short-term memory

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After 3 Months of Wasabi, Subjects Saw 'Dramatic Change'

Those who ingested wasabi saw 'dramatic change' in participants' short- and long-term memory

(Newser) - Want to boost your memory? Smear some extra wasabi on your sushi. That's the findings out of Japan's Tohoku University, where a team of scientists have found that indulging in the spicy green condiment can improve both short-term and long-term memory. In the double-blind, randomized study published in...

Lawmakers Cite Concerns on Feinstein's Memory, She Balks

'I'm rather puzzled,' 88-year-old Dem senator says of 'Chronicle' report on her mental acuity

(Newser) - Dianne Feinstein is pushing back on a report that her memory is fading and she may be mentally unfit to continue serving in the US Senate—concerns voiced even by fellow Democrats. On Thursday, the San Francisco Chronicle published those concerns from ex-staffers, four senators (three of them Democrats), and...

A Discovery About Memory Could Help the Mentally Ill

Scientists have a new view on 'working memory'

(Newser) - Scientists have a new theory about how the brain processes memories, one that holds the promise—someday—of helping those with depression and other mental illnesses. The study out of the University of Wisconsin focused on working memory, which covers immediate stuff like new phone numbers or where we left...

Your Dog Forgot the Hug You Just Gave Him
 Your Dog Forgot the 
 Hug You Just Gave Him 
new study
Feb 27, 2015 8:42 AM CST

Your Dog Forgot the Hug You Just Gave Him

Study finds animals have short short-term memory spans

(Newser) - When it comes to short-term memory, animals have very short ones indeed. A new meta-analysis examined more than 90 memory experiments carried out on 25 species encompassing birds, mammals, and bees. Researchers at Stockholm University and Brooklyn College found that for dogs, events are forgotten after about two minutes—and...

New Brain Cells Bump Old Memories

Study finds new neurons clear out short-term memory

(Newser) - The birth of new brain cells bumps old memories into long-term storage, according to new research which upends earlier theories. Researchers working with rodents found that the creation of new neurons destabilized existing connections in the hippocampus instead of strengthening them as they had expected, effectively "clearing the inbox"...

Study: Talking to Pretty Women Makes Men Stupid

Trying to impress women can take up all the male brain's power, experiment finds

(Newser) - Men literally lose their minds when talking to women they find attractive, a new study finds. A group of Dutch psychologists—inspired to carry out the experiment after one of them forgot his address while talking to a pretty woman—tested the memory skills of 40 heterosexual volunteers before and...

Scientists Read Subjects' Location From Brain Scans

(Newser) - Decoding part of the complex system used by the brain to store memories has allowed scientists to determine a person’s location by looking at brain scans, Wired reports. A study took images of the hippocampus—the part responsible for spatial relationship and short-term memories—as individuals navigated a virtual-reality...

Single Nerve Cell Can Hold a Memory: Study

New findings may shed light on addiction, memory disorders

(Newser) - Individual neurons in the brain can hang on to memories for a minute or longer, a new study finds. Something like a computer’s temporary random access memory (RAM), this working memory is what allows you to keep a phone number in your head for a few seconds, then forget...

Aging Baby Boomers Spur Brain Fitness Industry

Software sales have more than doubled as Boomers look to avoid Alzheimer's

(Newser) - Aging baby boomers, looking for answers on how to avoid—or at least forestall—dementia and Alzheimer’s, are driving the growth of a new industry that uses computer software to help maintain brain fitness, reports Reuters. Sales in the brain stimulation software industry have more than doubled since 2005...

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