Oregon scientists study how the brain makes memories

(APRIL 5, 2021) Scientists at the University of Oregon are studying the brain. They want to know more about memory. How does a person make new memories? How does a person remember things later? And why does a person sometimes have problems remembering things?

Interference is the problem, suggests Brice Kuhl. He is a neuroscientist with the University of Oregon. A neuroscientist studies the nervous system and the brain.

Interference means something gets in the way of an action. For example, driving through a tunnel interferes with the signal of a cell phone.

"We study memory interference," says Kuhl. One big problem is when memories are similar. Another problem is when memories overlap, or share details. "We have trouble keeping them separate. It's a recipe for confusion."

Kuhl works in a lab. The lab studies real people doing simple tasks. They use an MRI scanner, which is like a big X-ray machine.

Here is what they learned:

• • • past memories are stronger than new memories

    • things that are different are easier to remember than things that are the same

The research can help people improve their memory, and that can help people improve their education, too.