“Have you seen my car keys?” Maintaining and Improving Memory

1. Google Images “Have you seen my car keys?”Maintaining and Improving Memory Jane Strommen, Ph.D., Extension Gerontology Specialist Amy Lick, B.S., Extension Student Intern

2. The Human Brain

3. True or False? Memory abilities will decline in older adulthood so much that it will affect day-to-day living.

4. What is memory? It’s retention of information through time. It is essential for learning.

5. True or False? Forgetfulness is the top health concern for baby boomers.

6. Forgetfulness is Normal Forgetting where you left the car keys is one thing; forgetting what they do is quite another.

7. Human Memory Processing • Encoding: getting information into memory • Paying attention to sensory information • Consolidation and storage: how information is represented and kept in memory • Short-term and long-term memory • Retrieval: getting information back out of memory • Recall and recognition

8. Information is saved on the computer Hard drive Stored material is located and opened Computer Memory Analogy EncodingStorageRetrieval

9. Types of Memory • Sensory: input stage; taking information from our senses: hearing, touch, smell, sight, taste • Short-term: the small amount of information we can hold in our mind at any one moment • Short-term memories are fleeting and turn over at a high rate. • If you pay attention, the information, such as remembering a phone number long enough to write it down, moves into the working memory.

10. Sensory input Memory Diagram Sensory memory Short-term and working memory Long-term memory Information not processed Forgetting Forgetting

11. Group Activity: Digit Span Test Listen carefully and then write down as many numbers as you can remember immediately after hearing each string.

12. Digit Span Test 1-7-3 5-8-2-6 7-2-8-9-3 4-1-7-9-3-8-6 5-8-1-9-2-6-4-7 2-7-5-8-6-2-5-8-4 5-8-2-4-7-9-1-3-2-2 9-9-1-5-8-4-1-3-5-7-9-2

13. Short-term Memory • Capacity is five to nine “chunks” • Only lasts 10 to 15 seconds without rehearsal • Only will be encoded into long-term memory and be available for retrieval if one is motivated or interested in remembering it

14. Short-term Memory and Age Capacity, especially working memory, shrinks with age Affected by speed of processing and attention Google Images

15. Sensory input Memory Diagram Sensory memory Short-term and working memory Long-term memory Information not processed Forgetting Forgetting

16. Types of Memory • Long-term: Our memory bank; information is stored so we can retrieve it later • Recall: retrieval of information without external aids or cues • Remembering someone’s name • Recognition: retrieval of information with external aids; identifying information as previously presented • Multiple choice on a test

17. Types of Content in Long-term Memory • Procedure (implicit) memory • Automatic and subconscious • Includes skills and how to do things • Declarative (explicit) memory • Conscious recollection of facts and experiences

18. Procedural Memory • Examples include riding a bike or tying your shoes • These memories are retrieved effortlessly • Does not decline with age

19. Declarative Memory We have two types of declarative memory: • Episodic memory • Specific event or episode, such as remembering a family vacation taken last year • Semantic memory • Refers to meaning of words or concepts, such as knowing the capitol of South Dakota or the definition of a word Declarative memory is retrieved with effort and declines with age; however, decline in semantic memory is much less substantial than for episodic memory.

20. Long-term Memory and Age • Less able to retrieve information without retrieval support • Have more difficulty getting information out of long-term memory Google Images

21. Group Activity: Part A Verbal Learning • Listen carefully to this list of 15 words. Right after I read them, write down as many of the words as you can remember, in any order. • Take a minute and write down as many words as you can remember.

22. Group Activity: Part BVerbal Learning • Now I’d like you to do something else. I’m going to show you some words. Look at the words I show you, and when you see one that was on the list I read, write it down. turkey cloud coffee desk gun teacher dog cat farmer moon house church student boat pencil School lamb vomit towel stove lake

23. Recall and Recognition • What type of memory retrieval did Part A of the test involve – recall or recognition? • What type of memory retrieval did Part B of the test involve – recall or recognition? • Which was more difficult, Part A or Part B?

24. Age-related Changes • Processing information is slower • Delayed recall is more frequent; older adults perform worse than younger adults • Recognition – only small age differences • Distractions are more disruptive

25. True or False? No matter what your age, more than 100 different conditions can cause memory loss.

26. Lifestyle and Memory

27. Practical Ways to Improve Memory Older adults can benefit from practicing memory strategies • Pay attention • Get organized • Use association • Remember through teaching

28. Practical Ways to Improve Memory • Say it out loud • Use calendars, day planners, journals, diaries and “to-do” lists • Use electronic remindersand color coding/labeling • Consider the optimal time of day

29. When to Seek Help • Being unable to remember things • Asking the same question or repeating the same story over and over • Becoming lost in familiar places • Being unable to follow directions • Getting disoriented about time, people and places • Neglecting personal safety, hygiene and nutrition

30. Discussion • What are some of the practical memory strategies that may be useful to you? How could you use them in your everyday life? • If lifestyle behaviors impact memory, what changes in your life can you make to maintain and improve your memory?

31. Conclusion • Forgetfulness is a normal part of aging. • Some memory changes are reversible. • You have ways to improve memory. • Seek medical attention if memory problems are significant – early intervention is important.

32. Special Thanks • To the following faculty for their expertise and assistance with this memory project: • Linda Langley, associate professor, Psychology Department, NDSU • Melissa O’Connor, assistant professor, Human Development and Family Science Department, NDSU • To Ellen Bjelland, Ward County Extension family and consumer science agent, for reviewing the lesson

33. Glossary • Encoding - getting information into memory • Consolidation and storage - how information is represented and kept in memory • Retrieval - getting information back out of memory • Sensory- input stage; taking information from our senses • Short-term- the small amount of information we can hold in our minds at any one moment • Long-term- our memory bank; information is stored so that we can retrieve it later • Recall - retrieving memories with no hints • Recognition - retrieving memories by choosing from a list of options