Summary

The mystery of memory



Memory is important to everyone in everyday life. It is the process by which everyone person encode, store and retrieve information. There are three levels of memory: sensory, short-term and long-term.

The first repository of the information the world presents to humanity is sensory memory. Sensory memory allows people to take a snapshot of environment and to store this information for a short period. This type of memory can store information info for only a very short time.

In a second stage, short-term memory holds information for 15 to 25 seconds and stores it according to its meaning. This level of memory is most often stored as sounds, especially in recalling words, but may be stored as images.

The third type of storage system is long-term memory. It lasts from a minute or so to weeks or even years. From long-term memory people can recall general information about the world.

All in all, remembering the names and other details of people who are important to everyone improves their personal, professional and social life.