By: Angeli Fetizanan
Memory, a seemingly innocuous process of storing information within the human brain, is arguably one of the most important functions that allows us to exist as conscious beings. Encoding information allows us to recognize our family, remember our childhood, learn from our mistakes, and, most importantly, develop an understanding of who we are. Without memory, every moment would exist independently from the last, leaving us in a constant state of unfamiliarity. The human brain contains approximately 86 billion neurons, yet somehow, within this incomprehensibly complex organ, information can be encoded, stored, and retrieved years after it was first experienced. This raises one simple question that has fascinated scientists and citizens alike for centuries.
How does memory actually work?
The process of memory begins with encoding, which is essentially the brain’s method of transforming information from our surroundings into something that can be stored. Every second, our senses are bombarded with an enormous amount of information. We see objects, hear sounds, smell different scents, and experience physical sensations, yet the brain cannot possibly remember all of them. Instead, our attention determines which pieces of information are important enough to process. For example, while sitting in a classroom, you may hear the teacher speaking, feel the chair beneath you, notice the lights above you, and hear people moving around the room. However, if you are paying attention to the lesson, your brain is more likely to encode the teacher’s words than the sound of someone tapping their pencil.
Once information has been encoded, it can move into storage. Memory is generally divided into several different systems, including sensory memory, short-term or working memory, and long-term memory. Sensory memory lasts for an extremely brief period, allowing the brain to momentarily retain information from the senses. Working memory, on the other hand, allows us to temporarily hold and manipulate information. When someone tells you a phone number, and you repeat it in your head long enough to type it, you are using working memory. Long-term memory is considerably more durable and can preserve information for days, years, or even an entire lifetime.
However, remembering something is not simply a matter of information being placed into a permanent mental filing cabinet. Memory must also be retrieved. Retrieval occurs whenever we attempt to bring previously stored information back into our conscious awareness. Remembering your friend’s name, recalling what you ate yesterday, or answering a question on a test all require retrieval. Interestingly, retrieval can sometimes fail even when the information is technically still stored within the brain. This is why you can know that you know a word but be completely unable to produce it at the moment.
Memory is also remarkably vulnerable to change. Every time we remember something, the memory can potentially be altered by new information, emotions, or our interpretation of the event. This means that human memory is not necessarily a perfect recording of the past. Instead, it is a reconstruction of previous experiences, rebuilt by the brain whenever we recall them.
