单项选择题
For questions 1-6, make the best choice for each of them, and for questions 7-10, fill in each blank with information given in the passage.
by Art Dworken
It happens all the time: You study for a test. Then while you’re taking the test, you can’t remember something you know you studied. You panic, and spend time trying to remember the answer - but by then your time is up.
"I really studied this," you fret. As you hand in your paper and leave class, you remember: " That’s it ! I knew that ! "
When something like this happens, it is called a tip-of-the-tongue memory lapse. Everyone experiences them. When such a lapse occurs, you strain to remember something with no success at all. Then, later, when you aren’t thinking about the problem, the material just pops back into your mind.
The stress of trying to remember something important - perhaps during a test or when speaking or performing in front of a group of people - actually can trigger such a momentary mental block. This can happen even when you are certain you know that " something. " How can one relieve these momentary mental log-jams Just leaving the forgotten subject alone for even a few seconds will sometimes free up your reluctant memory.
There are many theories to explain how memory is stored in the brain. One thing memory experts generally agree on, however, is that one’s memory begins to work almost at birth.
Experiments have been done on newborn infants to determine how early in life memory begins. The infants are presented with a stimulus such as a bell. The first time the bell is rung the infants produce a " startle reaction. " The next time the bell is rung, the infants do not react as strongly.
The only explanation for this diminished response is that the infants recognize the bell as something they have experienced before. The stimulus, therefore, has become familiar. In this sense, memory is already present.
By one or two months of age, even more powerful memory occurs. Babies then can remember and recognize their mothers’ faces peering over the sides of their cribs.
Oddly enough, there wasn’t such scientific interest in memory until fairly recently. Now, however, research on ways to enhance both memory and learning is taking place at a number of institutions.
At Iowa State University, for instance, Dr. Donald Schuster, a professor of psychology, has demonstrated something interesting in controlled laboratory studies. He found that a quiet, peaceful atmosphere accompanied by baroque or other classical background music can facilitate memory and learning. Listening to baroque music may have a direct physiological effect and when people are calm and relaxed, they learn and remember more.
Researchers say that memory difficulties arise because of two factors. First, a person must store information correctly in memory. Next, the person must be able to get this information out of memory and use it when it is needed. If information is not stored correctly, it is plain that it can’t be called forth accurately. So, storing information correctly is the first and most important step.
Sometimes the memory process can be made easier by conscious use of strategies. Some strategies are useful during the memorization process, others later for recalling what was learned.
The strategy of association is helpful in storing information. Many people have trouble remembering names. This is probably because they failed to get a name right in the first place. Very often, people simply do not pay attention when others are introduced.
If you have trouble remembering names, try a strategy of association. For example, say you were introduced to a plain young woman named Joyce Miller Well, if she were a happy young woman, you could associate her first name with the word joy. Or you could think of her as living or working in a mill. Then you could think of "happy mill" whenever you saw her - Joyce Miller !
Another way to aid your memory is to use mnemonics or memory aids. You probably use mnemonics to remember the number of days in the months: " Thirty days hath September, April, June, and November … " Another way to use mnemonics is to use cues. The old idea of tying a string around your finger to remind you of something is using a cue.
Acronyms are another useful aid. For example, people often use the letters H O M E S to help them remember the names of the five Great Lakes: Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior.
Besides these strategies to aid memorization, there are other common-sense ways to improve memory. And one’s memory can be improved. All it takes is a little effort.
For example, when trying to remember information for a test, there are certain things to keep in mind. If you write down the information you want to learn, it will be easier to remember. Because you have written it, you may be able to picture the information in your mind and recall it during the test. In addition to writing it down, if you also say it out loud, it will even be easier to remember.
When you are taking a test and suddenly forget what you have studied - don’t panic. Relax and go on to the next question. You may find that relaxing helps you remember. Or, you may read something in another part of the test that reminds you of what you forgot.
If you think your memory is really poor, carry around a notebook specifically to keep notes in. Don’t trust yourself to remember what your homework assignment is or what your next test covers - write it down ! And check your notebook before you leave school at the end of the day s0 you can be sure to bring home the books you need.
Another way to keep your memory sharp is to be physically and mentally active. If you spend hours in front of the television set or spend most of your spare time eating and sleeping, your memory will be sluggish. Exercise and fresh air will keep you alert both physically and mentally.
And, of course, it’s always easier to remember something if you are interested in it. You must be motivated to remember something you have to care about. Therefore, try to become interested in what you have to learn. It won’t be easy at first, but with practice it will be less and less difficult.
The human memory has amazing potential. For instance, if people stored ten bits of information every second of their lives, by their l00th birthdays they would have used up far less than half the storage capacity of their brains.
The ability to recall information from memory does not seem to decline greatly with advancing years. And the older person may recall facts even better than the young. Those of us who are prone to bouts of forgetfulness can take heart in the knowledge that perhaps the greatest mind of the twentieth century occasionally fell prey to memory lapses.
Albert Einstein, "the father of the atomic age," once went to New York City to make a speech and got lost after forgetting the name of his hotel. Maybe there’s hope after all for the rest of us !
A. to explain to us what a "tip-of-the-tongue" memory lapse is
B. to describe in detail the nature of memory
C. to tell us some new developments of scientific research on memory and learning
D. to discuss some ways of improving both our memory and learning