Generic information supports the long-term retention of novel labels.

The stress response facilitates survival through adaptation and is intimately related to cognitive processes. The Morris water maze task probes spatial learning and memory in rodents and glucocorticoids (i.e. corticosterone (CORT) in rats) have been suggested to elicit a facilitating action on memory formation. Moreover, the early aging period (around 16–18 months of age) is susceptible to stress- and glucocorticoid-mediated acceleration of cognitive decline. In this study, we tested three lines of rats selectively bred according to their individual differences in CORT responsiveness to repeated stress exposure during juvenility. We investigated whether endogenous differences in glucocorticoid responses influenced spatial learning, long-term memory, and reversal learning abilities in a Morris water maze task at early aging. Additionally, we assessed the quality of the different swimming strategies of the rats. Our results indicate that rats with differential CORT responsiveness exhibit similar spatial learning abilities but different long-term memory retention and reversal learning. Specifically, the high CORT responding line had a better long-term spatial memory, while the low CORT responding line was impaired for both long-term retention and reversal learning. Our modeling analysis of performance strategies revealed further important line-related differences. Therefore, our findings support the view that individuals with high CORT responsiveness would form stronger long-term memories to navigate in stressful environments. Conversely, individuals with low CORT responsiveness would be impaired at different phases of spatial learning and memory.

Self-generation of knowledge can activate deeper cognitive processing and improve long-term retention compared to the passive reception of information. It plays a distinctive role within the concept of inquiry-based learning, which is an activity-oriented, student-centered collaborative learning approach in which students become actively involved in knowledge construction by following an idealized hypothetico-deductive method. This approach allows students to not only acquire content knowledge, but also an understanding of investigative procedures/inquiry skills – in particular the control-of-variables strategy (CVS). From the perspective of cognitive load theory, generating answers and solutions during inquiry-based learning is inefficient as it imposes an intrinsic and extraneous load on learners. Previous research on self-generation of content knowledge in inquiry-based learning has demonstrated that (1) a high cognitive load impairs retention of the generated information, (2) feedback is a fundamental requirement for self-generation of complex content knowledge, (3) self-generation success is key to long-term retention, and (4) generating and rereading place different demands on learners. However, there is still no research on the self-generation of scientific reasoning skills (procedural knowledge) and no knowledge of interaction between the (long-term) retention of these skills with prior knowledge, feedback and self-generation success. That is why this experiment was conducted. The focus of this research is to analyze the distinctive role of self-generation of scientific reasoning skills within the concept of inquiry-based learning and to identify the influence of prior knowledge and self-generation success on short-term and long-term retention. For this purpose, an experiment involving 133 6th and 7th graders was conducted. An inquiry activity that included the self-generation of scientific reasoning skills was compared to an inquiry task that had students simply read information about the experimental design. We used both an immediate and a delayed test to examine which treatment better developed a deeper understanding of CVS and an ability to apply this knowledge to novel problems (transfer). Direct instruction was clearly superior to self-generation in facilitating students’ acquisition of CVS immediately after the inquiry task. However, after a period of 1 week had elapsed, both treatment conditions turned out to be equally effective. A generation effect was only found among students with high self-generation success after a 1-week delay.

