The mechanics of sleep and the process by which we store and retrieve memories has from ancient times been approached through many myths and theories, but it is only recently that hard science is seriously uncovering these mysteries of the mind.
A recent study in Nature Neuroscience, by German researchers at the University of Lubeck, proved that the brain stores recent memories better during sleep than during wakefulness.
The study mentions that earlier research showed that new memories are stored temporarily in the hippocampus and don’t gel until they are put into permanent storage in the “hard drive” of the neocortex. Early studies proved that if a memory is reactivated after learning it helps the transfer to the brain’s hard drive. The researchers retriggered the memories with a scent.
The goddess Mnemosyne was the personification of memory in Greek mythology. And the ancient Greeks invoked sleep by appealing to the god of sleep, Hypnos, from where the terms hypnotic and hypnotism are derived. The Romans had a similar god named Somnus.
But, what they didn’t know and these researchers proved was that even if you retrigger the memory and move on to learn something else, the state of wakefulness makes the memories fragile and the transfer to deep memory difficult.
Their findings proved
"Much to the surprise of the researchers, the sleep group performed significantly better, retaining on average 85 percent of the patterns, compared to 60 percent for those who had remained awake."
Continue reading on Examiner.com: Scientific study: Improve your memory with ...
A recent study in Nature Neuroscience, by German researchers at the University of Lubeck, proved that the brain stores recent memories better during sleep than during wakefulness.
The study mentions that earlier research showed that new memories are stored temporarily in the hippocampus and don’t gel until they are put into permanent storage in the “hard drive” of the neocortex. Early studies proved that if a memory is reactivated after learning it helps the transfer to the brain’s hard drive. The researchers retriggered the memories with a scent.
But, what they didn’t know and these researchers proved was that even if you retrigger the memory and move on to learn something else, the state of wakefulness makes the memories fragile and the transfer to deep memory difficult.
Their findings proved
"Much to the surprise of the researchers, the sleep group performed significantly better, retaining on average 85 percent of the patterns, compared to 60 percent for those who had remained awake."
Continue reading on Examiner.com: Scientific study: Improve your memory with ...
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