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Effortless Studying? Creating Long-lasting Memories While Having Fun

posted by martyb on Friday September 09 2016, @11:12AM   Printer-friendly
from the gotta-remember-this-one dept.

Phoenix666 writes:

Imagine if playing a new video game or riding a rollercoaster could help you prepare for an exam or remember other critical information.

A new study in mice shows this link may be possible.

Attention-grabbing experiences trigger the release of memory-enhancing chemicals. Those chemicals can etch memories into the brain that occur just before or soon after the experience, regardless of whether they were related to the event, according to researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center's Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute.

The findings, published in Nature, hold intriguing implications for methods of learning in classrooms as well as an array of potential uses in the workplace and personal life, researchers said.

The trick to creating long-lasting memories is to find something interesting enough to activate the release of dopamine from the brain's locus coeruleus (LC) region.

The authors of the study suggest that the critical dopamine release that aids retention could be triggered by behavioral changes or pharmacologically via agents like amphetamines.

An abstract, Locus coeruleus and dopaminergic consolidation of everyday memory is available.

Original Submission

 
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  • (Score: 2, Insightful) by nitehawk214 on Friday September 09 2016, @07:19PM

    by nitehawk214 (1304) on Friday September 09 2016, @07:19PM (#399758)

    Oh I can think of a way to create a long lasting memory while having fun...

    Didn't do any good for my test scores, though.

    --
    "Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh
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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @07:52PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @07:52PM (#399768)

    Are you planning a visit to that famous Dr. Ellis D. Twentyfive? (say it fast)

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @08:22PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @08:22PM (#399778)

      Hey, Dr. Ellis D. Twentyfive helped deduce the structure of DNA!

    • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @09:07PM

      by Anonymous Coward on Friday September 09 2016, @09:07PM (#399788)

      I don't get it...

    • (Score: 1) by nitehawk214 on Sunday September 11 2016, @10:29PM

      by nitehawk214 (1304) on Sunday September 11 2016, @10:29PM (#400403)

      I get it.. but this friend of mine does not... could you explain it to him?

      --
      "Don't you ever miss the days when you used to be nostalgic?" -Loiosh