What is Memory?

Memory can be defined as a large database containing the data of many things we learn, hear, see and experience from childhood until now.

Why Memories Differ?

One person’s memory of the same event is very different from another’s. The reason for this is that something is not imprinted in memory in the same way as taking a picture. There is a process created by the brain to retain something in memory, which is unique to each person.

Where is Memory Stored?

Our brain is usually the main control center of our body. Most of the activities take place with the intervention of the brain. Our memory is stored in the region of the brain called the hippocampus. The amygdala, cerebellum, and prefrontal cortex are some of the other parts of the brain that are involved with our memory. But it is difficult to say that memory is stored only in one specific part of the brain.

Memory and Aging

It is a common belief among many that memory weakens with age. But really, memory loss does not happen when you get old like that. Brain function depends on oxygen consumption and blood supply. There, the memory power of a healthy 70-year-old and a 20-year-old should be almost the same.

But we do know that a younger person is generally better at learning than an older person. Otherwise, it takes a long time for an old person to understand something. The reason is that with age, more time is consumed to learn something new. That means speed is the problem.

Types of Memory

There are main three types of memories such as; sensory memory, short term memory and long term memory. Sensory Memory is built on pieces of information from our senses such as smell, taste, sound, sight, and touch. This one piece will be stored for a maximum of 10 seconds until the next piece arrives. Sensory information is examined and filtered, and transformed into memory only if it is of particular significance.

The second one is ‘Short Term Memory‘ which is also known as ‘Working Memory’. In this, the information will remain between 10 and maximum 20 seconds. Also, it usually retains no more than 7 chunks of information at a time. What happens when you read a sentence and by the time you get to the end of it you’ve forgotten the beginning of it? We have to read the sentence again from the beginning. So when we read the rest of the sentence, the first parts of the sentence are retained through this short term memory.

The third one is ‘Long Term Memory‘. This can be divided into two sub parts; implicit memory and explicit memory. If you are looking to improve your learning, you should focus on improving this long-term memory.

Implicit memory is what stores the new skills we learn. For example, after we learn to ride a bicycle once, or after we learn to swim, we will not forget it even if we do not do it for many years. This is how the new skills we learn remain in our memory even after a long time.

The data that we recollect until today in our life remains as explicit memory. It is because of this explicit memory that we can recall certain things when we need them.

8 Ways to Improve Memory

01. Eat Well

We can never underestimate the food we eat. Because the food we eat contributes a lot to maintaining our overall health. The brain is susceptible to oxidation, antioxidants are important. Foods containing vitamins C, E, carotenoids, selenium contain antioxidants.

Broccoli, carrots, cabbage, spinach, whole grains, vegetable oil, soybeans contain vitamins. Fatty fish like sardines, tuna, mackerel, salmon contain omega-3. And other fruits like apple, orange, pears, and oats, leafy greens are good for the health.

02. Reduce the Stress

Reducing stress is very important because it can negatively affect many aspects of life. It is useless to teach this incompletely. We have already written 15 scientific methods to reduce stress in a previous article. You are invited to read the article by following this link.

03. Sleep Well

In our busy lifestyles, we work hard throughout the day. For that, we release a lot of energy from our body throughout the day. A healthy sleep is essential for us to regain that lost energy and to start the day fresh.

In general, you should sleep at least 6 hours a day, but experts say that you should sleep between 8 or 10 hours a day for a truly healthy sleep.

04. Organize Information

Information that is arranged in an orderly manner can be grasped and retained better in memory than a bunch of scattered information. So when you are studying or trying to remember something, you will be able to easily retain it in your memory, keep it in your memory for a long time, and recall quickly by organizing all the data in an orderly manner,

05. Improve Concentration

Remove all distractions around you while studying. You can remember it very well only if you focus properly. It is difficult to store what is needed in memory while doing something else. So pay full attention to what is relevant. Even in a lecture, by giving good attention to the things said, those facts can be stored in the memory more clearly.

06. Visualize

This is a very effective trick that you can try. Visualize what you read and listen to. When you study, it will be easier to remember if you store it in your mind as a creatively visualized picture rather than trying to remember it as raw data.

07. Recall to Improve Memory

It doesn’t matter how many things we remember, if we don’t recall them often. The things we store in our memory are gradually forgotten over time. They stay in our memory for a long only by repeatedly recalling those facts.

08. Remember the General Information

Although these devices may provide us with great convenience in the digital world, they also harm us as well. We used to write down the list of things to buy from the store in the past, but today we carry a note on the phone.

It’s easy for us, but why don’t we try to remember at least 10 items from that list in our memory? Try to do it from today. Also, try to remember things like phone numbers of your closest friends. Also, try to remember the number plates of your car, your best friend’s car, and your neighbors’ cars. It helps to improve memory.