Knowtex

Memory isn't etched in neural stone. It's a creative process, sketched in sand. In one of the most dramatic demonstrations of this yet, Brent Strickland and Frank Keil have shown how people's memory for a video clip was distorted within seconds, to form a coherent episode "package".

According to MacLeod et al., saying a word out loud, or at least mouthing it, improves memory by increasing its distinctiveness, i.e. making it unusual compared to others.

According to one expert, most common learning strategies are actually hurting our ability to acquire and retain long-term knowledge.

Short-term memory plays a crucial role in how our consciousness operates.

Repeated checking can cause you to lose confidence in your memory and even reduce its accuracy under certain circumstances : A paradox of memory research is that repeated checking results in a decrease in memory certainty, memory vividness and confidence [van den Hout, M. A., & Kindt, M. (2003a).

We put a lot of energy into improving our memory, intelligence, and attention. There are even drugs that make us sharper, such as Ritalin and caffeine.

The illusion of truth is traditionally described as the increase in perceived validity of statements when they are repeated (Hasher, Goldstein, & Toppino, 1977).

Cannabis use is associated with disturbances in concentration and memory.

Psychology is at its most interesting to me when it demolishes what we believe to be true on the basis of common sense, and it does this with alarming regularity. Take our memories.

It's time for forgetting to get some respect, says Ben Storm, author of a new article on memory in Current Directions in Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.