Memory and Cognition

Question 1

Cognition relates to

Answer 1

the highest order of brain function and to behaviour that deals with thought processing

Question 2

Cognition describes the integration of

Answer 2

all sensory information to make sense of a situation

Question 3

What is neuronal plasticity?

Answer 3

The ability of central neurons to adapt their neuronal connections in response to learning experiences

Question 4

Where are memories stored and formed?

Answer 4

Stored in cortex

Formed in limbic system

Question 5

What are the distinct areas of the limbic system?

Answer 5

Hypothalamus
Hippocampus
Cingulate gyrus
Amygdala

Question 6

Functions of the ares of the limbic system

Answer 6

Responsible for instinctive behaviour e.g. drive for thirst, hunger etc.
Important in emotive behaviours

Question 7

Motivation to learn comes from

Answer 7

gaining a reward or avoiding punishment

Question 8

Memory recall depends on

Answer 8

the significance of the event

Question 9

The limbic system is responsible for

Answer 9

selecting what experiences are stored in the memory

Question 10

Almost all sensory information goes through

Answer 10

the hippocampus, which in turn relays information to other limbic systems

Question 11

The hippocampus is central to

Answer 11

learning and the formation of memories

Question 12

Consequence of bilateral hippocampal damage

Answer 12

Immediate sensory memory and long-term memory intact, but unable to form new long-term memories
Reflexive memory stays intact

Question 13

Memory can be divided into

Answer 13

Immediate (sensory) memory
Short-term memory
Immediate long-term memory
Long-term memory

Question 14

Describe immediate/sensory memory

Answer 14

Ability to hold experiences in the mind for a few seconds
Based on different sensory modalities
Visual memories decay fastest, auditory ones slowest

Question 15

Describe short-term memory

Answer 15

Lasts seconds-hours
Used for short-term tasks e.g. dialling phone number, mental arithmetic
Associated with reverberating circuits

Question 16

Describe immediate long-term memory

Answer 16

Lasts hours-weeks
Associated with chemical adaptation at the presynaptic terminal
e.g. what you did last weekend

Question 17

Describe long-term memory

Answer 17

Lasts hours-lifetime
Associated with structural changes in synaptic connections
e.g. where you grew up, childhood friends

Question 18

Two types of long-term memory

Answer 18

Declarative/Explicit

Procedural/Reflexive/Implicit

Question 19

Describe declarative/explicit memory

Answer 19

Abstract memory for events, words, rules and language

Based mainly in the hippocampus

Question 20

Describe procedural memory

Answer 20

Acquired slowly through repetition
Includes motor memory for acquired motor skills and rule-based learning
Mainly based in cerebellum

Question 21

Short-term memory depends on

Answer 21

maintained excitation from reverberating circuits

Question 22

What occurs if a short-term memory is determined to be significant in the reverberating circuit?

Answer 22

Consolidation into long-term memory storage

Question 23

What occurs if a short-term memory is determined to be insignificant in the reverberating circuit?

Answer 23

Reverbation fades, no consolidation occurs

Question 24

Presentation of the refreshing effect of reverberation being interrupted e.g. due to a head injury

Answer 24

Amnesia

Question 25

What is retrograde amnesia?

Answer 25

The inability to remember events leading up to the injury

Recall of events that happened a long time ago usually unaffected

Question 26

How does retrograde amnesia usually present?

Answer 26

With anterograde amnesia

Occurs only with retrograde amnesia if only the thalamus is damages and hippocampus is spared

Question 27

Memory requires the ability to

Answer 27

store and search memories

Question 28

What is anterograde amnesia?

Answer 28

Inability to recall events following an injury

Can be short lived or permanent

Question 29

Destruction of the hippocampus results in

Answer 29

permanent inability to form new memories

Question 30

Structural changes at the synapses involved in long-term memory

Answer 30

Increase in number of neurotransmitter release sites on presynaptic membrane
Increase in number of neurotransmitter vesicles stored and released
Increase in number of presynaptic terminals

Question 31

What is often observed in the post-synaptic cell in long-term memory formation

Answer 31

Greater change in graded membrane potential
Strengthens the synapse - long-term potentiation
Forms basis of learning and memory

Question 32

Short-term memory is converted to long-term memory through

Answer 32

consolidation

Question 33

Consolidation involves

Answer 33

selective strengthening of synaptic connection through repetition

Question 34

During consolidation, memory exists as

Answer 34

electrical activity, so is vulnerable to being wiped

Question 35

What part of the brain assesses the significance of an event in short-term memory?

Answer 35

The frontal cortex and its association with the reward/punishment centres in the limbic system

Question 36

New memories are coded and stored in

Answer 36

the sensory and association areas of the cortex

Question 37

Coding results in memories being stored where?

Answer 37

Alongside other existing memories that the brain deems similar

Question 38

Subjects deprived of REM sleep show impairment of

Answer 38

memory consolidation for complex cognitive tasks