Description: You have most certainly heard, somewhere, that people who witness traumatic events do not make very good eye witnesses, but do you know why that is? Oh, and suggesting that it might be related to Freudian defensiveness is not allowed (it is uninvestigable). So why might it be that people do not simply NOT… Read more »
Posts Tagged: memory
Psychology Research and Current Events: The Kavanaugh Hearings
Description: As a Psychologist I have to say that events south of our border over the past two years have a source of fascination, confusion and perplexity not to mention anxiety, fear and anger and that is just from considering the actions of the current president. This past week the confirmation hearings focusing on Brett… Read more »
Executive Functions in Alzheimer’s: Brain Pacemakers Might Help
Description: Alzheimer’s main impact is on peoples’ memories, right? Well, we can debate the depth of impact of the various features of the disease but it is the case that more than memory is affected. Specifically, the array of frontal lobe functions involving various aspects of what is called Executive Function (thinking, reflecting, planning and… Read more »
Odor and Episodic Memory: How does their connection work?
Description: You have, no doubt, heard about the powerful connections between odors and memories. When I talk about this in Psychology classes I suggest that if you ever want to remember your elementary school days just wait for this time of year when schools have been buttoned up tight due to the cold for a… Read more »
Human Memory and Memorable Humans
Description: As you are very likely aware there has been a LOT of research om human memory (how it works, what improves it or messes it up etc. etc.) but what about memory of certain humans? What sorts of factors or characteristics or deeds (good, bad or otherwise) make it more likely someone will be… Read more »
To Take Photos or Not to Take Photos: Memories of Events (Like Eclipses!)
Description: Last week we drove 9 hours south from where we live in order to be in the zone of totality for the eclipse on August 21st. We lucked out (well the location we went to was chosen to maximize our luck in this area) and found a comfortable place to sit and watch the… Read more »
Homo Prospectus: A New Look at Ourselves and at Psychology
Description: Think about all that you know about how human memory and cognition work…. about how we think about and prepare for interacting within our world. Now, based on all that, on how we store memories, on how memories can become or be made unreliable, and on our cognitive biases answer this question: Are we… Read more »
Tips and Tricks for Finding The Usual Stuff
Description: OK so remember a time when you could not find your keys? What did you do? When you found them (assuming the cat or the elves did not steal them) how far were they from where they were supposed to be? Did you employ a systematic search strategy or did you simply curse, swear… Read more »
Are Incidental Memories Lost or Just Unattended?
Description: Before you read any further look around the room that you are in and then focus your attention on a particular feature (look out the window, look at the television set). Your visual impression while focusing on one feature in the room is probably that you’re still able to “see” most of the other… Read more »
Short Sleepers: Naively Exhausted or Different Processors?
Description: Do you know anybody who claims they can get by on significantly less than the average amount of sleep but other people get (say for example that need less than six hours sleep a night)? Assuming you believe them, how in fact are they managing on significantly lower amounts of sleep than everybody else?… Read more »
Books for Success!
