We often believe that we forget things that are not important but in actuality, the memories are stored deep inside. According to Benedict Carey in the
New York Times, the brain stores memories that happened before an emotional moment such as embarrassment or disappointment occurred. Why trivial memories are stored in the brain is studied in Carey's article, "How the Brain Stores Trivial Memories, Just in Case."
In older research, it was found that in animals and humans when it came to the effects of memory that it made past memories stronger when something was happening now which recalled them. This is called retroactive consolidation. Though, researchers are not sure what emotional events trigger retroactive consolidation nor the limit of time memories go back to. Another study done at New York University where over 100 participants sat at a computer and had to decide whether the photographs belonged to the tools or animals category. A couple minutes later, the same test was given but one group was given electric shocks when they placed photographs in the tools category and vice versa with animals. The test was given again but as a surprise. One group who took it immediately after showed that they remembered tools and animals the same. The other groups who took it a couple hours or days later showed that they remembered 7% more items from the category they were shocked in. This experiment showed that the memories were strengthened by the electric shock.
This study brings many questions when it comes to what affects memory. One thing that researchers wish to know is whether there is a timing difference when it comes to how long the memories can be stored. What is interesting about this study is that the electric shock was administered not to be painful but only to make the participant feel uncomfortable. This brings questions in whether PTSD victims keep the memories until recalled just as this experiment.
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/22/health/study-shows-brain-stores-seemingly-trivial-memories-just-in-case.html
This is a very interesting post, definitely the part at the end about what the information of the research might implicate for patients with PTSD. This is very relatable because it is noticeable that we, as humans, tend to remember traumatic things more easily for the most part. It is interesting because it is a type of episodic memory that people find easy to recall the details of and it is cool that the study was able to use scientific data and experiments to back up the fact that the phenomenon happens, enough to give it a name. This is cool because hopefully leaning more about retroactive consolidation can later help with treatment for PTSD and maybe also be used as a way to enhance memory in general.
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ReplyDeleteI find this post very interesting and think that it emphasizes the "Darwinian" aspects of human life and the human brain. Perhaps we remember traumatic things more easily and with greater expertise because we use what we have learned from those memories in order to strengthen our survival. I think the "just in case" model that the article mentioned is interesting too and provides insight on how retroactive consolidation can be used as a tool to remember relevant information and whether it is possible to filter out everything else. I think it would also be interesting to explore these findings with not only PTSD but also anxiety disorders that are often treated with exposure therapy - such as various phobias, social anxiety, and OCD. It would be interesting to compare subjects that fit into these different groups and see if there is a correlation with retroactive consolidation and a specific emotion. To use these findings and then apply them in a clinical setting would be a huge feat.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of memory is so interesting to me. There are so many other factors that go into storing and retaining memories and these factors also affect them, such as the electric shock. It is true that more traumatic or emotional memories are easier to remember than just an ordinary memory. Perhaps these findings and more research will lead to finding a coping mechanism for people overcoming fears and anxieties.
ReplyDeleteThe idea of memory has many what if possibilities. The researches test on emotional events affecting memory reminds me the idea of context dependent memory. Context dependent memory is how our environment affects how we encode information we are aiming to put to our long term store. In the researcher’s study, we are told that the 100 participants are given task under normal conditions. Afterwards, they are broken up where half take the test under the same normal conditions and the other half are place in a different environmental state. This shift in the environment exemplifies how the brain is not under the same conditions when taking the test the first time, effectively altering the results of the test when taking it the second time. I wonder what would happen should this experiment would to have been replicated, only we give the initial test under normal and electric shock conditions by breaking the groups up in half throughout the entire experiment to keep the conditions constant throughout. Would we see the same results from the electric shock experiment test subjects during the before and after test if the environmental condition were to remain constant? Under the idea of context dependent memory, I would argue yes.
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ReplyDeleteThis is an interesting article. The first thing that came to mind when I was reading it was its applicability to eye witness testimony in court. We discussed the unreliability of eye witness testimony due to the our fallible memory and our tendency to unintentionally fill in the gap with manufactured memories, especially in moments of intense emotions. A possible explanation for the disparity between the people in this study and eye witnesses is that the emotional response from an witness at the scene of a crime is a lot stronger than an uncomfortable feeling. It seems as though there is a threshold where an emotional event would make the event easier to recall. It would be interesting to expand upon this with by manipulating a more intense emotional response, in that way it would be more applicable to PTSD as well.