LEARNING AND MEMORY
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Learning and memory are closely related concepts. Learning is the acquisition of skill or knowledge, while memory is the expression of what you’ve acquired. The difference is the speed with which the two things happen. If you acquire the new skill or knowledge slowly and laboriously, that’s learning. If acquisition occurs instantly, that’s making a memory.
Adapted from the Encyclopedia of Psychology (http://www.apa.org/pubs/books/4600100.aspx)
Use these strategies to compensate for mild memory loss.
Psychologists are finding strategies to help people adapt to memory problems, including:
Take mental snapshots. Good memory is good learning. That means forming a strong association with new information as you learn it. When you put down your keys, for instance, take a mental snapshot of them lying next to the fruit bowl on the kitchen table. Train your brain to remember. People in the early stages of memory loss can benefit from simple memory training, research suggests.
Systematically take note of things. To learn a new name, for example, use “mnemonic devices” that link the new information with familiar information. If you meet someone named “Mr. Brown,” picture him drenched in that color as you’re introduced.
Another training technique is one called “vanishing cues.” If you can’t remember a name, write down any letters of it that you can remember. Then fill in more and more until your recall kicks in. This training works by bypassing the faulty areas of the brain. Instead, you’re training new areas of the brain to take over.
Take advantage of technology. Setting alarms, for example, can help people remember appointments or other important dates. Technology does have its limits, of course, and you have to remember how to use it or that it’s even there for you to use.
Keep your spirits up. Memory problems can affect mood. Exercise and mentally stimulating activities can help.
Adapted from “Mending memory” APA Monitor on Psychology (http://www.apa.org/monitor/sep05/mending.aspx)