NOTE: The first page of text has been automatically extracted and included below in lieu of an abstract Session 2530 The Effect of Announced/Unannounced Examinations on Student Retention John C. Reis Aerospace Engineering Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Prescott, AZ 86301 ABSTRACT A hypothesis that students given unannounced quizzes in engineering classes, instead of announced midterms, would have a improved long-term retention of the course material was tested using two sections of an introductory fluid mechanics class. The hypothesis was based on the assumption that a series of unannounced quizzes minimizes "cramming" and results in more material being placed in long-term memory. Long-term retention was found not to be statistically different for the two sections and the hypothesis was not proven. When learning and testing occur at high levels in Bloom's taxonomy, substantial material is automatically placed in long-term memory and retention is independent of testing method, regardless of how much "cramming" occurs. INTRODUCTION Most engineering science classes evaluate student understanding of the material through one or more examinations during the semester and a comprehensive final examination. Many students prepare for announced examinations through an intensive study immediately before the examination, e.g., cramming. Although this method has proven to be a successful method for preparing for individual examinations, its value for long-term retention is questionable. Cramming normally places the learned material in short-term memory, where is it available for the imminent examination, but is forgotten shortly thereafter. It was hypothesized that students would retain an understanding of the material for a longer period of time if their study habits were altered so that they studied the same material multiple times over the course of the semester instead of just prior to announced examinations. This behavior would place more of the material in long-term memory, improving retention for use in subsequent classes and after graduation. A number of methods exist to encourage students to study the same material multiple times during the semester. Multiple examinations covering the same material would, at a minimum, force students to "cram" the same material a number of times. Multiple examinations, however, have the limitation that they replace classroom learning time with evaluation time. This loss of learning time limits the number of in-class examinations that may be given. Another method for encouraging students to study the same material multiple times is to give unannounced examinations. Not knowing which day the examination will be given encourages students to be more prepared at all times. Thus, they will likely review the material more times. 1996 ASEE Annual Conference Proceedings

The influence of circadian rhythms on memory has long been studied; however, the molecular prerequisites for their interaction remain elusive. The hippocampus, which is a region of the brain important for long-term memory formation and temporary maintenance, shows circadian rhythmicity in pathways central to the memory-consolidation process. As neuronal plasticity is the translation of numerous inputs, illuminating the direct molecular links between circadian rhythms and memory consolidation remains a daunting task. However, the elucidation of how clock genes contribute to synaptic plasticity could provide such a link. Furthermore, the idea that memory training could actually function as a zeitgeber for hippocampal neurons is worth consideration, based on our knowledge of the entrainment of the circadian clock system. The integration of many inputs in the hippocampus affects memory consolidation at both the cellular and the systems level, leaving the molecular connections between circadian rhythmicity and memory relatively obscure but ripe for investigation.

Most research into orthographic learning abilities has been conducted in English with typically developing children using reading-based tasks. In the present study, we examined the abilities of French-speaking children with dyslexia to create novel orthographic representations for subsequent use in spelling and to maintain them in long-term memory. Their performance was compared with that of chronological age (CA)-matched and reading age (RA)-matched control children. We used an experimental task designed to provide optimal learning conditions (i.e. 10 spelling practice trials) ensuring the short-term acquisition of the spelling of the target orthographic word forms. After a 1-week delay, the long-term retention of the targets was assessed by a spelling post-test. Analysis of the results revealed that, in the short term, children with dyslexia learned the novel orthographic word forms well, only differing from both CA and RA controls on the initial decoding of the targets and from CA controls on the first two practice trials. In contrast, a dramatic drop was observed in their long-term retention relative to CA and RA controls. These results support the suggestion of the self-teaching hypothesis (Share, 1995) that initial errors in the decoding and spelling of unfamiliar words may hinder the establishment of fully specified novel orthographic representations.

Chapter 17 lays out primary features and functions of visual long-term memory. Recollection and familiarity are distinguished. Different levels of abstractness/concretion in long-term perceptual retention are highlighted. Ability-general, or schematic long-term memory, often misleadingly called ‘semantic memory’, is distinguished from de re long-term memory, which retains perceptual reference to particulars. Episodic memory is a species of long-term de re memory. The representational forms, including the iconicity, of these different types of long-term memory are set out. There is some discussion of whether the different types of memory are different systems or rather different aspects or faces of a single memory system. The discussion stresses functions to retain perceptual contents in long-term visual memory. Relations between perceptual and conceptual attributives in long-term memory are outlined. The chapter concludes with a summary of relations among the various types of perceptual memory, short- and long-term.

