Psychology 20
Answers to review questions
1. What is the hippocampus and what role does it play in memory?
It is a term meaning “seahorse” and refers to a structure in the temporal lobes (limbic system). It is the gateway to long term memory storage. If it is damaged, the ability to form new memories may be lost.
2. What role does the cerebellum play in memory?
It is where skill memory is formed.
3. How are memories stored and retrieved?
Not as a whole. They are stored in networks so they are broken into pieces and distributed to different places. To remember- you need to recreate the network. If you can remember enough of the little pieces, the rest of the memory can be pulled into consciousness.
4. What are “flashbulb memories”? Are they reliable?
They are vivid memories of surprising or significant events. No, they aren’t, even though they seem so vivid.
5. Which would be a better way for most people to learn a list of words? Use a method that focuses on the form of the word or a method that focuses on the meaning of the word?
Focus on meaning.
6. What three mental processes does memory involve?
Encoding (getting info into our brains)
Storage (retaining it)
Retrieval (getting it back out)
7. What is the difference between automatic and effortful encoding.
Anything we remember without making any effort to remember, like what we ate for breakfast is automatic. Effortful encoding involves effort and attention to encode (like this information about memory).
8. What conclusions did Ebbinghaus make about learning information?
a) The amount remembered depends on the time spent learning, and
b) even after we learn info, repetition increases retention.
9. Explain the following:
a) next-in-line effect Because we’re focusing on our performance, we are less likely to remember info given just before.
b) spacing effect Retain info better when rehearsal is distributed over time. “The mind is slow in unlearning what it has been long in learning.”
c) serial position effect First and last items in a list are remembered better than those in the middle. (If asked for immediate recall, remember last items better. But over time, memory is better for those first items.)
10. T/F? “Learn While You Sleep” tapes work? False, need opportunity for rehearsal (conscious repetition of info).
11. Name and define three things we do unconsciously when we process information.
Levelling - simplifying material (forget details)
Sharpening - highlighting or over emphasizing some details (the size of the gun)
Assimilation - changing details to better fit the subject’s own background or knowledge (a pilot must be a male)
12. Why did Ebbinghaus have problems remembering his 3 letter nonsense words?
It is more difficult to remember info that has no meaning or context. And we forget the majority of what we learn right away. (Forgetting is like a waterfall.)
13. What is another name for short term memory?Working memory or scratch-pad memory
14. About how many bits of information can be held in short term memory? For how long?
7 bits (give or take 2) for about 30 seconds
15. Techniques to enhance memory recall are called mnemonic memory techniques.
16. Name 3 mnemonic techniques that use imagery. Explain each.
Journey method - move through a series of familiar places, in each location place a visual image of the thing to be remembered
Story method - learn info by linking it together into a story (remember 93% as opposed to 15% just studying lists)
Peg word - learn a jingle (One is a bun, two is a shoe, three is a tree, four is a door, five is a hive, six are sticks, seven is heaven, eight is a gate, nine is swine, ten is a hen) then visually connect the peg words to info to be remembered
17. Effortful encoding can be made easier by using meaning, imagery, andorganization .
18. Three ways to organize information arechunking and creating hierarchies or flow charts, and using acronyms
Explain each.
chunking - organize info into meaningful units ie.acronyms - use the first letter of the words to be remembered to create a new word (ie. MOI)
hierarchies - organize info in chart form from general to specific
Memory
Encoding Storage Retrieval
AutomaticEffortful
MeaningImagery Organization
Chunking Hierarchies Acronyms
19. What is iconic memory?
Our fleeting photographic memory, for a split second our eyes register an exact representation, but fades very quickly
20. What is echoic memory?
An auditory memory, also fades quickly, but a partially interpreted echo disappears more slowly (last few spoken words seem to linger for 3 or 4 seconds)
21. Who is Clive Wearing? What happened to him? As a result, what is life like for him now?
He was a world class musician, now he is a famous case study in psychology. He had encephalitis (swelling in his brain) that damaged both his hippocampi and part of his frontal lobe. Now he can’t remember his past or any other information and can’t form any new memories so it feels like he is waking up for the first time over and over again.
22. There are two types of long term memory. Name them and describe them.
Each of them has two sub-types. Name and describe each of the sub-types.
Long term memory is everything you know about the world and yourself; it is unlimited. There are 4 types: Semantic, Episodic, Procedural, Dispositional
Explicit Implicit
-with conscious recall -without conscious recall
SemanticEpisodic Procedural Dispositional
(facts)(personal experiences) (Skills - motor & cognitive) (Effects of
conditioning)
Semantic - Wearing couldn’t remember how to play the piano
Episodic – He couldn’t remember playing the piano
Procedual – He could play the piano
Dispositional – He could still dress himself and drink coffee
23. What operation was performed on Henry M.? Why?
Removal of part of his temporal lobe. To control his seizures.
