THE 7 TYPES OF MEMORY

1. Short-Term Memory
Short-term memory only lasts 20 to 30 seconds. It stores information temporarily and then either
dismisses it or transfers it to long-term memory.
It is also sometimes called working memory, use quickly, then discard. For example, a phone
number, a person’s name, or what you’re going to buy from the market are stored in your
short-term working memory for just as long as it takes you to use it.

2. Long-Term Memory
Our long-term memories are a bit more complex than our short-term memories. Anything that
happened more than a few minutes ago would be stored in long-term memory. Depending on
how often we recall or use a certain piece of information, the strength of the memory varies.
Long-term memory is divided into explicit and implicit memories.
2.1 Explicit Memory
Explicit memories are a type of long-term memory which you remember after consciously thinking
about it. For example, the name of your childhood dog or your best friend’s house phone
number!
There are two types of explicit memory--episodic and semantic.
2.1.1 Episodic Memory
Episodic memories are a type of explicit memory that relate to our own personal lives. For
example, a particularly exciting Christmas morning, the day you got married, or even what you had
for dinner last night.
Studies have shown that autobiographical, or "episodic", memories aren’t necessarily accurate
because we reconstruct them over time and they change and adapt to the new context in which
we recall them. Our ability to retain episodic memories depends on how emotionally powerful the
experiences were. For example, many people remember where they were and what they were
doing when 9/11 happened. Not only would this involve a very powerful emotional reaction, you
would probably also have been very focused as it occurred.

2.1.2 Semantic Memory

Semantic memory accounts for our general knowledge of the world.
For example, the fact that the sky is blue, giraffes have long necks, and puppies are cute.
Unlike episodic memory, we are able to maintain the strength and accuracy of our semantic
memory over time. As we age, it begins to decline slowly.
 2.2 Implicit Memory
Implicit memory is the second major type of long-term memory. It comprises memories that you
don’t have to consciously recall.
For example, riding a bike or speaking a language. Even though it may require a lot of conscious
thought while learning, at some point it became implicit and you did it automatically.
In the 1990 movie Total Recall, Arnold Schwarzenegger dreamed of becoming a secret agent in
Mars without consciously knowing that he actually was a secret agent in Mars before his memory
was wiped and rewritten.
This subconscious attraction to espionage and other planets might have been a type of implicit
memory for Arnold.
2.2.1 Procedural Memory
Procedural memory is a type of implicit memory that allows us to do certain tasks without
thinking about them.
Besides riding a bike, it also includes tying a shoe, brushing our teeth, or driving a car.
It is likely that procedural memory is stored in a different part of the brain than episodic memory
because people who experience traumatic brain injuries often either forget autobiographical
information or forget how to perform simple tasks like walking or feeding themselves.
Now that you know about each of the types of memory, here are some ways to keep each one in
tip-top shape.

METHODS TO IMPROVE YOUR MEMORY

1. Testing
Several studies have found that being tested for information helps create stronger memories. For
example, students who were repeatedly tested on a list of vocabulary words in a foreign language
performed better on the final test than students who were given extra time to study.
This concept is based on the theory that repeated information has a greater impact on the
memory than longer study periods. So, the next time you’re giving a presentation, ask them
questions. Cement the new long-term memory by giving them immediate feedback.

2. Sleep
While we sleep, our brains process and store long-term memories. During Rapid Eye Movement
(REM) sleep, the brain replays memory sequences that we learned while awake, except 20 times
faster. Through this process, memories are consolidated and stored for long-term use.
In addition to strengthening our memories, sleep also helps us learn new information.
Researchers found that students who were deprived of sleep after learning a new skill had a
significantly weaker memory of that skill than students who received adequate sleep.
3. Sensory Input
Engaging all your senses with the experience also makes a big impact on how well you’ll
remember it later on. If you involve all 5 senses in the experience - if you can hear, see, smell,
taste, and smell it - then you will be able to recall it better in the future. Smells seem to be
especially powerful in evoking strong, emotional memories. For some, the smell of fresh-baked
cookies may carry them back into their grandma’s kitchen.
So, when improving memory, we must try to engage each sense as powerfully as possible. We
remember experiences that smell amazing, look beautiful, taste delicious, or sound lovely.
We also remember horrible experiences - nearly freezing to death on a camping trip, getting food
poisoning from eating something disgusting, or even seeing a really gruesome scary movie.

4. Drink some coffee.

Caffeine is one of the most popular cognitive enhancers in the world, and besides preventing
drowsiness, it can enhance cognitive functions such as memory, motivation, or creativity.
(Health.Harvard.edu)
Overuse and misuse of caffeine and other cognitive enhancement drugs can be dangerous and
disruptive of your natural sleep cycle.
So, have your cup or two of coffee in the morning but limit caffeine 4-5 hours before bedtime.

5. Minimize Stress
Although we are more likely to remember a particularly stressful experience for a long time,
attempting to learn or form new memories while under stress is rarely successful.
Stress alters the way our brains process information and how the memory is stored.

6. Minimize Distractions
It may be obvious, but few people actually make the commitment to reduce distractions while
attempting to learn new information or create new memories.
Instead of getting up for another cup of coffee or looking for new distractions to “clear our minds” or
“switch it up”, our brains could function much more efficiently just by reducing noise,
disabling digital notifications, and clearing clutter from our work/study areas.
Multitasking also counts as distraction. Although many people believe themselves to be quite adept
at it, scientific Studies have shown that multitasking impairs both long-term and short-term
memory.

7. Eat well
Scientists recommend eating foods high in antioxidants to keep the brain young and maintain
memory function as we age.These include blueberries, apples, bananas, dark green
vegetables, garlic and carrots. Chocolate also has antioxidants called flavanols. However, eating
too much of it can backfire and give you a sugar rush and crash instead.
In addition to antioxidants, the brain benefits extremely from healthy fats like Omega-3 fatty acids
which are found in fish and nuts.
8. Play brain games
The more you use your brain, the better it will run. So, exercise it just like you would your body.
There are many brain exercise programs on the internet that are quickly gaining popularity. If
you’re not into that, there’s always sudoku and crossword puzzles to keep your neurons on their
toes.

9. Exercise
Scientists believe that increased blood flow to the brain may result in the production of growth
factors in the brain leading to improved cognitive performance.
Recent research has shown that adults who walk regularly gain hippocampus volume
(memory center of brain) as opposed to losing it as they age. So, just by walking, the participants
reversed the impacts of aging on a major part of their brain.

After reading the text 7 types of memory…

a. draw a mindmap of the different types of memories (canva, minmup)

b. answer the questions in a new document.
c. Attach the mindmap to the document.
d. Send it to the Moodle delivery post as a .pdf

1.- Which type of memory do you think you have? Why?

2.- What could you do to improve your memory? Use Modal verbs.

3.- Play the following game and copy the result. Do you agree?

https://www.playbuzz.com/rickstruthers10/what-type-of-memory-do-you-have