, your
neighbors birthday, or who the Junior
Senator from New York was in 1863. Okay,
maybe not the senator bit, however, we are
all searching for ways to improve our
memory for one reason or another. This
topic has been the subject for hundreds of
research projects and thousands of articles
from top notch researchers, psychologists,
surgeons, and more. In this article I hope to
provide a dummys guide to
understanding just what research tells us
about how memories are formed, how to
retain memories, how to increase memory
retrieval, and how this process can support
innovative thought. To accomplish this, Ive
turned to Dr. Richard C. Mohs, vice
chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at
Mount Sinai School of Medicine,
1
who has
conducted numerous research studies on
memory formation, aging, and cognitive
function. He has also authored/co-authored
over 300 scientific papers on the processes
of the brain.
Memory itself is a very elusive term
because it seems to refer to a specific thing
when it really refers to a process. Think of
your favorite cookie. You dont only
remember how it looks. When this memory
is recalled you also remember how the
cookie feels in your hand and in your mouth.
You recollect its specific taste, whether it is

1
Mohs, Richard C. "How Human Memory Works."
How Stuff Works. Ed. Carol Turkington. N.p., 8 May
2007. Web. 16 June 2014.

eaten hot or cold, the sound it makes as you
bite into it, the texture and chewiness, the
smells, where you find this cookie, who
normally eats these cookies with you, etc.
The process of memory begins with
sensory intake. This intake is contributed to
by all parts of the brain but is only effective
if you are paying attention. Lets contrast
your favorite cookie with a ten dollar bill.
You probably encounter a ten dollar
bill almost as frequently as your favorite
cookie, however, if asked to describe the
exact details of that bill youd struggle quite
a bit more than you would in describing
your favorite cookie. For example, do you
remember what president is on that bill or if
there is a Latin phrase? Information is
received as our sensory faculties send
electrical signals to the hippocampus which
works together with the frontal cortex to sift
through these signals and decide what is
important and what isnt. This process is
called Encoding and it allows our brain to
store important information in our short term
memory and to filter out distractions or
white noise signals.
The sensory impulses are filtered and
recorded as electrical messages and then
stored as short term memory. Short term
memory is very limited in its holding
capacity as well as the length of time an
electrical message can remain there and still
be recalled. If information is not quickly
recalled from short term memory it is again
filtered out or forgotten to make room for
new information. The max capacity for
short term memory is about 7
images/words/numbers which can be stored
for 20-30 seconds (Mohs).
To convert short-term memories to
long-term memories a synapse must be
formed. A synapse is simply a point where
two nerve cells briefly connect to allow
neurotransmitters through. Synapses are not
permanent formations and they change
frequently. They are strengthened as
information is frequently drawn upon or
connected or as new synapses are created
when thoughts are linked
together. This happens
when short term memories
are converted into long-
term memory storage in a
process called recall
2
.
For example, if a teacher
tells you that x=y(z), you
will remember that
formula for 20-30 seconds
and then forget it.
However, if you draw on
that information by
writing it down, repeating it in your head, or
applying it to a problem then a stronger
synapse is created and that formula becomes
a part of your long-term memory.
Im sure that many of you are saying
to yourself, Well, this is sure interesting but
how does it help me improve my memory?
Dr. Mohls says, The more you know about
your memory, the more youll understand
how to improve it. So, lets do some

2
Butler, Andrew C., Jeffrey D. Karpicke, and Henry
L. Roedigger. "Correcting a Metacognitive Error:
Feedback Increases Retention of Low-Confidence
Correct Response." Journal of Experimental
Psychology 34.4 (2008): 918-28. Web. 18 June 2014.
application shall we? If we know that
adequate sensory messages must make it to
our short-
term
memory
for any
memory to
be created
at all, then
we
understand that the first step in
strengthening memory is paying attention.
We often blame our poor memory when we
dont remember where our phone is but the
problem isnt our memory at all!
Oftentimes the information of where you set
your phone down never made it to your
short-term memory because it wasnt a
detail you were
paying attention
to. The same
concept applies to
academic
learning. In order
to remember
presented
information it is
important to limit
all distractions
and focus
completely on the
information being given to you.
3

If you recall, the second step in our
memory process was recalling short-term
memories and transferring them into long-
term storage. We know that short-term
memory only lasts for 20-30 seconds,
therefore we have to do something to
strengthen that synapse within 20-30
seconds of perceiving something.
Strengthening exercises can include notes,
repetition, replaying/rereading, etc. We
also know that synapses are not constant and
need to be frequently strengthened.

3
Butler, Andrew C., Jeffrey D. Karpicke, and Henry
L. Roedigger. "Correcting a Metacognitive Error:
To convert short-term
memories to long-term
memories a synapse
must be formed.
Application is a great way to strengthen
synapses because a network is created
linking new knowledge to previously
learned knowledge. We can apply new
concepts by asking questions, making
connections, physically
practicing/reenacting, teaching others, or
discussing a new concept. This process of
asking questions, linking previous
knowledge to new knowledge, and teaching
others is a crucial step in becoming a true
innovator.
An innovator is someone who comes
up with new ideas or improves something
that is previously established. Strengthening
our ability to pay attention to details, store
information, and quickly recall that
information is one of the first steps in
innovation. Before a system can be
improved or a new idea presented, previous
information, data, and or experiments must
be recognized and built upon. Improving
your memory allows you to better recognize
vital steps or identify areas of weakness and
connect those weaknesses with possible
solutions. This practice applies to all
activities in life; business, science, teaching,
writing, and parenting to name a few. As
memory stamina improves, so does your
ability to think critically and apply new
concepts to previous knowledge (or new
knowledge to previous concepts). This
process of critical thinking and application is
what makes one a successful innovator.
Memories are slippery and can be
elusive but as we better understand what
memory is and how it works, we are also
better prepared to strengthen our own ability
to form and maintain memories. As we
strengthen the synapses between what we
already know and what we learn, it becomes
easier to create new ideas and models as we
apply what weve learned (and remembered)
to the world around us.


Test your memory here!