To investigate effects of isoflurane anesthesia of different time interval on acute injury of brain function in neonatal rats with consistent total time of isoflurane anesthesia. Seven-day neonatal Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into normal control group (breathe the air), continuous anesthesia group (a single 6-hour exposure to 1.5% isoflurane), and intermittent anesthesia 1 day and 3 days groups (three times of 2-hour exposure to anesthesia with an interval of 1 day or 3 days), 12 rats in each group. The ratio of male to female was 5:7. They underwent the test of learning and memory in the radial arm maze (RAM) 21 days after birth, twice a day for 4 days. The number of entry into wrong arms, number of repeated errors, number of total arm entries, and time for completing the task were recorded for evaluation of effect of neonatal isoflurane on cognitive behavior in rats. ① Compared with normal control group, the percentage of number of errors > 3 in anesthesia of 3-day interval group was significantly decreased (33.3% vs. 46.9%, P < 0.05), the percentages of repeated errors > 0 and total arm entries > 8 were significantly increased (33.3% vs. 18.8%, 27.1% vs. 13.5%, both P < 0.05), but there were no statistically significant difference in the percentage of mistake number > 3 between continuous anesthesia group, interval anesthesia 1-day group and the normal control group (44.8%, 44.8% vs. 46.9%), the percentages of number of repeated mistake > 0 and total arm entries > 8 in above three groups were slightly increased as compared with those of normal control group (27.1%, 22.9% vs. 18.8%, 20.8%, 21.9% vs. 13.5%, all P > 0.05). No statistical differences in completing the task among normal control group, continuous anesthesia group, interval anesthesia 1 day and 3 days groups were found (minutes: 1.32±0.91, 1.54±1.05, 1.46±0.86, 1.38±0.79, all P > 0.05). ② It was found by gender analysis that the percentages number of repeated errors > 0 and total arm entries > 8 were significantly lower in female rats than those in the male rats only in normal control group (5.0% vs. 28.6%, P < 0.01; 5.0% vs. 19.6%, P < 0.05). There was no obvious gender difference in exposed groups. ③ Compared between groups of female rats, the percentages of repeated mistake > 0 in continuous anesthesia group, interval anesthesia 1 day and 3 days groups (25.0%, 25.0%, 30.0% vs. 5.0%, P < 0.05 or P < 0.01) and the percentage of total arm entries > 8 in interval anesthesia 1 day and 3 days groups were significantly higher than that of normal control group (22.5%, 25.0% vs. 5.0%, both P < 0.05). No significant difference about the RAM task in male rats of all the four groups was found. Different time interval of neonatal isoflurane exposure may develop certain degree of acute brain injury in rats, characterized by cognitive function. Prolongation of the interval time significantly enhanced long-term memory in rats. Multiple neonatal exposures to isoflurane were associated with greater cognitive impairment than a single exposure. In addition, isoflurane can significantly increase cognitional functional disorder in the female, not in the male rats.

Growing animal data evince a critical role of the sensory cortex in the long-term storage of aversive conditioning, following acquisition and consolidation in the amygdala. Whether and how this function is conserved in the human sensory cortex is nonetheless unclear. We interrogated this question in a human aversive conditioning study using multidimensional assessments of conditioning and long-term (15 d) retention. Conditioned stimuli (CSs; Gabor patches) were calibrated to differentially activate the parvocellular (P) and magnocellular (M) visual pathways, further elucidating cortical versus subcortical mechanisms. Full-blown conditioning and long-term retention emerged for M-biased CS (vs limited effects for P-biased CS), especially among anxious individuals, in all four dimensions assessed: threat appraisal (threat ratings), physiological arousal (skin conductance response), perceptual learning [discrimination sensitivity (d') and response speed], and cortical plasticity [visual evoked potentials (VEPs) and cortical current density]. Interestingly, while behavioral, physiological, and VEP effects were comparable at immediate and delayed assessments, the cortical substrates evolved markedly over time, transferring from high-order cortices [inferotemporal/fusiform cortex and orbitofrontal cortex (OFC)] immediately to the primary and secondary visual cortex after the delay. In sum, the contrast between P- and M-biased conditioning confirms privileged conditioning acquisition via the subcortical pathway while the immediate cortical plasticity lends credence to the triadic amygdala-OFC-fusiform network thought to underlie threat processing. Importantly, long-term retention of conditioning in the basic sensory cortices supports the conserved role of the human sensory cortex in the long-term storage of aversive conditioning.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT A growing network of neural substrates has been identified in threat learning and memory. The sensory cortex plays a key role in long-term threat memory in animals, but such a function in humans remains unclear. To explore this problem, we conducted multidimensional assessments of immediate and delayed (15 d) effects of human aversive conditioning. Behavioral, physiological, and scalp electrophysiological data demonstrated conditioning effects and long-term retention. High-density EEG intracranial source analysis further revealed the cortical underpinnings, implicating high-order cortices immediately and primary and secondary visual cortices after the long delay. Therefore, while high-order cortices support aversive conditioning acquisition (i.e., threat learning), the human sensory cortex (akin to the animal homolog) underpins long-term storage of conditioning (i.e., long-term threat memory).

