summary: The study shows how the element of surprise helps facilitate learning and memory retrieval.
Source: Manchester University
A study by neuroscientists from the University of Manchester on the effect of surprise on our memory has unwittingly discovered a method that can help us perform better on exams.
in the study, published in Journal of Neuroscience26 people were shown pictures of objects that were either natural, such as fruit, trees and flowers, or man-made, such as a computer mouse and telephone.
In the study, scientists trained participants to expect man-made or natural objects using cues such as a triangle or square. The whole experiment was then repeated with another 24 people who had a functional MRI scan to reveal which areas of the brain were used to learn and retrieve information.
When an expected event—such as a triangle before a man-made object—followed a similar but unexpected event—a triangle before a natural object—the participants’ memory was boosted.
The second study in an MRI scanner gave exactly the same behavioral results, and showed activation in the brain’s hippocampus—the memory center, midbrain regions—which release dopamine, and the occipital cortex—the center of vision. In contrast, the sequence of two unexpected identical events also triggered visual areas in the brain, but did not increase memory performance.
Lead author Dr. Daria Frank said, “We already know that if expectation is violated before or during learning, it triggers an adaptive mechanism that results in better memory for unexpected events. This experiment shows that How the system is affected when we are trying to get information.”
The hippocampus encodes or forms memories, but also retrieves memories. With only a finite amount of resources to allocate to either one, the two mechanisms are in conflict. So when something unexpected happens, our brain focuses on the external environment so that it can learn something new, something that it did not expect in the beginning.
Scientists already know that surprise turns on the way the brain learns, add the link. However, the current study is the first to examine how the brain uses mechanisms when we are trying to retrieve information.
Dr. Frank continued, “While our study did not assess the impact of these findings on test revision and performance, it is reasonable to look at its implications.
“So when the goal is to retrieve information – encountering surprising events such as modifications in a cafe or other unfamiliar surroundings – will engage an encoding mechanism that can enhance memory for future examination.
“But the opposite is also true: When trying to recall something already learned during an exam, a familiar and expected environment can be helpful, and can aid in deriving information from memory.”
About this learning and memory research news
Author: Press Office
Source: Manchester University
contact: Press Office – University of Manchester
image: Image is in public domain
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Basic Research: closed access.
“Experiencing Surprise: The Temporal Dynamics of Its Impact on Memory” by Darya Frank et al. Journal of Neuroscience
essence
Experience wonder: the temporal dynamics of its effect on memory
To process information efficiently, the brain alternates between encoding and retrieval states, prioritizing bottom-up or top-down processing accordingly. Expectation violations before or during learning have been shown to trigger an adaptive encoding mechanism, resulting in improved memory for unexpected events.
Using fMRI, we explored (1) whether this encoding mechanism is also triggered during retrieval, and if so, (2) what is the temporal dynamics of its mnemonic consequences. Male and female participants studied object images, then, as with new objects, they learned a contingency between a cue and a semantic category. Rule-observing (expected) and violation (unexpected) targets and similar foils were used in testing.
We found interactions between past and present expectations of similar events, such that when an expected event followed a similar but unexpected event, its performance was promoted by activation in the hippocampus, midbrain, and occipital cortex. Conversely, the sequence of two unexpected similar events also triggered occipital engagement; However, this did not increase memory performance.
Taken together, our findings suggest that when the goal is to retrieve, encountering surprising events engages an encoding mechanism, supported by bottom-up processing, for future-related events. Can increase memory.
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