Tips to Improve One's Memory

Have you ever had something to say that was on the tip of your tongue? Have you ever walked into a room to do a specific thing only to forget why you are there? Or quickly forgotten the name of someone you just met? As frustrating as these things are to do, they happen to us all.

Here are a few tips on how best to study for that exam or just to keep your memory working for you by utilizing it to its maximum potential. First of all you should understand that our memory works as an information processing model (memory passing through the stages of attention, encoding, storage and retrieval). There are three types of memory that can be distinguished form one another : sensory, short term, and long term. Sensory memory records information from the senses for about three seconds. Short term memory takes from sensory memory those things that held our attention and stores them for about twenty seconds. We can then hold on to the information longer by repeating the information over and over or by known as rehearsing. Long term memory is our permanent storage system; this stores information for many years, which in turn lets us retrieve what we have stored when the information is needed.

Encoding is a way for you to turn short term memory into long term memory by using elaborate rehearsal (taking in the material by associating it with knowledge already in our long term memory). Say someone tells you there name is Sue Ellen; you might think to yourself that is the name of a character on a t.v. show I watch (Desperate Housewives). That is one way of encoding information into our long term memory. By doing things like that you will be more likely to retrieve the information at a later date. Encoding can be a very useful studying tool.

If you are studying for a test, it is important to try not to cram all of the information in at one time; that can result in a loss of information. It is best to study before sleep; this will prevent any other information from throughout the day clogging our minds. Study in a quite atmosphere just like test time. Information is easier to recall when you are in the same physical setting in which it was acquired. You can also try to chunk the information together, which is grouping tiny bits of information into larger wholes; think of the numbers on a credit card. When studying, try to have fun; for example you can rhyme things together, or use visual images to recall information.

Lastly a good diet can also help curb memory loss things like; berries, walnuts, salmon, oysters, spinach, and olive oil in place of vegetable oil have all been prov-en to aide memory retention . If you don't happen to like any of these foods there are always supplements that you can buy at any health food store.
Hopefully these tips can help you to remember that which you do not want to forget.