24. What areas of the brain were removed? What was the result?
His hippocampus and amygdala. He couldn’t form any new long term memories.
25. What was Karl Lashley’s goal in teaching rats mazes and then removing part of their cortexes?
He was trying to find the memory engram (location where memory is stored).
26. What contribution to psychology did Henry M. make?
We learned that the hippocampus was necessary in order to make new memories (and that the study of memory was possible).
27.T/F? Eyewitness testimony is reliable.
False.
28. Three types of retrieval of information arerecall,recognition , and ability to relearn more quickly . Multiple choice questions test your recognition. Fill in the blank questions test your recall .
29. Define pro-active interference. Give an example.
Something learned earlier prevents recall of something learned later. ie, can’t remember this year’s locker combo, only last year’s
30. Define retro-active interference. Give an example.
New info learned makes it harder to remember earlier info ie, study for spanish after french and can’t remember the french
31. You are a memory expert and you’ve been asked to write a brief paper about how best to study. (You should have an intro and conclusion and your thoughts organized in sentences and paragraphs.)
Study repeatedly to boost recall (not just 1x before a test)
Spend more time rehearsing or actively thinking about the material (skimming notes doesn’t help recall, don’t just read over notes)
Make material personally meaningful (put it into own words, relate it to what you already know,make sure you understand it, teach it to someone else)
Organize the info (use flow charts, acronyms, chunk the info)
Use other mnemonics (imagery techniques like journey, story, or peg methods)
Activate retrieval cues, go back in your mind to where, when, mood learning took place in
Minimize interference - don’t study similar subjects together, study 1 hr. before sleep so have time to process it
Get a good night’s sleep – Sleep is necessary for memories to strengthen.
Test your own knowledge - esp. if must recall info, not just recognize, take practice tests, fill in an outline, can help you focus on what you don’t know.
Sleep Questions
1.Until the 1950’s sleep was thought to be a necessary period of inactivity.
2.In total, there are5 (4 and REM) stages of sleep.
3.In which stage of sleep are you most likely to experience a falling sensation? 1st stage
4.T/F? Some people don’t dream. F When woken from REM sleep most people will report dreaming even if they don’t believe that they dream
5.What does REM stand for? Rapid Eye Movement
6.During REM sleep, the brain is active , but the muscles are relaxed paralyzed).
7.The bursts of rapid brain activity in stage 2 are called “sleep spindles “.
8.The sleep cycle repeats itself approximately every90 minutes.
9.Stage 3 of sleep lasts approximately 3 minutes.
10.Which stage is characterized by mostly delta waves? Stage 4
11.In which stage does the body slow down, breathing and pulse decrease and temperature drops? Stage 3
12.In which stage does sleepwalking and night terrors occur? Stage 4
13.Sleep talking is most likely to occur in this stage: 2
14.T/F? Sleepwalkers are acting out their dreams. F
15.T/F? Night terrors are the same as nightmares. F
16.T/F? Alpha waves are associated with REM sleep. F
17.T/F? REM periods get longer as the night goes on. T
18.25 % of the night’s sleep is spent in REM sleep.
19.The sleep stage associated with dreaming isREM .
20.T/F? Stage 4 is also called deep sleep. T
21.Which stage of sleep follows REM sleep? Stage 2
22.Why is REM called “paradoxical sleep”? Because brain active but body limp
23.Besides the rapid eye movement and limp body, name three physical changes during this stage. heart beat and breathing rate increase, blood pressure rises, face and fingers twitch,
24.Describe the character of dreams during the REM stage as compared to dreams at other stages. Have storyline and emotional, in stage 1 like hallucinations (vivid images), in other stages dreams not as vivid more realistic
25.Babies sleep 16 hours a day and spend abouthalf in REM sleep.
26.Name one major world disaster. How did fatigue contribute to this disaster? Exxon Valdez-captain had only 4 hours sleep when ran aground Chernobyl -after midnight and made decision to bypass a safety function. Challenger space shuttle - key engineers working with only a few hours for several nights in a row.
27.How much sleep is recommended for adults? 7.5 to 8 hours
28.How much sleep is recommended for teens? 9 to 10 hours
29.What physical effects does chronic sleep deprivation have on people?
Diabetes obesity, heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, (mental – impaired memory, attention, judgement, reaction time)
30.The latest research suggests that while sleeping our brain is busy processing the day’s information.A night of sleep can make memories resistant to interference from other information and allow us to recall them for use more effectively the next morning.
31.T/F? Sleep is vital for learning and memory.
True.
32.T/F? REM sleep is the only important stage for strengthening learning.
False. Deep sleep (slow wave sleep) is equally important.
33.T/F? While we sleep, our brains are finding connections between information even when we aren’t aware of the connections.
True.