In the single-store model of memory, the enhanced recall for the last items in a free-recall task (i.e., the recency effect) is understood to reflect a general property of memory rather than a separate short-term store. This interpretation is supported by the finding of a long-term recency effect under conditions that eliminate the contribution…

Targeted mutagenesis in mice has shown that genes from a wide variety of gene families are involved in memory formation. The efficient identification of genes involved in learning and memory could be achieved by random mutagenesis combined with high-throughput phenotyping. Here, we provide the first report of a mutagenesis screen that has…

The retention curve for knowledge acquired in a consumer behavior course is explored in a longitudinal study, tracking individual students from 8 to 101 weeks following course completion. Rasch measurement is used to link tests and to achieve intervally scaled measures of knowledge. The findings indicate that most of the knowledge gained in the…

Four experiments required participants to keep track of the locations of (i.e., update) 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 10, or 15 target objects after rotating. Across all conditions, updating was unaffected by set size. Although some traditional set size effects (i.e., a linear increase of latency with memory load) were observed under some conditions, these…

Memory work has potential usefulness as a method of helping students explore their relationship to science. Students have multiple early experiences with the natural world, but often these experiences are divorced from their school-based learning. It is known, however, that students use their informal experiences of the natural world in their…

This study investigated the possibility that episodes that deviate from a routine event script are retained in memory, tagged by their unique characteristics. Three groups of 9 preschool children experienced one of three deviations in their normal snack routine: (1) a puppet handed out the snack; (2) a puppet taught the children to play a game…

Many studies have examined group pressure and its effect on an individual. A study was undertaken to investigate the influence of a majority upon subjects and its effect upon long term memory. Undergraduate students (N=18) were selected and randomly assigned to either a treatment or control group. Each subject watched a 10-minute segment from a…

Infants were tested in three studies of the acquisition and long-term retention of category-specific information. Results document retention of category-specific information after intervals of two weeks. (PCB)

Assessed the effect of the amount of physical detail in pictures on the picture recognition memory of 7- and 9-year-olds, young adults, and adults over 68. For each age group, recognition accuracy was significantly higher for pictures presented in the simple rather than the complex form. (PCB)

Examines changes in participants' memories for natural conversations over a one month period. Reports that after one month, participants recalled less content and reported more descriptive statements, made more inferences, and were less accurate than when they had recalled the conversations immediately. (MM)

This study examined the effects of familiarity of passage concepts and passage cohesion on retrieval of text information. Results showed that recall of propositions from passages with more familiar concepts was greater. Results indicate that familiarity stimulates elaboration of passage material and elaborations provide alternate retrieval…

Describes a study designed to identify the mental operations that contribute to people's ability to answer wh- questions, that is, questions which request information that plays a particular role in relation to some action or event. Wh- questions are signaled by interrogative pronouns and adverbs like who, what, when, and where. (SED)

Investigates adults' long-term memory of mathematics learned in high school. Reports findings regarding the subjects' attempts to draw graphs of simple linear functions. Categorizes diverse responses to the task of drawing a graph of a linear function. Analyzes in detail three cases based on recall theories that explain the mechanism of recalling…

Replicates Costa and Kostenbaum's 1967 study of the relationship between past memories and future ambitions of centenarians using data from the Georgia Centenarian Study. Unlike the original study, no significant relationship was found between the ability to recall three types of past events and being able to conceive of a future. (JPS)

Examined within-domain variations in children's knowledge of the events or materials to be remembered and corresponding differences in recall. Five year olds were interviewed about their understanding of routine pediatric examinations, and the results were related to recall scores from similar studies. Findings confirm that, within a given domain,…