The Greek orators memorized their speeches using the loci method. Speakers used this technique to associate their points in addresses with landmarks or locations in their towns. They could recall the related memory item as a specific area or landmark imaginatively passed them. To know what it is Creative Intelligence, click here
The invention of this technique can be considered creative, while its quick application can be regarded as intelligent! What is the relationship between Memory and creativity, and intelligence? This article will examine how Memory is used for creative and intellectual tasks. The effort is founded on various research studies, experiments, and generalizations drawn from those experiments.
Definition, Types, and Applications
Memory is “the ability to retain and draw on past experiences to use that information in the present” (Tulving, 2000). Interestingly, the definition associates the term with memory function; we’re also curious about how Memory is used for creative and intelligent tasks.
According to the Encyclopedia Britannica, memory is the encoding, storage, and retrieval of past experiences in the human mind. Thus, in human Memory, there are three significant stages of information processing: encoding or acquisition, storage or safekeeping, and retrieval or recollection.
William James, an American psychologist, and philosopher distinguished two types of Memory: primary, which deals with transient and short-term concerns, and secondary, which deals with storing information for long-term purposes. The working area of the brain is short-term Memory, while long-term Memory is its storage location.
An average person’s temporary Memory can hold 5 to 9 units of information, whereas permanent Memory has an almost infinite capacity. Furthermore, short-term Memory can store information for up to 30 seconds, whereas long-term Memory can hold data for a lifetime. Finally, working Memory is kept and retrieved sequentially, whereas permanent Memory is stored and retrieved through Association or Consolidation. (McLeod, 2013).
Memory processing relies heavily on association or consolidation. It refers to transferring information/experience from short-term to long-term Memory. We are constantly bombarded with information; this information is stored in our short-term Memory. Keeping all the details surrounding us indefinitely is undesirable and impossible.
However, there are some experiences or information that we intentionally or unintentionally acquire, store, and save during our daily lives. Our brain requires this transmission of an incident, event, or knowledge from short-term memory to long-term memory via association or consolidation. It is synergizing new information or experience with previously acquired information or expertise. The method of loci, for example, is an application of the same phenomenon; the association of parts of speeches with landmarks.
When a person is attentive and alert, information is more easily consolidated, implying the significance of “concentration” and “focus.” Emotional association, such as pain, joy, pleasure, or fear, also tends to solidify memory traces. (Mayda, 2010). It is commonly assumed that Memory can also associate a specific smell, location, or piece of music with an occurrence.
If we combine our current experience with past information for safekeeping, our knowledge may be linked to a future event. “Episodic memory (personal memory or experience) supports mental time travel’ into the future and the past. Indeed, numerous recent studies have provided evidence that episodic Memory contributes significantly to imagining or simulating possible future experiences,” the authors argue. (Madore, Addis & Schacter, 2015).
Memory and the Brain
Wilder Penfield (1891-1976), an American neurosurgeon, discovered the first evidence for a physical basis for Memory (O’Shea, 2005). His experiments demonstrated that specific memories have a biological cause and an exact physical location in the brain.
The memory trace in the brain is known as an engram. (Britannica, 2019). Memory items stored in the brain manifest as chemical or physical neural changes, indicating that Memory physically alters our brain! Short-term memory changes are transient, whereas long-term memory changes must be permanent. O’Shea (2005) defines the hippocampus as the part of the brain where short-term memories are ‘transferred’ into long-term memories.
Long-term Memory necessitates communication between synapses (neuronal gaps) and genes, whereas short-term Memory does not (O’Shea, 2005). Therefore, synapses and genes are critical in understanding how Memory relates to creativity and intelligence.
Synapses are active participants in our brain responding to changing environments, which means that our behavior, like the brain, is constantly adapted based on our most recent experiences. Moreover, our ability to learn from these experiences heavily relies on how our genes are programmed to respond! (O’Shea, 2005).
