What Part Of The Brain Controls Short Term Memory

Neural Correlates of Memory Consolidation

The hippocampus, amygdala, and cerebellum play of import roles in the consolidation and manipulation of retentiveness.

Learning Objectives

Analyze the role each encephalon structure involved in retentiveness formation and consolidation

Central Takeaways

Key Points

Memory consolidation is a category of processes that stabilize a memory trace after its initial acquisition.
The hippocampus is essential for the consolidation of both short-term and long-term memories. Damage to this surface area of the brain tin can render a person incapable of making new memories and may fifty-fifty touch on older memories that have not been fully consolidated.
The amygdala has been associated with enhanced retention of retentivity. Considering of this, information technology is thought to modulate memory consolidation. The effect is most pronounced in emotionally charged events.
The cerebellum is associated with inventiveness and innovation. It is theorized that all processes of working memory are adaptively modeled past the cerebellum.

Key Terms

declarative memory: The type of long-term memory that stores facts and events; also known as witting or explicit memory.
encoding: The process of converting data into a construct that can be stored within the encephalon.
consolidation: The act or process of turning short-term memories into more permanent, long-term memories.

Memory consolidation is a category of processes that stabilize a memory trace after its initial acquisition. Like encoding, consolidation affects how well a memory will be remembered after it is stored: if information technology is encoded and consolidated well, the retentivity will be easily retrieved in full item, just if encoding or consolidation is neglected, the retention volition not be retrieved or may not be accurate.

Consolidation occurs through communication between several parts of the brain, including the hippocampus, the amygdala, and the cerebellum.

The Hippocampus

While psychologists and neuroscientists debate the exact role of the hippocampus, they more often than not agree that it plays an essential part in both the formation of new memories about experienced events and declarative memory (which handles facts and cognition rather than motor skills). The hippocampus is critical to the formation of memories of events and facts.

The hippocampus: The hippocampus is integral in consolidating memories from short-term to long-term memory.

Information regarding an outcome is not instantaneously stored in long-term retentivity. Instead, sensory details from the effect are slowly assimilated into long-term storage over time through the process of consolidation. Some evidence supports the idea that, although these forms of memory frequently last a lifetime, the hippocampus ceases to play a crucial office in the retention of memory subsequently the period of consolidation.

Damage to the hippocampus normally results in difficulties forming new memories, or anterograde amnesia, and commonly also brings about issues accessing memories that were created prior to the damage, or retrograde amnesia. A famous case study that made this theory plausible is the story of a patient known every bit HM: After his hippocampus was removed in an effort to cure his epilepsy, he lost the power to form memories. People with damage to the hippocampus may still be able to learn new skills, however, because those types of retention are non-declarative. Damage may not touch on much older memories. All this contributes to the idea that the hippocampus may non be crucial in memory memory in the post-consolidation stages.

The amygdala: The amygdala is involved in enhancing the consolidation of emotional memories.

The Amygdala

The amygdala is involved in retentivity consolidation—specifically, in how consolidation is modulated. "Modulation" refers to the force with which a retentiveness is consolidated. In detail, information technology appears that emotional arousal post-obit an upshot influences the strength of the subsequent retentiveness. Greater emotional arousal following learning enhances a person's retention of that stimulus.

The amygdala is involved in mediating the effects of emotional arousal on the strength of the memory of an event. Even if the amygdala is damaged, memories can still exist encoded. The amygdala is most helpful in enhancing the memories of emotionally charged events, such as recalling all of the details on a day when y'all experienced a traumatic accident.

The cerebellum: A vertical cross-section of the human being cerebellum, showing the folding design of the cortex, and interior structures.

The Cerebellum

The cerebellum plays a office in the learning of procedural retentiveness (i.due east., routine, "good" skills), and motor learning, such as skills requiring coordination and fine motor command. Playing a musical instrument, driving a car, and riding a cycle are examples of skills requiring procedural retentivity. The cerebellum is more generally involved in motor learning, and damage to information technology can event in bug with move; specifically, it is thought to coordinate the timing and accuracy of movements, and to brand long-term changes (learning) to improve these skills. A person with hippocampal impairment might notwithstanding exist able to remember how to play the piano merely not retrieve facts most their life. But a person with damage to their cerebellum would have the reverse problem: they would call up their declarative memories, but would have trouble with procedural memories like playing the piano.

