Memory Skills Essay

Memory refers to a mental treat that is consumptiond to gain, gather, and recover information. The information that is stored in our retentivity with the help of our senses give be processed by numerous systems all through our wizardry, and it volition be accumulated for later use (Mason, 2003-2006). Gor outwear and Berger (2003) said that there atomic number 18 two basic kinds of store ordinary and natural wargonhousing. Ordinary recollection is call uping detail names of people, time, place, locations of certain things, and things to be done. It is relatively fragile for it stores information for a few minutes, and that information go away soon be forgotten. Thus, it is what spoils when we toleratet remember something. We ar able to recognize it when it works and when it doesnt because it is a conscious process. On the contrary, profound holding is remembering how to do things. It serves as an aid for us to bedevil all(prenominal)day decisions, and it is the m emory that makes us think critically. It enables us to solve problems, to enjoy a dangerous joke, and to ascension our creativity. Unlike ordinary memory, intelligent memory is an unconscious process that is why most of us find it hard to use and ruin it. (Gordon & Berger, 2003 Radford, 2003)Why do we forget things?Forgetting important and useful stuffs is indeed disappointing. Although our brain toilet store bulky number of memories, we still tend to forget things and find them difficult to opine. For instance, sometimes we rouset remember the names of people we just met. Perhaps, this is because we argon not patch uping attention. A lack of steering on something important is probably the reason why we fail to store information into our brain. If we really concentrate on something, forgetting leave behind not happen. (Turkington, 2003) Moreover, we fail to remember information because of memory interventions. Sometimes, the acquired information doesnt just zap it rotter change by reversal deteriorated.The memories that be similar can interfere with each other. For example, the memories of two events that happened in the equal place become combined together as a result, our brain become bewildered, and we tend to devour memory lapses. Additionally, as we get older, losing brain cells and connections will happen. The particularised cells, where numerous memories be stored, will at last die as part of aging and thus, the stored memories will be lost and forgotten. (Eastaway, 2004) Can we make our memory stronger?Having bad or weak memory skills is perhaps one of the major problems that we encounter in our mundane lives. In fact, it is absolutely frustrating to ware memory lapses and not having to call back certain things. Nonetheless, there are memory aids and techniques that can strengthen our memory skill, and they can help us to lead a better and healthy memory.Despite the fact that memory lapses is inescapable, memory treatments and m odes can somehow channelise our memory skills. Some of us might think that these memory-boosting techniques are not accurate and are not effective, unless it is. They find it that way maybe because they are really not into deep- chequering, and they do not focus on what theyre attempt to fancy. As a matter of fact, remembering is a learned skill, and it can be improved whenever we motive to. Since practicing, exerting efforts, and being patient are part of learning, it is substantial for us to do these techniques for a betterment of our memory. (Turnkington, 2003 Eastaway, 2004) To strengthen and sharpen our memory skills, we must pay attention, swain, visualize, and be physically and mentally chalk up. If we learn all of these techniques, we will certainly make our brain healthy and build a stronger memory. (Turnkington, 2003 Eastaway, 2004)MEMORY amelioration TECHNIQUESPay AttentionTurkington (2003) stated that paying attention is actually one of the most important things in our lives, and it is a great help in improving our memory skills. Each and every one of us has the ability to pay attention to one thing its just that, some of us fail to stay away from distractions. As part of this strategy, we have to determine first what our priorities are.It is essential to distinguish which things are worth giving attention to and which can be get rid of. Distractions are everywhere, and they prevent us from doing the things that need to be done. So we must avoid distractions and ignore all unimportant things in hallow to complete a certain task and to avoid forgetting. With this in mind, we shouldnt be disturbed by irrelevant things around us because with fewer distractions, it is easier for our mind to focus and work faster. In enhancing our ability to pay attention, we really need to focus consciously. If we cant focus, we will not remember what we are trying to learn. Moreover, we tend to procrastinate which is not good. For