Memory and Emotion: The Making of Lasting Memories / Edition 1

by James McGaugh

Overview

Most of us remember where we were and what we were doing on September 11, 2001. Why do most experiences leave little trace while some—even terrible ordeals that people wish they could forget—leave memories that last a lifetime? That is the mystery at the heart of this book.

Drawing on fascinating research and case studies, James McGaugh, a distinguished neuroscientist, reveals that the key to understanding how memories are created may well be understanding how they are lost. He shows that lasting memories are not stored instantly. Why the delay? The author explains how the slow consolidation of memory has important adaptive consequences. It allows physiological processes activated by experiences to regulate the strength of the memory of the experiences. Emotionally arousing experiences induce the release of stress hormones, which act on the brain to influence the consolidation of our memories of recent experience. These findings have important implications for the controversial issues of post–traumatic stress disorder and repressed memory syndrome.

From the prescientific writings of William James to the animal studies of the memory-research pioneers Pavlov, Thorndike, and Tolman, to the latest research of psychologists and neurologists drawing on PET imaging studies of the brain and laboratory experiments involving a variety of drugs, this succinct book provides a wealth of information.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780231120227
Publisher:	Columbia University Press
Publication date:	07/16/2003
Series:	Maps of the Mind
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	0.56(w) x 6.00(h) x 9.00(d)

About the Author

James L. McGaugh is founding director of the Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory and research professor of neurobiology and behavior at the University of California, Irvine. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

What People are Saying About This

Larry Weiskrantz

[A] highly readable and authoritative account by one of the world's leading researchers on the brain mechanisms of emotion and memory.

— Larry Weiskrantz, Department of Experimental Psychology at Oxford University

Larry Squire

This informative, highly readable and accessible book explains the psychological science of everyday memory -- what it is, how it works, and what has been learned from studies of extraordinary memory, emotion, and amnesia.

— Larry Squire, University of California San Diego

Robert M. Sapolsky

A masterful and accessible account by the pioneer in this field.

Howard Eichenbaum

Composed of equal parts history, personal anecdote, and state-of-the-art science written by a pioneer in the field who writes both clearly and beautifully. McGaugh explains many of the mysteries of memory that have puzzled philosophers and psychologists for centuries and emphasizes that a full account of memory is still a work in progress in which, by the way, he continues to play a major role. It is a MUST READ for anyone who wants to comprehend memory, and for everyone who seeks its scientific explanation in a highly digestible form.

— Howard Eichenbaum, Center for Memory and Brain, Boston University

Richard Morris

If you have ever wondered why you can remember some things while others slip away, read this unforgettable book.

— Richard Morris, University of Edinburgh

Editorial Reviews

McGaugh has issued an invitation to adventure for any reader who has wondered about how our brains achieve one of their most extraordinary—and still mysterious—feats.

Cerebrum - Guy M. McKhann

The book provides a succinct and lucid summary of many facts related to memory... [and] will almost inevitably reward readers with facts or points of view not previously considered.

Quarterly Review of Biology - Robert W. Doty

This readable book provides easy access to the dramatic progress that has taken place in the scientific understanding of memory. The writing style is engaging and the material fascinating. Highly recommended.

Choice

The book blends scientific research with personal anecdotes and even examples from literature for an absorbing read on the mysteries of memory.

The Daily News of Los Angeles

In Memory and Emotion, James L. McGaugh gives a rich and insightful overview of modern memory research in the context of seminal discoveries of the past. Perhaps no one alive today is better suited to have written such a book.... Although I too work in the field, I learned many things about its history from this a concise, well-written book, which nonexperts will also enjoy.... superb.

American Scientist - Joseph E. LeDoux

The book provides a succinct and lucid summary of many facts related to memory... [and] will almost inevitably reward readers with facts or points of view not previously considered.

— Robert W. Doty

Quarterly Review of Biology

McGaugh has issued an invitation to adventure for any reader who has wondered about how our brains achieve one of their most extraordinary — and still mysterious — feats.

— Guy M. McKhann

Cerebrum

In Memory and Emotion, James L. McGaugh gives a rich and insightful overview of modern memory research in the context of seminal discoveries of the past. Perhaps no one alive today is better suited to have written such a book.... Although I too work in the field, I learned many things about its history from this a concise, well-written book, which nonexperts will also enjoy.... superb.

— Joseph E. LeDoux

American Scientist

We all remember where we were and what we were doing on the morning of 9/11. For those of us who were around at the time, the memories of the Kennedy assassination or Pearl Harbor are still as vivid. Why do these so-called flashbulb memories persist after decades when it's so hard to remember what we had for breakfast yesterday? In this little book, McGaugh, one of the world's leading experts on the neurobiology of memory and emotion (Univ. of California, Irvine), explains in clear and nontechnical language what is known about how long-term memories are formed and how emotional arousal produces stress hormones that enhance the process. He offers a basic history of the research on learning and memory, starting with William James, who first posited the distinction between short- and long-term memory, through Pavlov and his famous dogs, and continuing to current neurochemistry. This is a fine book for academic and larger public libraries; space- and budget-conscious smaller libraries, however, may want to consider Rita Carter's Mapping the Mind and Joseph LeDoux's The Emotional Brain, which cover much of the same territory in less detail.-Mary Ann Hughes, Neill P.L., Pullman, WA Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

In Memory and Emotion, James L. McGaugh gives a rich and insightful overview of modern memory research in the context of seminal discoveries of the past. Perhaps no one alive today is better suited to have written such a book.... Although I too work in the field, I learned many things about its history from this a concise, well-written book, which nonexperts will also enjoy.... superb.

Joseph E. LeDouxn Scientist