Topic > Understanding how human memory works

Human memory remains an interesting research topic for psychologists. Typically, humans live in the present. However, the past constitutes an integral component of life, and this makes memory a fundamental element in daily operations. According to Zimmerman and Kelley (2010), remembering past and recent events involves complex mental processes that integrate multiple complex domains of the brain. Our memory is not a physical object nor a component of our body; rather, it is composed of past events and the meaning attributed to them. The ability to store past memories of experiences constitutes our memory. The work done by the brain involves processing information and classifying each piece based on its importance. The ability to break down information into multiple relevant and irrelevant pacts ensures that the most relevant information is stored. Consequently, human memory consists of the complex process of perceiving and memorizing events. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Schwabe and Wolf (2010) state that without memory it is not possible to learn. Memory is the internal mental record that allows people to access personal and past events. The human brain captures synthetic information from the environment and stores it for future use. The encoding of personal experiences or information embodies a mental process that allows the retrieval of information from the various compartments of the brain. Scientists suggest that the hippocampus in the brainstem is the center where information is stored. Our brain has the ability to remember fragments of information and to discriminate such information where the most relevant data is retained appropriately (Wimer & Shohamy, 2012). Human memory is the basis of the learning process; learning occurs through the retention of information. The process of recollection begins with the perception of things or people. Depending on how the object or individual relates to another entity, noticeable clear or unclear memory retention is noted. The process of human memory involves the perception of various tastes, retention and retrieval of information. From tastes, sounds, smells or sights, human memory captures the distinctive feature of the object and stores it in the subconscious. The senses include various elements that make up perception. Since there is a lot of information in the environment and not all of it is remembered, the human brain is able to classify different information and retain the most valuable ones. These fragments of information make up human memory. According to Farrell (2012), the distance in time, relevance and sensitivity of events to an individual determines how long information will be retained. For example, the loss of a relative is likely to be remembered for a longer period than a football match. The process of retrieving information from the memory compartment depends on the impact of events on an individual. Some events are remembered instantly while others may take time as the information is retained depending on the extent of the effects they have on an individual. In summary, the reliability of human memory depends on an individual's health status. Aside from the mentally ill, ordinary people will instantly remember all relevant information almost instantaneously. Passing an exam, for example, demonstrates the ability to recover the contents learned and regurgitate them on paper. In addition to exams, a good memory allows people to, 62(3), 240–253.