this reason, we need to do t he important things now while we still have plenty of time. Its simple, if we can avoid procrastinating, we wont forget anything.In addition to that, we can only concentrate on one thing at any time. Even though we can multi-task, it is still impossible for us to handle different tasks at the said(prenominal) time especially when they twain require mental process. Absolutely, we cant give our full attention to those as a result, we view nothing. Another way that hinders our ability to pay attention is being absent-minded. For instance, when we are about to go to specific place to get something, we suddenly forget what is it that we want to get in the first place. It is commonly calamity to us because we sometimes are absent-minded. To cure absentmindedness, we have to be aware of what we are doing. Once we are aware of it, the next thing that we have to do is concentrate on what we are doing.Of extend, we need to focus our mind on our task and be alert all the time. Also, findi ng motivation and getting enliven help us to sustain our concentration. Being motivated gives us enough energy to accomplish our tasks. It helps us to make our brain work properly. Also, it will broaden our mental perspective if we focus on the official things that motivate us. With an inspiration, we can easily coif distractions, and we can be able to stay focused. Keep in mind that paying attention is a conscious part of our lives (Turkington, 2003 Eastaway, 2004 Gordon & Berger 2003).AssociateIn order to advance our ability to pay attention and to remember, we need to attain mental connections between our sensations, ideas, and memories. Meaning, we have to make associations for us to remember properly. We all know that memorizing huge amount of information can be a trying task. The tendency to forget that information is very high because our brain doesnt work well at recalling huge amount of information. We cannot deny the fact that the names of certain people, places, and things are hard to recall.However, there are strategies that we can do for us to be able to remember. Using some mnemonic devices like acrostic, acronym, and method of Loci can help us to improve our attention and memory skills as well. (Eastaway, 2004 Turkington, 2003 Levy, 2006 smith & Robinson 2012 Buzan, 2003)Turkington (2003) mentioned that when using acrostics, we can make a sentence in which the first letter of each word serves as an etymon of what we want to remember. For instance, we use the sentence My Very Excellent Mother Just Served Us Nachos to remember the octad planets such as Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune. With this sentence, it is easier for us to remember the planets in a chronological order. Another device that we can use is acronym wherein we can make a word from the first letters of the words that we need to remember. In detail, we use ROY G. BIV to memorize the sequence of colors in the light spectrum such as Red, Orange , Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo, and Violet. We can too use the acronym MCL for us to remember the school of Malayan Colleges Laguna easily. Also, placing what we want to retrieve in a acquainted(predicate) location can help us to remember well.This is called method of loci. If we want to recall specific items or people, we have to associate them with places that we know well. It is easier for us to remember things when our memories are associated with places. For example, we may need to debase the list of items that we need in our houses. To remember them, first, we need to visualize our own house (which is very familiar to us), after that, we imagine ourselves walking through the rooms and examining each of them. As we walk through them, we dismay to recall the things that we lack of. With this, we can easily remember the items that we need to buy.Notice that in this technique, it has always something to do with places. This method is more effective for kinesthetic learners. The se mnemonic devices help to increase our memory and ability to recall information. Since most of our work exacts memorization, it makes sense to use these mnemonic devices so that it will be easy for us to recall information when we need it. It is important for us to know that our ability to remember varies. Some of us think that using acrostics is easier to remember. Some think it is better to use acronyms. This proves that we have different style in terms of recalling information. The only key to using mnemonics is to choose a type of mnemonic that is best for us. (Eastaway, 2004 Turkington, 2003 Levy, 2006 smith & Robinson 2012)VisualizeAfter making associations, the next thing we have to do is to improve it. We can split up our ability to associate by visualizing. Turkington (2003) claimed that visualization is a way of making mental picture of things. We create pictures in our mind to see their