T/TH 9:30—11:00am; NE20-461

Other than that which is genetically coded, everything we know is derived from and reflects memory for our past experiences. Memory is intimately involved in most, if not all, domains of human cognition, from the ability to temporarily remember a phone number or where you placed your keys to the acquisition of language and the ability to reason. This course surveys the literature on human memory and learning, including consideration of the cognitive and neural organization of memory, the basis of remembering and forgetting, and the nature of false memories. Cognitive theory and behavioral evidence will be integrated with data from neuropsychology and functional brain imaging.

Students will be required to turn in one written assignment of 3—4 double-spaced pages that synopsizes and critiques an empirical article on some aspect of human memory. The selected article must have been published in the last year (2000 or 2001) in one of a selected set of journals (see attached for further guidelines and requirements). The course grade will be based on two midterms (25% each), a cumulative final (35%), and the written assignment (15%). Attending lectures will be particularly important for this course because much of the critical material will be presented only in lectures.

Baddeley, A. D. (1998). Human Memory: Theory and Practice (Revised edition). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Other Readings

On web, except (**): web.mit.edu/9.74/www/Name.pdf (e.g., Dodson.pdf);

also on reserve in the Reading Room (14N-132) & in Teuber Lib. (NE20-380; T-F 11am-5pm)

Dodson, C. S., Koutstaal, W., & Schacter, D. L. (2000). Escape from illusion: Reducing false memories. Trends in Cognitive Science, 4, 391-397.

Gabrieli, J. D. (1998). Cognitive neuroscience of human memory. Annual Review of Psychology, 49, 87-115.

**Light, L. L. (1998). Memory and aging. In E. L. Bjork & R. A. Bjork (Eds.), Memory (pp. 443-490). San Diego: Academic Press.

Martin, A., & Chao, L. L. (2001). Semantic memory and the brain: Structure and processes. Current Opinion in Neurobiology, submitted.

**Metcalfe, J. (1996). Metacognitive processes. In E. L. Bjork & R. A. Bjork (Eds.), Memory (pp. 381-407). San Diego: Academic Press.

Miller, E. K., & Cohen, J. D. (2001). An integrative theory of prefrontal cortex function. Annual Review of Neuroscience, in press.

Wagner, A. D., & Koutstaal, W. (2001). Priming. In V. S. Ramachandran (Ed.), Encyclopedia of the Human Brain (in press). San Diego: Academic Press.

The objective of the written assignment is to provide an opportunity for you to think actively and independently about research in human memory. For this assignment, you should read carefully an empirical article (i.e. an article that presents new data, not a review article or chapter) on any aspect of human memory. The article must not be one I have discussed in class, and must have been published in 2000 or 2001 in any of the following journals (or others if you ok them with me):

• Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience (available through VERA)
• Journal of Neuroscience (VERA)

• Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition (available at Teuber Library, NE20-380; & at Dewey Library, E53-100)
• Memory & Cognition (Teuber Library & at Humanities Library, 14S-200)
• Brain (VERA)
• Science (VERA)
• Nature (Teuber Library & at Shering-Plough Library, E25-131)
• Neuropsychologia (VERA)
• Hippocampus (VERA)

Provide a synopsis and critique of the article, organized around the following questions:

1. What is the exact question asked in the paper? Why is this interesting? What theoretical issues hinge on it?
2. What is the logic of the experiment? i.e. What is compared to what, and exactly how and why does any difference between these conditions or lack thereof answer the question posed in (i). Don’t focus on the trivial experimental details. Rather, emphasize the main idea behind the paper. (e.g. The task the subject's performed is likely to be important, the exact nature of the stimuli likely is not.) For guidance about what is important and what is not, look at the kind of information I put on overheads when I describe an experiment in class.
3. What were the main findings? How did they answer the question posed?
4. Implications: What follows from the results - what are the broader implications?
5. What do you think about this paper - does the design make sense or do you see flaws and if so what are they? How would you have done the experiment better? What further experiments would you want to try next, based on the results reported in this paper?

Due dates for the written assignment:

The objectives of the first draft are for you to provide a complete initial version of your paper so that we can provide you feedback on the writing, organization, and approach to your critique. Your final paper will likely substantially benefit from this feedback. Thus, you should be sure to hand in a relatively thorough first draft so that we can provide useful and pointed feedback.