MEMORY
PAGE 1 OF 5 — NOT A VIDEO TAPE
RECONSTRUCTION
NOT A RECORDING!
Many people picture memory like a video camera that stores perfect clips of the past. Science shows something very different. Memory is reconstruction, not replay. When you remember, your brain rebuilds the event from scattered pieces, using clues, feelings, and what you expect to be true. Each time you recall something, you can slightly change the memory itself. That is why two people can remember the same day in different ways, and why confident memories can still be wrong.
⚡ DID YOU KNOW?
Ancient Greeks used the method of loci, imagining a familiar path and placing facts along it, to remember long speeches. Tricks like rhymes and stories still help us encode information today.
REBUILD!
SENSORY
👁️ Sensory memory: a split-second snapshot
🔊 Holds sights and sounds very briefly
🔊 Holds sights and sounds very briefly
WORKING & LONG-TERM
🧠 Working memory: holds a few items now
📚 Long-term memory: vast store for years
📚 Long-term memory: vast store for years