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Related Concept Videos

Long-Term Memory01:18

Long-Term Memory

Long-term memory is a relatively permanent type of memory, capable of storing vast amounts of information over extended periods. Its storage capacity is generally considered unlimited.
Long-term memory can be categorized into two primary types: explicit and implicit memory. Explicit memory, also known as declarative memory, involves the conscious recollection of information that we deliberately try to remember, recall, and articulate. This type of memory encompasses specific facts, events, and...
Higher Mental Functions of Brain: Learning and Memory01:26

Higher Mental Functions of Brain: Learning and Memory

Memory is one of the most vital higher mental functions of the brain. Memory is closely related to learning because it enables us to retain information and experiences from our past to use them in our present life. It also helps us to remember facts, events, and skills, such as riding a bike or swimming. There are two types of memory — declarative memory, which involves memorizing facts or events, and procedural memory, which enables us to remember how to do something like writing or playing an...
System of Memory01:23

System of Memory

Memory is categorized into three major systems: sensory memory, short-term memory (STM), and long-term memory (LTM). These systems differ in their capacity and the duration for which they can hold information. Sensory memory captures raw sensory input from the environment, holding it for just a few seconds or less. For example, on hearing a brief, loud sound, like a car horn honking, the sound seems to linger in the mind for a moment even after it stops. This is an instance of sensory memory...
Storage01:23

Storage

A schema is a mental framework that helps individuals organize and interpret information. Schemata, formed from previous experiences, influence how we process new information: how we encode it, the inferences we make, and how we retrieve it. For instance, a schema for what a typical classroom looks like might include desks, a teacher's desk, a whiteboard, and students in such an environment. This expectation helps us quickly understand and navigate new classrooms without needing to analyze each...
Working Memory01:24

Working Memory

Working memory refers to a combination of components, including short-term memory and attention, that allow an individual to hold information temporarily as we perform cognitive tasks. It is an essential cognitive function that enables the execution of complex tasks such as problem-solving, comprehension, and reasoning. Unlike short-term memory, which simply involves the storage of information for a brief period, working memory involves the active manipulation and processing of this information.
Long-term Potentiation01:35

Long-term Potentiation

Long-term potentiation, or LTP, is one of the ways by which synaptic plasticity—changes in the strength of chemical synapses—can occur in the brain. LTP is the process of synaptic strengthening that occurs over time between pre- and postsynaptic neuronal connections. The synaptic strengthening of LTP works in opposition to the synaptic weakening of long-term depression (LTD) and together are the main mechanisms that underlie learning and memory.

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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 18, 2026

C. elegans Positive Butanone Learning, Short-term, and Long-term Associative Memory Assays
09:58

C. elegans Positive Butanone Learning, Short-term, and Long-term Associative Memory Assays

Published on: March 11, 2011

Long-term associative memory capacity in man.

Joel L Voss1

  • 1University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA. joelvoss@illinois.edu

Psychonomic Bulletin & Review
|December 8, 2009
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Human associative memory capacity is on the order of several thousand links, similar to baboons. This suggests conserved memory mechanisms across primates, though associative memory is more limited than picture recognition.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Neuroscience
  • Comparative Psychology
  • Neurobiology of Memory

Background:

  • Long-term episodic memory relies on storing and recalling associative information.
  • Previous research on human memory capacity focused on visual recognition, showing near-limitless retention.
  • The capacity of human associative memory remains largely uninvestigated.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the capacity of human long-term associative memory.
  • To compare human associative memory capacity with that of nonhuman primates.
  • To explore the conservation of memory mechanisms across primate evolution.

Main Methods:

  • Systematic self-testing over approximately one year, involving 58,560 memory trials for picture-response associations.
  • Comparative analysis of memory function indicators between human and baboon (Papio papio) performance under similar conditions.

Main Results:

  • Estimated human associative memory capacity is in the order of several thousand associations.
  • Human memory function indicators were remarkably similar to those observed in baboons.
  • Associative memory processes show a more limited capacity compared to picture recognition processes.

Conclusions:

  • Long-term associative memory in humans has a capacity on the order of thousands of associations.
  • Evidence suggests the conservation of long-term memory mechanisms and effectiveness in humans and nonhuman primates.
  • Associative memory, crucial for episodic memory, is capacity-limited relative to visual memory.