16.11.

2020 Part 2: Different Types of Memory - Sensory Memory - Centre of Excellence

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Module 1: The Mysteries of the Human Brain

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Part 2: Different Types of Memory - Sensory

Memory

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16.11.2020 Part 2: Different Types of Memory - Sensory Memory - Centre of Excellence

In general, we all know what memory is. If we were to de ne it, we might say it is the ability
to retain and recall personal experiences, details, skills and habits. Yet, while we can explain
it easily enough, understanding how we make memories is much more di cult. For starters,
it is both a psychological and biological process. Secondly, scientists have not yet
established an accepted, validated model for the actual mechanics of memory. However,
they do agree upon the forms that memory takes and where each type of memory is
actuated.

While memory is created and stored throughout the brain, science has shown us that some
regions are associated with speci c types of memory. The temporal lobe is important for
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16.11.2020 Part 2: Different Types of Memory - Sensory Memory - Centre of Excellence

sensory memory, for example, while the frontal lobe is associated with both short- and long-
term memory. The primary forms of memory are as follows.

Sensory Memory
Sensory memory is the rst and shortest form of memory and takes in information through
your ve senses. As we noted above, the temporal and occipital lobes are involved in this
memory form. The reason for this is that these sections of the brain are associated with
sensation.

Sensory memory has no storage capability; it is a temporary ‘holding cell’ for sensory
information, capable of holding information for approximately 200–500 milliseconds before
either passing it to short-term memory or letting it disappear.

Its purpose is to allow your brain time to process and create order out of whatever
sensations you’re experiencing. Think of it as the start of a memory, such as when you step
out of a plane on the rst day of your summer holiday and immediately take in the sounds,
smell, or sense of heat on your skin.

There are three types of sensory memory:

Sensory memory triggered by visual stimuli is known as iconic memory.

Sensory memory triggered by touch is known as the haptic memory.

Sensory memory triggered by aural stimulus is known as echoic memory.

Interestingly, memories related to smell persist and last longer in humans and rarely need
to be reinforced to be remembered. The reason for this is that the amygdala (which is
situated in the temporal lobe) and the olfactory cortex (where small perceptions are stored)

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16.11.2020 Part 2: Different Types of Memory - Sensory Memory - Centre of Excellence

are physically very close, separated only by a few synapses (i.e. the place where nerve cells
connect with other nerve cells).

This is the reason why the scent of a certain perfume suddenly reminds you of your mother
or the smell of freshly mown grass conjures up images of a summer in childhood.

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Part 3: Short-Term Memory, Long-Term Memory and Retrospective and 
Prospective Memories

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