Does the brain choose which memories to keep?
One study suggests a burst of theta waves during learning flags memories for consolidation during sleep.
Ask your own in the app → TopicMemory · Brain & Mind
How does the brain make and keep memories?
Memory is how the brain stores experience and brings it back. The papers we have covered look at what helps memories last in later life and how the brain marks some memories for keeping during sleep. Most of this work is small or early, so treat the findings as leads rather than rules.
Paper by paper
The papers we've covered
- NEURO Memory
Behavioral Sciences8 min listen
Does Going to Bed Sooner Help Preschoolers Remember?
Four-year-olds built toys with a grown-up, then slept. Did an earlier bedtime protect the memory, and why do kids claim they did the grown-up's steps?
Peer-reviewed Preregistered study76 children Limited evidence
- NEURO Memory
PLoS Biology8 min listen
Does the Brain Tag Memories for Sleep While You Learn?
How does the brain choose which memories sleep keeps? This study suggests a burst of theta waves during learning flags a memory for the night shift.
Peer-reviewed Within-person nap experiment31 adults Limited evidence
- NEURO Memory
Experimental Physiology8 min listen
Do Hot Baths Sharpen the Ageing Brain?
Twelve older adults took hour-long 40 °C soaks for six weeks. Two thinking tests improved, but the main memory test did not.
Peer-reviewed Pre–post trialN = 12No control group Limited evidence
Questions people ask
Short answers, from the papers.
Can lifestyle sharpen memory in older adults?
In one small study, regular hot baths improved two thinking tests but not the main memory test.
Ask your own in the app →How solid is this evidence?
Early and mostly small studies; promising, but not settled.
Ask your own in the app →Keep up with Brain & Mind research, ten minutes a paper.
The papers that matter in this hub, explained, and you can ask each one questions.