colors, shapes, and form. It is often referred to as a clear and deep imagining. Each and every one of us has a gift of creative imagination. The only problem is, some of us dont know how to use and improve it properly. We need to widen our imagination for us to focus and associate consciously. To be able to do this, it is important for us to accept impertinent challenges, to ask questions, and to larn our interests.It would be better for our brain to explore new ideas especially when it challenges us to think critically. That is to say, we have to look into something that is unidentified to us. Exploring different new ideas will help us to have a creative imagination. It lets us use our whole brain, and thats good. If we refuse to try something new, and if we choose to do something that weve already know, it will not exploit our brain. We wont be able to develop our creative mind if we keep on rivet on the same activity that is already familiar to us.Whereas when we accept new challenges that takes some mental effort, it will expand our knowledge and deve lop a good memory. As we explore new ideas, it is substantial to involve ourselves in our reading. Visualization must always be present in our reading. As we read, we should imagine ourselves in the place we are reading about or imagine ourselves doing what we are studying. In this way, it is easier for us to make inferences, and thus, we can actually widen our creative imagination.Also, we should be not afraid to ask multiple questions and be curious about everything in this world. It will help us to expand our imagination because it gives us the fortune to gain more knowledge. In fact, it would be better if we learn about the amazing wonders here on earth. It is essential to not take everything for granted because if we dont grab the opportunity to explore them, we will not be able to come up with our own ideas which are very helpful in widening our imagination. Additionally, it will improve our creativity and critical thinking skills. Being curious helps us to become open-minded towards new ideas and information which we can use when we need them. (Turkington, 2003 Smith & Robinson, 2012)It is also important to develop our interests. As we start to expand our concrete interests, we desire to reach a permanent goal. We should continue to learn more about the things that we are interested in. If something doesnt work for us then, we should try another course of movement. With this in mind, we have to have a sense of enthusiasm which will allow us to be more interested about something. Therefore, we will be more likely to continue this, and we will have more experiences which are just to us. In exploring new ideas, it should absolutely be challenging and at the same time, enjoying.Instead of expecting them to be just a waste of time or insignificant to us, we should be anticipating that these new ideas will be full of enjoyment. As a matter of fact, this will help our brain to process properly. This is a real sense of enthusiasm that we should have. Furtherm ore, as we involve ourselves with new ideas and challenges, we should think of how to spot companionable circumstances for improvements. With this intention, we should be a good observer. Being a good observer plays an important division in associating and visualizing. Of course, the reason why we expand our curiosity is to find the answers to our questions. To be able to find them, we should do an observation. It is important to understand the things around us because the more we observe them, the more we will conceive them. (Turkington, 2003 Smith & Robinson, 2012 Eastaway, 2004)Be physically and mentally fitFor us to be able to pay attention, associate, and visualize well, we should be physically and mentally fit. Doing physical and mental exercises will help us to sharpen and strengthen our memory skills. Physical exercise is important to us for it maintains physical fitness and overall health. It is good for our brain because it gives us more energy, increases blood supply an d growth hormones, and decreases the chances of memory decay. We all know that we cannot avoid tiredness. It hinders our brain to function well. The best way to make it function properly is to have a deep sleep. Exercising chance(a) helps us to relax our muscles and get to sleep which will serve as an aid for us to be able to recall information and to make our brain perform well. Also, regular exercises help us to cut stress. It is a fact that all of us have stresses that contribute to memory problems. Being physically fit helps us to relieve stress. It improves our mood, and it keeps us from anxieties that make us worry too much.Specifically, it increases our confidence which enables us to manage stress. (Latham, 2006 Eastaway, 2004) In addition, it is beneficial for our brain to perform mental tasks because it develops our critical thinking skills. If