We have two types of memory,one is temporary,and the other is more permanent.We use both all the time but usually in different ways.For instance,many times a day we have to remember certain things such as when to get up,when to eat,what to buy ,where to work,and when to go to bed.Such memories may last only a few minutes.They are more or less temporary,and once we have attended to the matter,we are only too glad to forget them.
Permanent memories,such as our name,age,sex,home address,and nationality,remain with us all the time.Most of these memories are formed in childhood or perhaps after some important event.They are more permanent,probably because of actual changes within the electrical circuits of the brain itself.Thus the last thing an elderly person remembers may be some childhood event that happened seventy or eighty years before.The earlier these memories are formed,the more permanent they seem to be.
The ability to remember is probably our most important asset.Without it,we are hopelessly lost and confused.This is what happens when a person has a stroke or some other injury to the brain.
Just now you are reading this blog.But you can understand what is printed here only because you have already stored in your mind the meanings of letters,words,phrases,and whole sentences.You read rapidly,and as you do so,the memories flash through your mind as vivid pictures take shape within your imagination.This is why we all love to read a thrilling story.
But the thought processes do not stop here.These mental pictures stimulate other memories,linking one thought with another until we eventually have a complete picture of some important topic,and from this we make all out important decisions in life.We analyze the information,weigh it,and carefully evaluate it,then decide how and where to use it all these reactions are taking place right now as you read,think and study.And thus your whole life is shaped by memories of the past and by your ability to reason and think.
