Memory, Thinking, and Human Intelligence

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Introduction

Currently, we are all living in a world full of information accredited to the advancement in information technology through sophisticated storage devices such as computer systems having very huge memory to store information. However, human intelligence, thinking, and memory are still important in all aspects. Falcon (2002) states, “Human brain is big and endows every human being with unique and remarkable abilities which help them to make sensible decisions, solve many problems and enhance communication through use of sophisticated languages”(p.67). The nature and general function of all types of the human brain are intricate and complex. Thus, analyzing the process of human memory, intelligence and thinking is of grand vitality. Complex issues arise when attempting to measure intelligence, memory, and thinking. The majority of scientists have agreed that human memory should be described in a well-elaborated model, which features a variety of steps. For instance, sensory memory, short-term human memory, and long-term human memory are the major steps.

Steps in the Human Memory Model

The Sensory memory, the first step, captures many things like how people see, smell, and taste. Generally, it records the things that people sense. Kurt (1998) argues that “…the sensory part of human memory is very brief and if one does not send the sensory memory to the short memory; it ends up fading away very quickly” (p.108). Therefore, if a person sees something inestimable, unless his or her attention is captured it is erased immediately once he/she sees another more powerful. The interim human memory though having limited competence lasts longer. It lasts until someone stops imagining other things. For instance, a telephone number frequently used by people remains available in their memory until they stop using it or otherwise think about it. The long-term has unrestrained storage faculty harboring concepts and perceptions that vary with time. It resembles a massive and classy computer hard drive, where a lot of immeasurable information can be stored for a person’s lifetime. Through this memory, all human beings assemble their ideas and experiences reassembling them whenever needed. However, some factors hinder or enhance the information flow in human memory. For instance, “…changes in the human neurotransmitters and hormones, hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, and the human temporal lobe, chronic stress, ageing” (Kurt, 1998, p.110) are some of them.

Factors that Boost or Hamper Information Flow

Chronic stress interferes with the normal body performance displacing some hormones that take glucose into the hippocampus destroying the neuronal system, hence limiting storage capacity and ability in a person and hence poor operation. Aging too affects one’s flow of information decreasing the activity of the hippocampus, temporal lobe, and prefrontal cortex. Ailments such as Alzheimer’s disease or vascular disease produce notable deficits in certain memories. Emotion in a person imprints information flow for a long time especially strong emotional feelings resulting from certain events. For instance, high stress in some individuals completely hinders information flow. Proactive interference and retroactive interferences also affect information flow largely.

Proactive and Retroactive Inference

Proactive inference makes the recently received information gets lost because of incorporating it with the precedent or learned information. Memories tend to inhibit one’s full potential in retaining new information and memories. For instance, if a person’s phone has a password often used, then in case the phone is lost and a new phone is obtained, the person tends to experience difficulties memorizing and remembering the new password because the old password is still ingrained in the brain.

Retroactive inference affects information flow and it occurs when people try to recall things they did in the past. Retroactive interference tends to impede all the performance and recovery of earlier acquired information because of the newly gained and practiced ideas or information. For instance, when one memorizes a particular thing and after a short while memorizes another deeper than the first number, he/she tends to recall the latter because it was practiced many times making the first thing’s retention decrease causing retroactive interference. As Kurt (1998) exposits, “The effects of both proactive and retroactive inferences while one is studying can be counteracted in order to maximize absorption of all the information into the long-term memory” (p.112). This is better achieved through practicing proper learning habits to accumulate all the required information into the brain without interfering with the stored information as well as through proper repetition. Through this, the information learned during the study period is stored properly and used later in repletion to aid in recalling the information. However, there exist many other forms of forgetting such as fading and distortion.

Other Forms of Forgetting

Fading, a form of forgetting occurs when one faces difficulties in recalling the required information from his or her memory because he or she does not use the information. Grasha (1997) states, “…after a period of disusing the information, it tends to be erased or it fades away from the person’s memory” (p.63). On the other hand, distortion occurs when a person recalls flawed or wrong images from their long-term memory. Though the information required is still in the person’s memory, it is very vague thus making it appear the original information. Many strategies can aid in improving the consolidation of memory and retrieval of memory. Among them is repetition, where the nature of information should be repeated from time to time to prevent the information from fading away. In addition, proper storage of the information through other means so that one can confirm about the information he or she doubts about can also bring the targeted improvements.

Reference List

Falcon, C. (2002). Family Desk Reference to Psychology. Ashland: Sensible Psychology Press. Print.

Grasha, A. (1997). Practical Applications of psychology. New York: McGraw-Hill Publishers. Print.

Kurt, D. (1998). Psychology: Theoretical –Historical Perspective. Washington: The American Psychological Association. Print.

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