Encoding Getting the information in our heads!!!! How do you encode the info you read in our text?

Memory Test 1 = Not within the last six months 2 = Once or twice in the last six months 3 = About once a month 4 = About once a week 5 = Daily 6 = More than once a day _______ 1. How often do you fail to recognize places you’ve been before? _______ 2. How often do you forget whether you did something, such as lock the door or turn off the lights or the oven? _______ 3. How often do you forget when something happened – wondering whether it was yesterday or last week? _______ 4. How often do you forget where you put items such as house keys or your wallet? _______ 5. How often do you forget something you were told recently and had to be reminded of it? _______ 6. How often are you unable to remember a word or name, even though it’s “on the tip of your tongue?” _______ 7. In conversations, how often do you forget what you were just talking about? _______ TOTAL POINTS 7-14 = better than average memory15-25 = average 26 or higher = below average

What are you most likely to forget? Surveys of memory complaints have produced remarkably similar results Names 83% Not recalling that you had already told something to someone 49% Where you put things (ex: keys) 60% Specific words 53% Telephone numbers just checked 57% Faces 42%

Two ways to encode information Automatic Processing Effortful Processing

Automatic Processing Unconscious encoding of incidental information. You encode space, time and word meaning without effort. Things can become automatic with practice. For example, if I tell you that you are a jerk, you will encode the meaning of what I am saying to you without any effort.

Effortful Processing Encoding that requires attention and conscious effort. Rehearsal is the most common effortful processing technique. Through enough rehearsal, what was effortful becomes automatic.

Things to remember about Encoding 1.The next-In-Line effect: we seldom remember what the person has just said or done if we are next. 2.Information minutes before sleep is seldom remembered; in the hour before sleep, well remembered. 3.Taped info played while asleep is registered by ears, but we do not remember it.

Spacing Effect We encode better when we study or practice over time. DO NOT CRAM!!!!!

List the U.S. Presidents Take out a piece of paper and….

The Presidents WashingtonTaylorHarrisonEisenhower J.AdamsFillmoreClevelandKennedy JeffersonPierceMcKinleyL.Johnson MadisonBuchananT.RooseveltNixon MonroeLincolnTaftFord JQ AdamsA.JohnsonWilsonCarter JacksonGrantHardingReagan Van BurenHayesCoolidgeBush HarrisonGarfieldHooverClinton TylerArthurFD.RooseveltBush Jr. PolkClevelandTrumanObama

Serial Positioning Effect Our tendency to recall best the last and first items in a list. If we graph an average person remembers presidential list- it would probably look something like this. Presidents Recalled

Types of Encoding Semantic Encoding: the encoding of meaning, like the meaning of words Acoustic Encoding: the encoding of sound, especially the sounds of words. Visual Encoding: the encoding of picture images. Encoding exercise

Which type works best?

Self-Reference Effect An example of how we encode meaning very well. The idea that we remember things (like adjectives) when they are used to describe ourselves.

Tricks to Encode Use imagery: mental pictures Mnemonic Devices use imagery. Like my “peg word” system or…. Links to examples of mnemonic devices. "Mary Very Easily Makes Jam Saturday Unless No Plums." Mars, Venus, Earth, Mercury, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto. Give me some more examples….

Chunking Organizing items into familiar, manageable units. Often it will occur automatically. Chunk- from Goonies Do these numbers mean anything to you? 1492, 1776, 1812, 1941 how about now?

Chunking 1,3 and 5 make little sense to us. But when we chunk the characters differently (2,4,6) they become easy to remember.