Encoding and Remembering

Our memory is one of the unique aspects of our body; many pieces of research are being conducted over several years to understand how it works and how it is a unique feature compared to other living beings’ memory systems. Our brain is divided into multiple compartments, and each compartment is responsible for various functions. 

The hippocampus present in the temporal lobe helps in the process of remembering facts and creating memories. Psychologists examined this part and started studying the memory, calling it memory encoding. 

Encoding and remembering is a standard process performed daily at every moment. However, there is practically much more to it than what we do, which we will discuss further.

What is encoding?

Encoding sounds a lot like a technical term. In simple words, encoding means learning and storing the information. We see an object or read a text taken by our body as sensory input and then get transformed into a form stored in our brain.

Encoding refers to turning your internal thoughts and visuals into long-term and short-term memory in your brain, and remembering this information is simple. It refers to recalling all the information you have encoded in your brain; this process is also called retrieval. Hence, we can say that encoding and remembering are both sides of a coin.

History of Encoding

Hermann Ebbinghaus (1850-1909) is considered the pioneer of memory encoding research. He did this research on encoding and remembering using himself as the subject. He discovered that new aspects of prior information or knowledge were easier to recall. 

During the 1900s, Ivan Pavlov explained the creation of a semantic connection between unrelated stuff. Frederic Bartlett explained efficient mental schemas. He discovered that encoding is influenced by prior knowledge. In 1949, Donald Hebb said that neurons that fire together also wire together. This means that connections between the neurons are created via repeated usage. A working memory model was presented by Alan Baddeley and Graham Hitch in 1974.

What parts of the brain are responsible for encoding?

We need to understand the functional aspects of the brain parts responsible for encoding and remembering. Various parts of our brain play a crucial role in the entire process of encoding and remembering. 

Visual data is processed and stored in our brain’s parietal and occipital cortices. The superior temporal gyrus is involved in this process of encoding auditory stimulus. For semantic encoding, the left prefrontal cortex and temporal regions are involved. 

Nonverbal stimuli are responsible for activating these structures. The medial temporal lobe is another part of the brain activated by the non-verbal stimulus.

What can affect the process of encoding and remembering?

There are multiple behavioural aspects or lifestyle practices that highly influence encoding and remembering. 

• Not sleeping enough

A sleep-deprived individual, over time, loses their capability of remembering things, which means the whole process of encoding and remembering is hampered. This happens mainly because the mind and the body are not getting enough rest to rejuvenate and continue their function. Excessive stress due to the lack of sleep harms the encoding of contextual and non-contextual types.

• Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer’s disease causes dysfunction of the medial temporal lobe, which ultimately causes the brain to forget your old memories. This influences the individual’s process of encoding and remembering negatively.

• Depression

Depression causes concentration loss and the inability to make proper decisions. This, in turn, affects your mental condition; it hampers the process of encoding and remembering memories. People with depression deal with short-time memory loss often because their thoughts are cluttered, and they primarily do not focus on what is happening to their surroundings. 

• Vitamin B-12 deficiency

Vitamin B-12 plays a quintessential role in keeping your nerve cells healthy. So due to its deficiency, nerve cells become weak, which eventually causes problems in encoding and remembering.

Types of encoding

To know what encoding is, we should be aware of the three main encoding types.

Visual Encoding: This includes converting a visual image into a memory stored in our brain. The visual data is kept in the visuospatial sketchpad connected to the central executive. The central executive is the main area of the working memory.

Acoustic Encoding: The auditory information that we convert into memories falls under acoustic encoding. This comprises understanding sounds, words and other auditory effects for encoding and remembering. Initially, acoustic information enters the brain and is converted into long-term memory.

Semantic Encoding: When converted into memory, the meaningful sensory input is called semantic encoding. This might comprise ideas, concepts, and dates.

Conclusion

Encoding and remembering is a day-to-day activity that we perform, but the complex working principle makes it a unique and exciting process of our body. It is an integral part of human excellence as well. Hence, doing things and indulging in activities that make our minds sharp only enhances the encoding and remembering process.