Repeated testing is known to produce superior long-term retention of the to-be-learned material compared with repeated encoding and other learning techniques, much because it fosters repeated memory retrieval. This study demonstrates that repeated memory retrieval might strengthen memory by inducing more differentiated or elaborated memory representations in the parietal cortex, and at the same time reducing demands on prefrontal-cortex-mediated cognitive control processes during retrieval. The findings contrast with recent demonstrations that repeated encoding induces less differentiated or elaborated memory representations. Together, this study suggests a potential neurocognitive explanation of why repeated retrieval is more beneficial for long-term retention than repeated encoding, a phenomenon known as the testing effect.

Respiration is a crucial metabolic process that converts macronutrients, carbohydrates and fats, and oxygen into energy and carbon dioxide to support motor actions. Moreover, the brain is a significant energy consumer, accounting for large portions of the body's total energy expenditure and relying primarily on carbohydrates for neural activity and plasticity. However, it is not known whether gas composition in breathing can serve as an indicator of neural activity and plasticity as they can for movement intensity. In human reaching movement tasks, we evaluated time-constants of sensorimotor learning during the recording of gas exchange. We computed the respiratory exchange ratio (RER), indicating whether carbohydrate or fat is used preferentially, and found that the RER was unaffected by the execution and learning of reaching movements and that it was stable within but varied across individuals. Interestingly, using computational modelling to identify short and long-time constants of sensorimotor learning, individual RER levels correlated with the estimated slow component of learning dynamics, suggesting a link between metabolic state and processes underlying long-term retention. To probe this further, we used glucose administration, known to increase RER by promoting carbohydrate utilisation, before training. Regression analysis indicated that glucose-induced RER increases during training were associated with enhanced estimated 24h retention at the intra-individual level. Together, RER is associated with processes underlying long-term memory acquisition and retention, and glucose administration shifted the physiological idling state for the processes. Unravelling the specific neurobiological pathway from these intriguing breathing metrics to brain function emerges as a compelling new research direction. KEY POINTS: The brain is a major energy consumer (20% of total energy from only 2% of body weight), primarily using carbohydrates for neural activity and plasticity. The respiratory exchange ratio (RER) in breath signals the body's balance of fat-carbohydrate fuel use; this study explored whether RER reflects neural processes in motor memory acquisition and retention. Individual RER, stable during reaching tasks but varying across participants, correlated with the computationally estimated slow component of learning dynamics, which is linked to long-term retention. Glucose administration, known to increase RER, was associated with improved estimated 24h motor memory retention at an individual level. The results suggest that RER indicates long-term motor memory processes and that manipulating RER via glucose may enhance motor memory, offering a new neurobiological pathway from these intriguing breathing metrics to memory function and potential practical implications for a simple but plausible intervention.

