PMHS
AP PSYCH
Name_________________________
AIM: To review memory loss
Different types of MEMORIES processed in different parts of brain
This was Atkinson Shiffron model
Clive Wearing case study
Damage was in: (circle) Hippocampus or Cerebellum?
Does Clive show evidence of procedural/implicit memories? (processed in
___________________)
Does Clive show evidence of semantic memories? –part of declarative/explicit memories?
There are two major types of amnesia where brain damage occurs
RETROgrade amnesia
ANTEROGRADE amnesia
Analyze Clive Wearing: Note – he could only remember limited details of his pre-amnesiac life, so
virtually all of his past was deleted.
Explain:
1. Greg’s father visited him in the hospital. After suffering a tumor in his brain, he felt like he was
living in the 1960s even though time had gone by. Greg, nicknamed “the Hippie” by Dr. Oliver
Sacks, still loved music and remembered the words to all the songs of his favorite band: The
Grateful Dead; however, when he was told of his father’s death, he had to be reminded of it over and
over again. Although he was never able to verbalize that his father died, he would sometimes be
awake throughout the night with a gut-feeling as though he had “lost something.” (Anthropologist
on Mars, Dr. Oliver Sacks, 1996.)
Type of amnesia_________________________________________________________
Long term memory (describe if in-tact or damaged)__________________________________________
*underline or highlight text for evidence
2. Jimmy G. told Dr. Oliver Sacks that he was 19-years old. Dr. Sacks showed the gray-haired man a
mirror in disbelief. Jimmy G. “suddenly turned ashen and gripped the sides of the chair. …what’s
going on? What’s happened to me? Is this a nightmare? Am I crazy? Is this a joke?’” Jimmy G was
frantic, but Dr. Sacks assured him it was a mistake and brought him to another part of the room to
distract him. Whenever Dr. Sacks reentered the room, Jimmy G. introduced himself. Dr. Sacks
asked Jimmy G. if they had ever met, but there was never a sign of recognition in his face. In fact,
Jimmy G. said “Quite a beard you got there. I wouldn’t forget you, Doc!’” (“The Lost Mariner,” The
Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat)
Type of amnesia_________________________________________________________
Long term memory (describe if in-tact or damaged)__________________________________________
*underline or highlight text for evidence
3. Dr. David Myers’ father suffered a small stroke at age 92. His pleasant personality was still in
tact, he remained mobile, he remembered the family and could even reminisce about the family’s
past when looking at photo albums. According to Dr. Myers, his father was unable to form
memories since the stroke. Dr. Myers’ father could not say the day of the week. After being
repeatedly told about the death of his brother-in-law, Dr Myers’ father expressed surprise each
time. (Myers’ Psychology for AP, 2011, page 255.)
Type of amnesia_________________________________________________________
Long term memory (describe if in-tact or damaged)__________________________________________
*underline or highlight text for evidence
Review amnesia
__________grade amnesia
Words to remember past and future
RETROspective memory
Words of forgetting past and future
RETROactive interference
____________grade amnesia
PROspective memory
PROactive interference
Write: Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
1. A student forgets material from the beginning of the year now that she has learned
six units of material. She feels confident about the current material, but can’t seem
to remember the first unit.
a.
Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
2. H.M. suffered epileptic seizures, so doctors removed his temporal lobe. This caused
him to become the first well-known, documented case of amnesia. Half an hour
after lunch, H.M. would forget what he ate or even if he ate.
a.
Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
3. A girl breaks-up with her boyfriend, Brad. She begins dating a new guy named
David. When David tells her he loves her, she responds with, “I love you too, Brad.”
a.
Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
4. An elderly woman reminds herself that she has to get her prescription refilled, so
she has enough pills next month.
a.
Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
5. Subjects must perform a task in an experiment where they must remember people,
words, and events from their past.
a.
Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
6. A senior in high school reminds himself that his application deadline is in two
weeks.
a.
Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
7. Clive Wearing felt as though he tasted his coffee for the first time in his life: He never
remembered having it before. Every moment feels like the first awakening moment
of his life. He wrote about this newness of consciousness in his journal.
a.
Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
8. Clive Wearing knew he had children from a previous marriage, but he could not
remember their names or ages.
a.
Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
9. A student changed his/her password on an online account, but realizes she can no
longer remember what the very first password was.
a.
Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
10. The teacher calls a student the name of her older brother or sister (because the
teacher had this sibling years prior).
a.
Retro or Antero or Pro (either amnesia, memory, or interference)
--------------------11. Explicit or implicit? Clive Wearing remembered how to play the piano and he
remembered the love he had for his second wife, Deborah. (Clive married Deborah a
year before his case of viral encephalitis.)
12. Explicit or implicit? Clive Wearing was still intelligent and could carry on a
conversation, including saying things like “ladies first.