Peter Doolittle: How your "working memory" makes sense of the world

Summary

In this engaging talk, the speaker explores the concept of working memory, its limitations, and its significance in daily life. They demonstrate how working memory capacity affects our ability to process information and communicate effectively. Through interactive tasks, the speaker challenges the audience's working memory and emphasizes the importance of strategies like immediate processing, repetition, elaboration, and organization to enhance memory retention and learning. The talk concludes with a powerful message: to truly live and learn, we must actively process our experiences.

Takeaways

• 🚶 Walking and multitasking: The script starts with a story about walking and observing someone who can't text and walk at the same time, highlighting the limitations of multitasking.
• 🧠 Working memory defined: It is the part of consciousness we are aware of at any given time, essential for daily functioning and cannot be turned off.
• 🔑 Four components of working memory: It allows us to store immediate experiences, retrieve knowledge from long-term memory, mix and process information in relation to our current goals.
• 🎯 Current goals in working memory: These are typically mundane, immediate objectives, like getting a cookie or entering a hotel room, not long-term aspirations.
• 📈 High working memory capacity benefits: People with high working memory capacity tend to excel in storytelling, standardized tests, writing ability, and reasoning.
• 🧐 Working memory capacity test: The script involves a test where participants hold onto five words while performing other tasks to demonstrate the capacity and limitations of working memory.
• 🥜 Limitations of working memory: It is limited in capacity, duration, and focus, typically allowing us to remember about four things for a short period.
• 🔍 Impact of working memory on daily life: It affects our ability to communicate, problem-solve, and perform everyday tasks, and can lead to forgetfulness if not managed properly.
• 💡 Strategies to improve working memory: The script suggests strategies like immediate processing, repetition, elaboration, imagery, organization, and support to enhance working memory capacity.
• 📚 Importance of processing information: The key takeaway is that we learn what we process; if we don't process life, we aren't truly living it, emphasizing the importance of active engagement with experiences.
• 👏 Encouragement to live life: The speaker ends with an encouragement to live life to the fullest by actively processing experiences through our working memory.

Q & A

What is the main topic of the speaker's presentation?

The main topic of the presentation is working memory, its components, capacity, and the strategies to effectively utilize and enhance it.

What are the four basic components of working memory as described in the script?

The four basic components of working memory are the ability to store immediate experiences, the capacity to pull in knowledge from long-term memory, the capability to mix and process information in light of current goals, and the ability to leverage this information to satisfy those goals.

What are some of the positive effects associated with high working memory capacity?

People with high working memory capacity tend to be good storytellers, perform well on standardized tests, have high levels of writing ability, and are capable of high-level reasoning.

What is the significance of the word exercise the speaker conducts with the audience?

The word exercise is designed to demonstrate the limitations of working memory capacity and how easily information can be lost when attention is divided or distracted.

How many words does the speaker ask the audience to remember and what are they?

The speaker asks the audience to remember five words: tree, highway, mirror, Saturn, and electrode.

What is the purpose of the tasks given during the word exercise?

The purpose of the tasks is to distract the audience and show how working memory can be affected when performing multiple tasks simultaneously.

What is the typical retention rate of the audience after performing the tasks in the word exercise?

Typically, less than half of the audience can still remember all five words after performing the tasks, with retention rates ranging from two or three words to all five.

What are some strategies mentioned in the script to improve working memory capacity?

The strategies mentioned include immediate and repeated processing of information, practicing, elaborative and illustrative thinking, using imagery, and organizing information for better understanding and support.

Why is it important to process information immediately and repeatedly according to the script?

Processing information immediately and repeatedly is important because it helps to consolidate the information in working memory, making it easier to recall and apply later.

How does the speaker suggest using imagery to enhance working memory?

The speaker suggests using imagery by visualizing concepts or information in one's mind, which can make abstract ideas more concrete and memorable.

What is the final take-home message about working memory capacity from the speaker?

The final take-home message is that what we process, we learn, emphasizing the importance of actively engaging with information to truly learn and live life to the fullest.

