Notes from: “Perspectives on episodic and semantic memory retrieval” (Chapter 1.

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the book: Handbook of episodic memory).
Hippocampus We review psychological an neuroimaging literature suggesting that both
semantic and episodic memory retrieval engages the hippocampus, at least
within the normally functioning brain. P. 5.

EM Thus, spatial-temporal context remains a critical component of episodic

memory. P.5.
Hippocampus fMRI studies have shown repeatedly, and in various ways, that even very
remote event memories activate the hippocampus. Neuroimaging studies
have shown consistent activation in MTL structures during retrieval of recent
and very remote autobiographical memories. P.6.
The actual debate In contrast, debates continues regarding whether the hippocampus is critical
for the retrieval of semantics and world knowledge.p.6.
SM Squire and others (ver p. 6), emphasize that at least some amnesics appear
to have significant deficits in semantic memory retrieval, even for well
established world knowledge. P. 6
Deterioro cognitivo Alternatively, a recent review concluded that retrograde amnesia for
semantic memory is either spared completedly or confined to a period of
about 10 years prior to the head injury, providing that the damage is limited
primarly to the hippocampal formation. P. 6
Hippocampus While the extent of hippocampal involment in retrieval remains
controversial, there is little doubt that acquisitions of new episodic and
semantic memories is impaired by damage to the hippocampus, at least
when the injury is acquired in adulthood. P.6.
Cognitive Adult-onset amnesics can learn new semantic information, but is clearly a
impairment very efficient learning process and the resulting knowledge is inflexible and
does not easily generalize to other contexts. P. 7.
Hippocampus Thus, the hippocampus appears to play an important role in the acquisition,
but not retrieval, of semantic memories, while participating in both the
acquisition of new eppisodes and their subsequent retrieval throughout the
lifetime of the rememberer.
Hippocampus In this chapter we explore a different view of the hippocampus during
encoding and retrieval of both episodic and semantic memories.

Cognitive map CMT assumes that the hippocampus is preferentialy involved in the
theory processing of spatial relations. MTT assumes that inputs to the MTL
automatically engage hippocampal networks, whether the information
involved is semantic or episodic, resulting in activation in cortical networks
related to the input.
Hippocampus Assuming that retrieval of even quite old episodic memories engages the
hippocampus, it is worth pursuing the idea that the same might be true for
semantic knowledge gained at various times in the past, particularly when
the information refers to spatial locations or spatial relations. P. 7

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