Forgetfulness and Memory
When we talk about Memory, we frequently use the term forgetfulness (due to its association with the definition of Memory). Forgetfulness is defined as an unexpected loss of Memory that can be sudden or gradual. Forgetfulness is an unavoidable and necessary aspect of human life; it is “an essential and active component of the process of effectively interacting with a changing environment” (O’Shea, 2005). Furthermore, evidence suggests that the rate at which people forget is directly proportional to the amount they have learned. (Britannica, 2019).
Time and forgetfulness are also linked; time allows us to forget certain events or move on from the associated emotions. Individuals who can fail, events, or feelings can move on / forward. Furthermore, forgetting relaxes our nervous system, which would otherwise collapse. (Mayda, 2010).
The fact remains that humans forget far too frequently. There are numerous medical explanations and psychological enlightenment. The age factor explains why older adults can forget seemingly simple things because forgetfulness is proportional to the number of cells lost (Mayda, 2010).
Depression, stress, negative emotions such as anxiety and anger, carelessness, and, most importantly, failure to use acquired information all contribute to forgetfulness and poor Memory in everyday life. (Coruh, 2012). Frequent drinking, drug abuse, physical contact, and head injuries can contribute to forgetfulness. To avoid regular memory loss, it is recommended that you get enough sleep, eat a healthy diet, and participate in spiritually uplifting activities. It is worth noting that good Memory responds to happiness and peace of mind.
Memory, Intelligence, and Creativity
According to British psychologist Frederic Bartlett, remembering is more than just recalling previously experienced events; it also involves imaginative reconstruction of the past. (Campbell, 1960). If that’s the case, isn’t Memory function a creative process in and of itself?
To proceed with our paper to rationalize Memory’s creativity and intelligence, we must first understand the concept of Declarative Memory. Declarative or explicit memories, like declarative sentences, contain facts and events information. (Britannica, 2019).
Declarative knowledge is critical for understanding the reality of our world/environment and regulating our behavior patterns. Declarative Memory is classified into two types: episodic Memory and semantic Memory. Long-term (and complex) memories of specific or personal events are the former, while memories of facts and general knowledge are the latter.
As we saw in the section Memory & Brain, experiments have shown that “memory requires the brain to be physically altered by experience” (O’Shea, 2005). Life is a beautiful series of experiences that constantly physically alter our brain and, as a result, shape/re-form our behavior or personality. Our life experiences and current knowledge are found in our memories’ episodic and semantic reserves, which help us tackle everyday life challenges that require creativity or intelligence.
A creative challenge requires us to reconstruct past life events and locate existing knowledge/deductions in our memories to discover a new solution(s), i.e., we can form imaginative ideas based solely on our previous experiences and current knowledge.
American psychologist Donald T. Campbell states, “remembering can be an important part of the creative process.” (Campbell, 1960). As a result, it is safe to say that an individual’s Memory plays a significant role in developing their creative disposition and capacity. Novels, for example, are written by imaginative authors who create imaginative worlds and ingenious personas, but their real-life experiences provide them with gems of creative writing!
Merriam-Webster defines intelligence as “the ability to learn, understand, or deal with new or difficult situations: the skilled application of reason.” We’ve already seen that Memory necessitates physical changes to the brain; “it is this remarkable property that allows thought and consciousness to exist… “Synaptic plasticity (of the brain) is critical to learning and memory function” (O’Shea, 2005).
In most cases, our ability to comprehend and solve problems demonstrates our intelligence. There is obviously more to intelligence than problem solving and understanding, but we are particularly interested in determining the position of intelligence from the perspective of Memory.
First, problem-solving necessitates correctly applying existing knowledge and memories stored within the human brain. The accumulated and relevant information must be quickly retrieved from long-term Memory to working Memory for this purpose. Second, problem-solving necessitates the working Memory’s ability to handle multiple thoughts and memories while also learning gracefully.
In short, swift thought-processing in working Memory and agile memory retrieval from permanent to transient Memory allow us to understand and solve underlying problems. A person skilled in mental mathematics, for example, can solve complex problems quickly in their head. It is because they can promptly retrieve stored mathematical data/rules from long-term Memory and accurately handle the entire solution in working Memory.
