My Memory Lane

How are memories stored in the brain long term?

Brains are made of neurons and they contain our memories. Neurons die and are replaced like all cells, so how are our memories retained? How are anatomical or bio-chemical changes maintained in the brain? Do new nuerons become exact copies of the old and fit themselves in the same places, connecting to other nuerons in the same way?

Public Comments

1. the brain is a facinating thing, they work just like a computer harddrive, with intel core 2 duo, enabling you to multitask. those intellectually disabled, are slow.. just like a slow computer
2. Newly learned data are "stored" in short-term memory, which is a temporary ability to recall a few pieces of information. Some evidence supports the concept that short-term memory depends upon electrical and chemical events in the brain as opposed to structural changes such as the formation of new synapses. One theory of short-term memory states that memories may be caused by “reverberating” neuronal circuits -- that is, an incoming nerve impulse stimulates the first neuron which stimulates the second, and so on, with branches from the second neuron synapsing with the first. After a period of time, information may be moved into a more permanent type of memory, long-term memory, which is the result of anatomical or biochemical changes that occur in the brain.