Neural Correlates of Retention Storage

Although the physical location of retentiveness remains relatively unknown, it is idea to exist distributed in neural networks throughout the brain.

Learning Objectives

Talk over the physical characteristics of memory storage

Central Takeaways

Fundamental Points

It is theorized that memories are stored in neural networks in diverse parts of the brain associated with different types of memory, including short-term retentivity, sensory memory, and long-term memory.
Memory traces, or engrams, are concrete neural changes associated with memories. Scientists have gained knowledge well-nigh these neuronal codes from studies on neuroplasticity.
Encoding of episodic retentivity involves lasting changes in molecular structures, which change communication between neurons. Recent functional-imaging studies have detected working-retentivity signals in the medial temporal lobe and the prefrontal cortex.
Both the frontal lobe and prefrontal cortex are associated with long- and short-term memory, suggesting a strong link betwixt these two types of memory.
The hippocampus is integral in consolidating memories merely does not seem to store memories itself.

Key Terms

engram: A postulated concrete or biochemical modify in neural tissue that represents a retentivity; a memory trace.
neuroplasticity: The state or quality of the brain that allows it to arrange to experience through concrete changes in connections.

Many areas of the brain take been associated with the processes of memory storage. Lesion studies and case studies of individuals with brain injuries accept allowed scientists to determine which areas of the brain are most associated with which kinds of memory. Still, the actual physical location of memories remains relatively unknown. It is theorized that memories are stored in neural networks in various parts of the brain associated with dissimilar types of memory, including brusque-term memory, sensory memory, and long-term retention. Keep in mind, all the same, that it is not sufficient to describe retentivity as solely dependent on specific encephalon regions, although there are areas and pathways that take been shown to be related to certain functions.

Memory Traces

Memory traces, or engrams, are the physical neural changes associated with memory storage. The big question of how information and mental experiences are coded and represented in the encephalon remains unanswered. However, scientists have gained much knowledge about neuronal codes from studies on neuroplasticity, the brain'due south capacity to alter its neural connections. Most of this enquiry has been focused on elementary learning and does not clearly describe changes involved in more complex examples of memory.

Encoding of working memory involves the activation of individual neurons induced by sensory input. These electrical spikes keep even later on the sensation stops. Encoding of episodic memory (i.e., memories of experiences) involves lasting changes in molecular structures that alter communication between neurons. Recent functional-magnetic-resonance-imaging (fMRI) studies detected working memory signals in the medial temporal lobe and the prefrontal cortex. These areas are besides associated with long-term memory, suggesting a strong relationship between working memory and long-term retentivity.

Brain Areas Associated with Memory

Imaging enquiry and lesion studies have led scientists to conclude that certain areas of the encephalon may exist more than specialized for collecting, processing, and encoding specific types of memories. Action in different lobes of the cognitive cortex take been linked to the formation of memories.

Lobes of the cerebral cortex: While retention is created and stored throughout the brain, some regions accept been shown to be associated with specific types of retentivity. The temporal lobe is of import for sensory retention, while the frontal lobe is associated with both brusque- and long-term retention.

Sensory Memory

The temporal and occipital lobes are associated with sensation and are thus involved in sensory retentivity. Sensory memory is the briefest form of memory, with no storage capability. Instead, it is a temporary "holding cell" for sensory information, capable of holding information for seconds at most before either passing it to short-term retention or letting it disappear.

Short-Term Retentivity

Curt-term memory is supported by cursory patterns of neural communication that are dependent on regions of the prefrontal cortex, frontal lobe, and parietal lobe. The hippocampus is essential for the consolidation of information from short-term to long-term memory; notwithstanding, it does not seem to store information itself, adding mystery to the question of where memories are stored. The hippocampus receives input from different parts of the cortex and sends output to various areas of the brain. The hippocampus may be involved in irresolute neural connections for at least iii months after information is initially processed. This area is believed to be important for spatial and declarative (i.e., fact-based) memory as well.

Long-Term Memory

Long-term memory is maintained by stable and permanent changes in neural connections spread throughout the brain. The processes of consolidating and storing long-term memories take been especially associated with the prefrontal cortex, cerebrum, frontal lobe, and medial temporal lobe. Nonetheless, the permanent storage of long-term memories after consolidation and encoding appears to depend upon the connections between neurons, with more deeply processed memories having stronger connections.