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What is Memory? The brain doesn’t actually have a “memory bank” or a specific place where knowledge and memories are all neatly stored away. Memory is actually a stored pattern of synaptic connections . The first time you learn something, it is unfamiliar to your brain. Your brain has to create a synaptic pattern for the information. If you study it only once, it can be difficult to recall later, because the synaptic connections are not well established. With more and more study and review, the synaptic patterns and connections strengthen, making recall easier. Do you know there can be up to 1,000,000,000,000,000 synaptic connections in your brain? (Souza, How the Brain Learns, 2006). No excuses! You are capable of learning a lot.
THE BIG PICTURE
Even when doing a simple math calculation, hundreds of millions of your brain’s neurons, dendrites, axons and synapses are actively transmitting impulses and chemicals enabling you to come up with an answer. Memory is a stored pattern of synaptic connections. When you read, study and review, your brain forms new synapses and synapse patterns, and strengthens old ones. The more you study and review, the stronger the connections and patterns. The brain truly is an amazing organ! Treat it well.
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THE 21st CENTURY STUDENT’S GUIDE TO STUDY SKILLS
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