Long-Term Memory Creation

When we study about memory in organism, we can use separate point of view. We can study the memory using the cognitive psychology, cognitive neurology or any other standpoints. From the perspective of cognitive psychology, at least we can group memory in three categories, sensory register, Short-Term Memory (Stm) and Long-Term Memory (Ltm).

After perceived by one of the senses, a stimulus then passed to the sensory register for the organism to recognize the coming stimulus. The memory created by sensory register is very short in period hence very easy to decay. One example of this kind of memory is iconic memory, which perceived by visual sense, organism's eyes.

After passing the sensory register, the next phase is the Short-Term Memory (Stm). Many studies done in the past to precisely understand the significance of Short-Term Memory. One of the studies being done by Allan Baddeley (Baddeley, A. D. (1997). Human Memory: system and Practice. 2nd ed. Hove, Sussex: psychology Press) when he came up with the new term, working memory to report Short-Term Memory. As its name suggested, this kind of memory is also short in duration, but organisms, especially human do need this kind of memory to realize studying process. Take for example, when we want to reason 58 + 79. Any strategies that you use to reason the above example will want the working memory. Say you're using the strategy of calculating 8 + 9 first and then you write down the 7 and memorize the 1 to be calculated later with 5 and 7.

The last kind of memory is Long-Term Memory (Ltm). As represented by the name, this kind of memory has the longest duration. Long-term memory can be classified into two groups, declarative and procedural memory. Declarative memory is the kind of memory, which want you to declare, such as fact or information that is precisely leading to the individuals, e.g. Names and other personal information. Other type of Long-Term Memory is procedural memory. This kind memory requires individuals to accomplish the memory in unavoidable procedure. An example of this kind of memory is the skill of riding a bike. Once you able to ride a bike, you will remember for the rest of your life.

Organisms learn by production relationship in the middle of concepts. When an organisms want to learn the new concepts and make them part of Long-Term Memory, the new concepts should be connected with the concepts in the Long-Term Memory. This mechanism is happened straight through learning.

From the cognitive neurology point of view, we know that in our brain the part that is mostly responsible for studying is neurons. Human brain is composed of million of neurons. Other cells, glial cells that are the white matter in the brain, are nurturing these neurons. These glial cells are a lot bigger in numbers than the neurons. Practically speaking we can say the ratio in the middle of neurons and glial cells is 1: 10.

When information distributed from one part of the brain to Other part what precisely happen is that one neuron releasing neurotransmitter, a chemical substance that contains exact information straight through the relationship in the middle of neuron, synapse. Other neuron in turn receives this neurotransmitter. This replacement of neurotransmitter generate electricity, which can be observed straight through brain scanning machine such as Eeg (Electrode Encephalo Graph). This phenomenon happens because of the relationship in the middle of neuron what we called as synapse. In our head there are million of synapse that connecting one neuron to another.

At these synapses, new protein being synthesized which is part of creating Long-Term Memory. This phenomenon for the very first time is being able to be observed by Sam Kunes. The synthesis was observed in fruit files and occurred as the files learned to join together an odor with an galvanic shock. Molecular biologist Sam Kunes said his term "found a new biochemical pathway that determines if and where this protein synthesis happens." Using fluorescent markers, Kunes could see synapses modified after exposure to the odor. The altered synapse meant the contrast in the middle of remembering something for an hour-a short-term memory a day, which is long-term for a fruit fly.

Because the basic buildings of this biochemical pathway is the same in mice and humans, Kunes believes these findings will lead to a better understanding of how memory works in higher animals-and could at last ensue in therapies to bolster fading recall, e.g. Alzheimer.