Post #11

“Trying to forget really doesn't work. In fact, it's pretty much the same as remembering. But I tried to forget anyway, and to ignore the fact that I was remembering you all the time.” -Rebecca Stead

The concept of memory is vast and cannot be wholly and justly presented in this simple blog, but it does carry enough weight that I will cover a few ideas personable to myself. Memory can be split between long term and short term, as well as the in between processing. I find the short term memory to be the most interesting as well as the steps to lengthen and make the short term memory more effective. 

Short term memory can only be retained for less than fifteen seconds, and many scientists are disagreeing suggesting the timeline is actually shorten than five seconds. A few of the ways to make it more effective is to use techniques such as chunking or rehearsal. Which makes complete sense, when you are trying to remember someone's phone number you repeat it aloud multiple times in chunks until you are able to dial. This practice is actually accounting for both memory techniques. 

But one discrepancy I have found is that, the book outlines how chunking and rehearsal work when you read a number or series of words or letters and then you have to transfer them somewhere. It does not however, talk about how the transfer works when someone tells you information and then you musts place it somewhere else. For example, I work at a retail store and when I ask for someones personal information they tell it to me in chunks and I must transfer it into the computer. I put in the information more correctly by extracting it from their drivers license rather than from word to mouth. I believe this may attribute to whether I am a visual learner or not. I am, so it makes sense I could more accurately place the information by seeing it before transferring it. Of course, I do use the chunking to place information, and because it is in my short term memory, I only remember it for the time the customer is in front of the register. 

I find the primacy and recency do not have a great effect on my cash register abilities though. The first piece of information they give me is their last name which I forget sooner than anything else. Meaning primacy is non-existent on the job. But I do seem to remember the zip code they give for a longer amount of time because it is the last thing required by me.  

But basically, my short term memory works about fifty percent of the time at my retail job, and it is enough.