Outlines

00:00

📱 Distracted Walking and Working Memory

The speaker begins by recounting an experience of walking down a sidewalk with a group, where one person's distraction by texting led to a discussion on working memory. Working memory is described as the active part of our consciousness that allows us to store immediate experiences and knowledge, mix it with long-term memory, and process it in light of our current goals. The speaker introduces the concept of working memory capacity, which is the ability to leverage this memory effectively, and associates it with positive attributes such as storytelling, standardized test performance, writing ability, and reasoning. The audience is then engaged in a working memory exercise involving holding onto five words while performing other tasks, illustrating the limits and importance of working memory in daily life.

05:02

🧠 Strategies for Enhancing Working Memory Capacity

The second paragraph delves into the limitations of working memory, such as its limited capacity, duration, and focus, typically allowing us to remember about four items for a short period. The speaker humorously illustrates common scenarios where working memory fails us, like forgetting why we entered a room. To overcome these limitations, several strategies are suggested: immediate and repeated processing of information, practicing and discussing new knowledge, elaborative and illustrative thinking, using imagery to enhance memory, and organizing information to make sense of it. The speaker emphasizes the importance of these strategies in an information-rich environment and concludes with the message that processing information is key to learning and living life fully.

Keywords

💡Working Memory

Working memory is a cognitive process that allows us to temporarily store and manipulate information. It is integral to our consciousness and is involved in our daily activities, such as walking and talking. In the video, the concept of working memory is used to illustrate the limitations of our cognitive abilities, especially when multitasking, like trying to text and walk at the same time.

💡Capacity

Capacity, in the context of working memory, refers to the amount of information one can hold in their short-term memory. The video emphasizes that working memory has a limited capacity, typically around four items, which affects our ability to process and retain information, as demonstrated by the exercise with the five words.

💡Multitasking

Multitasking is the act of performing multiple tasks simultaneously. The video uses the example of a person who cannot text and walk at the same time to highlight the challenges of multitasking and how it can interfere with our working memory's ability to function effectively.

💡Long-term Memory

Long-term memory is the part of memory that can store information for extended periods. The video script mentions that working memory allows us to access long-term memory to retrieve information as needed, which is crucial for achieving our current goals.

💡Current Goal

A current goal, as discussed in the video, is a short-term objective or desire, such as wanting a cookie or needing to enter a hotel room. It is the immediate aim that working memory helps us to achieve by processing relevant information.

💡Storytelling

Storytelling is the art of narrating stories or events in a coherent and engaging manner. The video mentions that individuals with high working memory capacity tend to be good storytellers, suggesting that the ability to remember and organize information is crucial for effective storytelling.

💡Standardized Tests

Standardized tests are assessments that are administered and scored in a consistent manner. The video script notes that people with high working memory capacity often perform well on these tests, indicating that working memory plays a role in academic and cognitive performance.

💡Strategies

Strategies, in the context of working memory, refer to techniques or methods used to manage and enhance our cognitive abilities. The video discusses various strategies, such as immediate processing, repetition, and organization, to help cope with the limitations of working memory.

💡Information Overload

Information overload occurs when one is exposed to more information than they can effectively process. The video script warns that attendees at TED will be in an information-rich environment and need to use strategies to manage the influx of ideas and knowledge.

💡Elaborative Rehearsal

Elaborative rehearsal is a memory strategy that involves making connections between new information and existing knowledge. The video encourages this strategy by suggesting that we should wrap our entire existence around new knowledge to make it more meaningful.

💡Imagery

Imagery refers to the mental representation of objects or scenes. The video script advises using imagery to enhance memory and understanding, such as visualizing characters from a book to better remember and process the story.

💡Organization

Organization is the act of arranging elements in a systematic and structured way. The video emphasizes the importance of organizing information to make it more accessible and easier to process, which is a strategy to overcome the limitations of working memory.

💡Support

Support, in the context of learning and memory, refers to the assistance or tools that help in understanding and retaining information. The video script suggests that providing support, such as organizational charts or guiding images, can help manage the limitations of working memory.

Highlights

The importance of working memory in daily life and its limitations were discussed.

Working memory is the part of consciousness we are aware of at any given time.

Working memory has four basic components: storing immediate experiences, knowledge, reaching back into long-term memory, and processing information in light of current goals.

Working memory capacity is the ability to leverage immediate experiences and knowledge to satisfy current goals.

People with high working memory capacity tend to excel in storytelling, standardized tests, writing ability, and reasoning.