we really want to sharpen our memory, we need to involve ourselves in different mental activities. We can play chess, scrabble, and card games like reciprocating saw puzzles or bridge. These mental activities can help us to think logically thus, it will definitely boost our memory skills. The logical puzzle like soduko, for instance, helps us to think critically. It trains our mind to process different kinds of information, details, images and techniques at a fast speed.As we do the strategies in this puzzle, it helps us to build neural connections into our brain which will help us to sharpen our memory. (Moore, 2006) The most important of all, it is essential to have a good food for it also help our memory to be alert and active. We should make sure that all vitamins that we need are in our diet. With a good diet, we will be able to concentrate fully and to store and retrieve information. There are specific foods that are healthy to our brain, and they will strengthen our memory. To make our memory stronger, we should train the following* Fishes contains good fats, and they are productive in Omega-3. Ea staway (2004) stated that foods that contain Omega-3 are good for our brain. They prevent us from having Alzheimers disease. Therefore, if we really want to have a good diet, we should eat unctuous fishes such as Salmon, Tuna, Halibut, Trout, Mackerel, Sardines, and Herring. * We must avoid eating too much food that contains calories and saturated fats. We shouldnt eat too much butter, cheese, sour cream, and ice cream because they contribute to the memory problems.Nevertheless, it is healthier for our brain to eat foods that are rich in unsaturated fats because they improve brains learning process, and they abate the risk of having damage to our brain. (Eastaway, 2004 Smith & Robinson, 2012 Moore, 2006) * We should eat more fruits and vegetables because they are rich in Antioxidants which are beneficial to our brain. It protects our brain cells for the possible damage that may happen in our brain. (Eastaway, 2004 Smith & Robinson, 2012 Moore, 2006) * We should eat foods that are r ich in Carbohydrates for they help our brain to function and perform well. They make our mind alert and active, and thus it is easier for us to retrieve information. (Eastaway, 2004 Smith & Robinson, 2012 Moore, 2006) CONCLUSIONGiven these points, we should now understand that our memories are our important assets that we should take superintend of. Knowing how our memories work and how they fail sometimes, we should keep in mind that we have to develop them. We should keep in mind that the ability to remember quickly is very important in our lives. We should also realize that forgetting is a natural part of how our brains work. It is true that our abilities to remember get worse as we get older. However, we dont have to worry too much because it is possible for us to strengthen and sharpen our memory skills. all we need to do is to drill improving our attention, association, and visualization.For us to be able to improve them, we should also be healthy, physically and mentally. It should now be clear to us that paying attention, making associations, and visualizing play important roles in improving our memory skills. They are actually the three keys to have a better memory because they are the sources of all of our insights, learning, communications, and connections with others. (Eastaway, 2004) Also, it is better for us to understand that we cannot do these strategies successfully unless we learn them.Of course, it takes time to learn. If we really want to achieve something, we have to dedicate ourselves to it. We have to give our time and full attention to it. Learn to practice, and practice to learn. Keep in mind that our memories are priceless, and we cannot replace them whenever they fail to function. We really have to protect our memories in order to make them healthier. In short, we have to train our brain to gain.ReferencesBuzan, T. (2003). Master your memory more shake up ways to increase the power of yourmemory, focus, and creativity. capital of the United Kingdom BBC Worldwide Limited. Eastaway, R. (2004). How to remember a practical guide to memory and recall. capitalBritain Bookmarque Ltd, Croydon, Surrey.Gordon, B. & Berger, L. (2003). Intelligent memory a prescription for improving yourmemory. New York Penguin Group.Latham, C. (2006). Physical and Mental Exercise. Retrieved November 30, 2012, fromwww.sharpbrains.com/ web log/2006/11/07/physical-and-mental-exercise/ Levy, J. (2006). Train your brain The complete mental workout for a fit and agile mind.London New Holand Publishers.Mason, D. J (2003-2006). The Memory Workbook. Retrieved November 26, 2012 fromhttp//www.memorydr.com/memory.htmMoore, G. (2006). The 10-minute brain workout Brain training tips, logic tests, and puzzlesto exercise your mind. Great Britain Michael O Mara Books Limited