The Basics of Memory

            Memory is essential in every human life. We use it in everything we do- from remembering how to walk and talk to remembering a best friend's phone number. Memory is very complex and not everything is known about it. The stage model of memory, which states that memory is transferred from one stage to another, helps us understand how our memory works. The stage model of memory contains three stages: sensory memory, short term memory, and long-term memory. .
             Sensory memory holds information received immediately from a person's senses into the human brain. The information is stored for just an instant and is relatively unprocessed. The duration of sensory memory depends on what type of memory is being taken in. Iconic memory, visual memory, lasts less than one second. Echoic memory, auditory memory, lasts less than four seconds. After receiving the information, the brain quickly decides if it will be processed enough to remain in short term memory or if it will be discarded.
             Short-term memory contains information that we are actively using. Also known as working memory, this stage holds information from sensory memory and long-term memory. Short-term memory has two important characteristics. First, short-term memory can contain at any one time seven, plus or minus two, "chunks" of information. Second, items remain in short-term memory around thirty seconds.
             Information that remains in the brain for more than a few minutes is transferred to long term memory. It allows information to be retrieved even after it has been stored in the brain and out of human consciousness for a long period of time. Its duration is unlimited. Some scientists believe that information in this stage is stored permanently, though others believe that with time memory pathways deteriorate.
             There are three steps in processing the information we put into our brains. The first, encoding, turns information into a form that can be stored in the memory.