This chapter deals with the way that we process information. The brain processes information in a way that is very similar to a computer. We have three different stages of processing information: sensory memory, working memory, and long-term memory. The sensory memory is what registers all the stimuli that you encounter every second of every day. It processes the smells that you smell, the sounds that you hear, the sights you see, the things you taste, and everything you feel. Most of the information that is put into your sensory memory is lost, but some of it is passed to the working memory. The working memory is where the information that we process gets put to use. The working memory helps us to remember things that we have seen or heard. It pulls pieces of task-relevant information from our brain whenever we need it. Another thing that occurs in the working memory is a process called encoding. Encoding is when information in prepared for long-term storage. After the encoding has been completed, information is stored in the long-term memory. Once information has been stored there, it can be saved for weeks, months, and even years.
One question that I had during this chapter was in regard to a certain type of retrieval error. Reconstruction error is when someone can't remember all of the details about a certain memory, but then with out knowing it fills in the missing pieces with guesses and assumptions. If this is the case, how can a person decipher which memories are completely accurate or not?
Repetition is not the best way to remember useful pieces of information for long periods of time. When using repetition, the information that is being repeated does not actually get encoded in the long-term memory. This does not happen because the information that is being repeated is not being associated with other schema of that person's life, therefore, the brain does not remember it nearly as well.
In response to your question, I do not think that people can decipher what memories are completely accurate or not. When talking about childhood memories with my siblings, we all seem to disagree on parts of the memory. I don't know if you have ever had this experience but sometimes I can remember things specific events that I was not at. I could swear I was there, but my memory of the experience is just from hearing the story being told over and over. I can tell the story as if i was there.
ReplyDeleteI also think that because so much of an experience is the unconscious details lost in our sensory memory, when the experience is recalled, our minds just fill in details with things we have experienced in the past. This brings up the question of how much can eye-witness testimony be trusted in court cases if specific details may not be accurate.
The suggestion above is good! You really can't tell which memories are real (unless there is some other record of waht actually happened). Your brain reconstructs it as if it were an actual memory, and (re)encodes it as such. Some people can even develop imagery (a visual memory) of what never happened. It's interesting! There are a lot of experiments on that.
ReplyDelete