Question

[Lê Quỳnh Anh]

Read the following passage and mark the letter A, B, C, or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions.

Most people can remember a phone number for up to thirty seconds. When this short amount of time elapses, however, the numbers are erased from the memory. How did the information get there in the first place? Information that makes its way to the short term memory (STM) does so via the sensory storage area. The brain has a filter which only allows stimuli that is of immediate interest to pass on to the STM, also known as the working memory.

There is much debate about the capacity and duration of the short term memory. The most accepted theory comes from George A. Miller, a cognitive psychologist who suggested that humans can remember approximately seven chunks of information. A chunk is defined as a meaningful unit of information, such as a word or name rather than just a letter or number. Modem theorists suggest that one can increase the capacity of the short term memoiy by chunking, or classifying similar information together. By organizing information, one can optimize the STM, and improve the chances of a memory being passed on to long term storage.

 When making a conscious effort to memorize something, such as information for an exam, many people engage in "rote rehearsal". By repeating something over and over again, one is able to keep a memory alive. Unfortunately, this type of memory maintenance only succeeds if there are no interruptions. As soon as a person stops rehearsing the information, it has the tendency to disappear. When a pen and paper are not handy, people often attempt to remember a phone number by repeating it aloud. If the doorbell rings or the dog barks to come in before a person has the opportunity to make a phone call, he will likely forget the number instantly. Therefore, rote rehearsal is not an efficient way to pass information from the short term to long term memory. A better way is to practice "elaborate rehearsal". This involves assigning semantic meaning to a piece of information so that it can be filed along with other pre-existing long term memories.

Encoding information semantically also makes it more retrievable. Retrieving information can be done by recognition or recall. Humans can easily recall memories that are stored in the long term memory and used often; however, if a memory seems to be forgotten, it may eventually be retrieved by prompting. The more cues a person is given (such as pictures), the more likely a memory can be retrieved. This is why multiple choice tests are often used for subjects that require a lot of memorization.

According to the passage, how do memories get transferred to the STM?

A. They revert from the long term memory

B. They are filtered from the sensory storage area

C. They get chunked when they enter the brain

D. They enter via the nervous system

Answer 1

[Dương Hoàn Anh]

Đáp án B.

Key word: How, memories, transferred to the STM.

Clue: “How did the information get there in the first place? Information that makes its way to the short term memory (STM) does so via the sensory storage area”: Làm thể nào để thông tin đến đó trong lần đầu? Thông tin sẽ tạo đường đến bộ nhớ tạm thời thông qua khu vực lưu trữ tri giác.

A. They revert from the long term memory: Chúng trở lại như cũ từ bộ nhớ dài hạn - Sai vì trong Clue là short term.

B. They are filtered (dịch chuyển) from the sensory storage area - Đúng (Tham khảo clue).

C. They get chunked when they enter the brain: Chúng bị phân đoạn khi vào não - Sai vì đây là thông tin ở đoạn 2 chứ không phải để trả lời câu hỏi.

D. They enter via the nervous system; Chúng đi qua hệ thần kinh - Sai (Tham khảo clue).

Kiến thức cần nhớ

Một số từ khóa trong bài: - (time) elapse / i'læps/: thời gian trôi qua -  shortterm memory: trí nhớ ngắn hạn - long term memory: trí nhớ dài hạn - retrieve information: lấy lại/nhớ lại thông tin