youthdefinition
New Member
Memory is s tricky thing, and sometimes it seems as if we have no control over it. How else to explain why we recall such a random assortment of facts and forget others we think are more important? How many times have you studied hours upon hours for an important exam or subject, onlt to have the information evaporate from your brain the instant you look at the questions ?
I must just have an awful memory, because I really studied a lot." you say after bombing out on the test. But unless you have a neurological dysfunction or a learning disability, there is no such thing as bad memory - only bad methods for remembring , recalling , and memorizing.
Think of memory as a skill or ability, rather than as a thing. A thing can be bad - like a weak heart or myopic eyes-and there's little you can do about it. A skill, however, can be acquired and improved by learning the right techniques and practicing them. So no matter how bad you think your memory is, it can be helped by using good memorization stratagies.
Before you learn these techniques, you should understand how the mind works.
The biochemical processes by which memory is stored in the brain are too complicated for the layman to grasp, but the basic operation is easy to follow. Memory occurs in three stages: taking information into the brain; holding it there; and pulling it out of memory. But if it's that simple, then why do we forget things? Why can't we just pull information out whenever we want it?
Let me describe the problem this way : We all have immediate memory, which covers what happpened within the last minute, and long-term memory, which is anything we remember for a extended period, you want the information to move from immediate memory into long-term memory so that it can be re-called. It if stays in immediate memory, the information will be lost after a minute.
Simple strategies to improve your memory
Most psychologists think long -term memory is unlimited , which means that for the rest of your life you can keep adding information to that memory bank. The keys to the memory improvement stratagies are :
1. Attention
Attention and concentration are what cause information to register in the first place. If you don't really pay attention when you're introduced to people, then their names never really enter either memory bank and won't be there to be recalled when you need them.
2. Meaningfulness
Does what you are memorizing actually make sense to you , or iw it just a jumble of words and sounds?
3. Association
Is the information associated with things you know will make it meaningful?
4. Retrieval practice
You can recall information more easily if you pull it out of memory four or five times instead of just at once. You know your birth date without thinking twice because you've retrieved it countless times.
5. Time
Memories are generally believed to decay over time, so the fresher the thought or activity, the better.
6. Health
Illness saps your strength and isolates you from the outside world which provides mental stimulation and keeps your memory sharp.
7. Self-concept
If you think you're stupid, you won't put forth the effort necessary to remember things. If you're afraid of failing, your anxiety will distract you from the task at hand.
I must just have an awful memory, because I really studied a lot." you say after bombing out on the test. But unless you have a neurological dysfunction or a learning disability, there is no such thing as bad memory - only bad methods for remembring , recalling , and memorizing.
Think of memory as a skill or ability, rather than as a thing. A thing can be bad - like a weak heart or myopic eyes-and there's little you can do about it. A skill, however, can be acquired and improved by learning the right techniques and practicing them. So no matter how bad you think your memory is, it can be helped by using good memorization stratagies.
Before you learn these techniques, you should understand how the mind works.
The biochemical processes by which memory is stored in the brain are too complicated for the layman to grasp, but the basic operation is easy to follow. Memory occurs in three stages: taking information into the brain; holding it there; and pulling it out of memory. But if it's that simple, then why do we forget things? Why can't we just pull information out whenever we want it?
Let me describe the problem this way : We all have immediate memory, which covers what happpened within the last minute, and long-term memory, which is anything we remember for a extended period, you want the information to move from immediate memory into long-term memory so that it can be re-called. It if stays in immediate memory, the information will be lost after a minute.
Simple strategies to improve your memory
Most psychologists think long -term memory is unlimited , which means that for the rest of your life you can keep adding information to that memory bank. The keys to the memory improvement stratagies are :
1. Attention
Attention and concentration are what cause information to register in the first place. If you don't really pay attention when you're introduced to people, then their names never really enter either memory bank and won't be there to be recalled when you need them.
2. Meaningfulness
Does what you are memorizing actually make sense to you , or iw it just a jumble of words and sounds?
3. Association
Is the information associated with things you know will make it meaningful?
4. Retrieval practice
You can recall information more easily if you pull it out of memory four or five times instead of just at once. You know your birth date without thinking twice because you've retrieved it countless times.
5. Time
Memories are generally believed to decay over time, so the fresher the thought or activity, the better.
6. Health
Illness saps your strength and isolates you from the outside world which provides mental stimulation and keeps your memory sharp.
7. Self-concept
If you think you're stupid, you won't put forth the effort necessary to remember things. If you're afraid of failing, your anxiety will distract you from the task at hand.