Understanding memory retention in children with developmental language disorder (DLD) compared with their typically developing (TD) peers enhances our knowledge of memory processes. To examine long-term memory consolidation of a declarative object-location task and a procedural symbol-writing task, along with grammatical and lexical skills, in 5-year-old children with DLD and their age-matched peers. A total of 23 children with DLD and 30 TD peers participated. For procedural memory, children practiced writing a new symbol and were assessed 4 hours and 2 weeks post-practice. For declarative memory, they practiced locating cards until they achieved 75% correct responses and were assessed again 4 hours and 2 weeks post-practice. Children with DLD had fewer correct responses on the declarative-memory object location task with the gap widening significantly from 4 hours to 2 weeks post-training. On the procedural symbol-writing task, children with DLD showed overall lower accuracy. Furthermore, only their TD peers exhibited delayed gains 4 hours post-training in production times, while they narrowed the gap two weeks later. A speed-accuracy trade-off was observed during their symbol-writing practice. These results highlight atypical long-term declarative memory retention and procedural knowledge acquisition in DLD. Consistent with previous studies, declarative memory correlated with lexical scores in both groups, while procedural memory correlated with grammatical scores only in TD peers. Interestingly, long-term procedural learning was linked to lexical abilities in children with TD. Characterizing child performance in short and long intervals following practice may aid clinicians in supporting children with DLD beyond the clinical setting. What is already known on the subject Current studies emphasize the role of long-term memory in language learning, particularly procedural memory for grammar and declarative memory for lexical knowledge but often overlook longer term performance and non-sleep memory consolidation. Additionally, most research focuses on older children, with few studies addressing younger children at critical language acquisition ages, a gap this study aims to fill. What this paper adds to the existing knowledge The study shows that children with DLD exhibit atypical patterns in declarative and procedural memory post-training. It also establishes correlations between memory types and language skills, highlighting distinct memory challenges in children with DLD compared with their TD peers. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work? The clinical implications of this study highlight the need for targeted interventions to address post-practice memory deficits in children with DLD. The findings indicate that children with DLD struggle with both declarative and procedural memory tasks at different post-training intervals, suggesting the necessity for early, ongoing support. Personalized educational and clinical strategies that consider each child's unique memory profile can enhance language acquisition and overall learning outcomes, making tailored interventions crucial.

Applying the Science of Learning to Classroom Teaching: The Critical Importance of Aligning Learning with Testing

BackgroundComplex motor tasks in immersive virtual reality using a head-mounted display (HMD-VR) have been shown to increase cognitive load and decrease motor performance compared to conventional computer screens (CS). Separately, visuomotor adaptation in HMD-VR has been shown to recruit more explicit, cognitive strategies, resulting in decreased implicit mechanisms thought to contribute to motor memory formation. However, it is unclear whether visuomotor adaptation in HMD-VR increases cognitive load and whether cognitive load is related to explicit mechanisms and long-term motor memory formation.MethodsWe randomized 36 healthy participants into three equal groups. All groups completed an established visuomotor adaptation task measuring explicit and implicit mechanisms, combined with a dual-task probe measuring cognitive load. Then, all groups returned after 24-h to measure retention of the overall adaptation. One group completed both training and retention tasks in CS (measuring long-term retention in a CS environment), one group completed both training and retention tasks in HMD-VR (measuring long-term retention in an HMD-VR environment), and one group completed the training task in HMD-VR and the retention task in CS (measuring context transfer from an HMD-VR environment). A Generalized Linear Mixed-Effect Model (GLMM) was used to compare cognitive load between CS and HMD-VR during visuomotor adaptation, t-tests were used to compare overall adaptation and explicit and implicit mechanisms between CS and HMD-VR training environments, and ANOVAs were used to compare group differences in long-term retention and context transfer.ResultsCognitive load was found to be greater in HMD-VR than in CS. This increased cognitive load was related to decreased use of explicit, cognitive mechanisms early in adaptation. Moreover, increased cognitive load was also related to decreased long-term motor memory formation. Finally, training in HMD-VR resulted in decreased long-term retention and context transfer.ConclusionsOur findings show that cognitive load increases in HMD-VR and relates to explicit learning and long-term motor memory formation during motor learning. Future studies should examine what factors cause increased cognitive load in HMD-VR motor learning and whether this impacts HMD-VR training and long-term retention in clinical populations.

Molecular Enhancement of Memory Formation

The interactive effects of physiological reactivity and social support on children's memory were examined. Four- to 6-year-olds completed a laboratory protocol during which autonomic responses and salivary cortisol were measured. Memory was assessed shortly afterward and 2 weeks later. During the second interview, children were questioned by a supportive or nonsupportive interviewer. Few significant relations emerged between reactivity and children's short-term memory. Following a 2-week delay, cortisol reactivity was associated with poorer memory and autonomic reactivity was associated with increased accuracy among children questioned in a supportive manner but decreased accuracy among children questioned in a nonsupportive manner. Results question traditional conceptualizations of reactivity as a risk factor and instead suggest that reactivity may only confer risk in certain environmental contexts.