Science T4 Week 7

Question 1

What is Working Memory

Answer 1

• memory which contains information that can be actively recalled consciously at any point in time

Question 2

Working M-O-M

Answer 2

• four separate but interdependent stages
• reliant on each other to work together

These are:

• Phonological Loop
• Visuospatial Sketchpad
• The Central Executive
• The Episodic Buffer

Question 3

Phonological Loop

Answer 3

• auditory short-term memory
• allows us to understand a sentence of more than a few words when heard
• retains words from the beginning to the end of the sentence

Question 4

Visuospatial Sketchpad

Answer 4

• visual short-term memory

- the storage space used to store and process info in the visual or spatial form

Question 5

The Central Executive

Answer 5

• most important component of the model
• combines the Phonological Loop and the Visuospatial Sketchpad
• controls our attention, allowing for mental manipulation of material

Question 6

3 Main Functions of the CE

Answer 6

Inhibition
- screens out irrelevant information

Switching
- changes attention from one item to another

Updating
- modifies info from L-T memory and recommits them to memory via the Episodic Buffer

Question 7

Episodic Buffer

Answer 7

• assists in retrieving info from L-T memory to associate with information in the W-M
• selects and encodes info from W-M to L-T Memory in conjunction with the CE