There is a popular hypothesis that performance on implicit and explicit memory tasks reflects 2 distinct memory systems. Explicit memory is said to store those experiences that can be consciously recollected, and implicit memory is said to store experiences and affect subsequent behavior but to be unavailable to conscious awareness. Although this…

We report here that ZIP, a selective inhibitor of the atypical protein kinase C isoform PKM[zeta], abolishes very long-term conditioned taste aversion (CTA) associations in the insular cortex of the behaving rat, at least 3 mo after encoding. The effect of ZIP is not replicated by a general serine/threonine protein kinase inhibitor that is…

Previous neuroimaging studies have suggested that the neural activity associated with truthful recall, with false memory, and with feigned memory impairment are different from one another. Here, we report a functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study that addressed an important but yet unanswered question: Is the neural activity associated…

Perceptual load is a key determinant of distraction by task-irrelevant stimuli (e.g., Lavie, N. (2005). "Distracted and confused?: Selective attention under load." "Trends in Cognitive Sciences," 9, 75-82). Here we establish the role of perceptual load in determining an internal form of distraction by task-unrelated thoughts (TUTs or…

Activity-dependent changes in synaptic strength such as long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) are considered to be cellular mechanisms underlying learning and memory. Strengthening of a synapse for a few seconds or minutes is termed short-term potentiation (STP) and is normally unable to take part in the processes of synaptic…

Rats were trained to run a straight-alley maze for an oral cocaine or sucrose vehicle solution reward, followed by either response or latent extinction training procedures that engage neuroanatomically dissociable "habit" and "cognitive" memory systems, respectively. In the response extinction condition, rats performed a runway approach response…

In order to be successful, students must acquire the language of science for both oral and written communication. In this article we examine an oral language learning technique called choral repetition for its role in building literacy in the context of an animal physiology course. For 3 weeks, the instructor conducted choral repetitions of nine…

The purpose of this paper is to examine the use of photographs and assistive technologies for visual information processing as motivating tools for interpersonal communication of adolescents with Asperger Syndrome (AS), aged 16 to 18 years, attending special education school. Students with AS find it very difficult to create social and…

Purpose: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the new Cognitive Spare Capacity Test (CSCT), which measures aspects of working memory capacity for heard speech in the audiovisual and auditory-only modalities of presentation. Method: In Experiment 1, 20 young adults with normal hearing performed the CSCT and an independent battery of…

Our study aims to optimize a multimedia application for vocabulary learning for English as a Foreign Language (EFL). Our study is based on the concept that difficulty in reading a text in a second language is due to the need for more working memory for word decoding skills, although the working memory must also be used for text comprehension…

In this study, we performed a fine grained analysis of writing by children with a specific language impairment (SLI) and examined the contribution of oral language, phonological short-term memory (STM), nonverbal ability, and word reading to three writing constructs (productivity, complexity and accuracy). Forty-six children with SLI were compared…

Executive control (EC) is related to mathematics performance in middle childhood. However, little is known regarding how EC and informal numeracy differentially support mathematics skill acquisition in preschoolers. A sample of preschoolers (115 girls, 113 boys), stratified by social risk, completed an EC task battery at 3 years, informal numeracy…

The rate at which people process information appears to influence many aspects of cognition across the lifespan. However, many commonly accepted measures of "processing speed" may require goal maintenance, manipulation of information in working memory, and decision-making, blurring the distinction between processing speed and executive…

Research has suggested many children with learning disabilities (LD) have deficits in working memory (WM) that hinder their academic achievement. Cogmed RM, a computerized intervention, uses adaptive training over 25 sessions and has shown efficacy in improving WM in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and a variety of…

Adolescents face numerous challenges associated with increasing instructional curricular demands at the secondary level. Exacerbating an already difficult time for students with high-incidence disabilities (e.g., learning disabilities, emotional disabilities) is the fact that the majority spend at least some part of the day in general education…