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Forgetting or disremembering is the apparent loss or modification of information already encoded and stored in an individual's short or long-term memory.It is a spontaneous or gradual process in which old memories are unable to be recalled from memory storage.
Therefore, the creation of newer memories can lead to the destruction or replacement of older memories due to competition of finite memory stores. [5] Retrieval failure provides another explanation for why we forget learned information. According to this theory, we forget information because it is inaccessible in long-term memory stores.
Another useful way to improve memorization is to use chunking, a method in which a person categorizes the information they are trying to memorize into groups. For example, a person wishing to memorize a long sequence of numbers can break the sequence up into chunks of three, allowing them to remember more of the numbers.
Although interference can lead to forgetting, it is important to keep in mind that there are situations when old information can facilitate learning of new information. Knowing Latin, for instance, can help an individual learn a related language such as French – this phenomenon is known as positive transfer.
The forgetting curve hypothesizes the decline of memory retention in time. This curve shows how information is lost over time when there is no attempt to retain it. [ 1 ] A related concept is the strength of memory that refers to the durability that memory traces in the brain .
The hippocampus regulates memory function. Memory improvement is the act of enhancing one's memory. Factors motivating research on improving memory include conditions such as amnesia, age-related memory loss, people’s desire to enhance their memory, and the search to determine factors that impact memory and cognition.
The use of spaced repetition has been proven to increase the rate of learning. [1] Spaced repetition with forgetting curves. Although the principle is useful in many contexts, spaced repetition is commonly applied in contexts in which a learner must acquire many items and retain them indefinitely in memory.
The advantage of remembrance can be explained by looking at Lewin's field theory: a task that has already been started establishes a task-specific tension, which improves cognitive accessibility of the relevant contents. [4] The tension is relieved upon completion of the task, but persists if it is interrupted.