An interactive exercise was conducted to demonstrate the limitations of working memory, involving remembering five words while performing other tasks.

The average working memory capacity is about four items, lasting for 10 to 20 seconds, which can be improved through processing and application.

Working memory plays a crucial role in communication, problem-solving, critical thinking, and everyday tasks.

The limitations of working memory include its capacity, duration, and focus, with the average person remembering about four things at a time.

Strategies to improve working memory include immediate and repeated processing of experiences, practice, elaboration, use of imagery, organization, and support.

The speaker emphasizes the importance of processing life as it happens to make the most of our working memory capacity.

Practicing and repeating information helps to solidify it in working memory.

Elaborative and illustrative thinking, relating new knowledge to all aspects of our existence, makes it more meaningful.

Using imagery to represent information can take advantage of our natural inclination towards visual learning.

Organization helps structure knowledge and experiences in a way that aids in making meaning and remembering.

Supporting learning through questions, organizational charts, or guiding images can enhance understanding and retention.

The key takeaway is that processing information leads to learning, and not processing life means not truly living it.

Transcripts

So yesterday, I was out in the street

in front of this building,

and I was walking down the sidewalk,

and I had company, several of us,

and we were all abiding by the rules

of walking down sidewalks.

We're not talking each other. We're facing forward.

We're moving.

When the person in front of me slows down.

And so I'm watching him, and he slows down,

and finally he stops.

Well, that wasn't fast enough for me,

so I put on my turn signal, and I walked around him,

and as I walked, I looked to see what he was doing,

and he was doing this.

He was texting,

and he couldn't text and walk at the same time.

Now we could approach this

from a working memory perspective

or from a multitasking perspective.

We're going to do working memory today.

Now, working memory

is that part of our consciousness that we are

aware of at any given time of day.

You're going it right now.

It's not something we can turn off.

If you turn it off, that's called a coma, okay?

So right now, you're doing just fine.

Now working memory has four basic components.

It allows us to store some immediate experiences

and a little bit of knowledge.

It allows us to reach back into our long-term memory

and pull some of that in as we need it,

mixes it, processes it

in light of whatever our current goal is.

Now the current goal isn't something like,

I want to be president or the best surfer in the world.

It's more mundane. I'd like that cookie,

or I need to figure out how to get into my hotel room.

Now working memory capacity

is our ability to leverage that,

our ability to take what we know

and what we can hang onto

and leverage it in ways that allow us to satisfy

our current goal.

Now working memory capacity

has a fairly long history,

and it's associated with a lot of positive effects.

People with high working memory capacity

tend to be good storytellers.

They tend to solve and do well on standardized tests,

however important that is.

They're able to have high levels of writing ability.

They're also able to reason at high levels.

So what we're going to do here is play a little bit with some of that.

So I'm going to ask you to perform a couple tasks,

and we're going to take your working memory out for a ride.

You up for that? Okay.

I'm going to give you five words,

and I just want you to hang on to them.

Don't write them down. Just hang on to them.

Five words.

While you're hanging on to them, I'm going to ask you to answer three questions.

I want to see what happens with those words.

So here's the words:

tree,

highway,

mirror,

Saturn

and electrode.

So far so good?

Okay. What I want you to do

is I want you to tell me what the answer is

to 23 times eight.

Just shout it out.

(Mumbling) (Laughter)

In fact it's -- (Mumbling) -- exactly. (Laughter)

All right. I want you to take out your left hand

and I want you to go, "One, two, three, four, five,

six, seven, eight, nine, 10."

It's a neurological test, just in case you were wondering.

All right, now what I want you to do

is to recite the last five letters

of the English alphabet backwards.

You should have started with Z.

(Laughter)

All right. How many people here are still pretty sure

you've got all five words?

Okay. Typically we end up with about less than half,

right, which is normal. There will be a range.

Some people can hang on to five.

Some people can hang on to 10.

Some will be down to two or three.

What we know is this is really important to the way we function, right?

And it's going to be really important here at TED

because you're going to be exposed to so many different ideas.

Now the problem that we have

is that life comes at us,

and it comes at us very quickly,

and what we need to do is to take that amorphous

flow of experience and somehow

extract meaning from it

with a working memory

that's about the size of a pea.

Now don't get me wrong, working memory is awesome.

Working memory allows us

to investigate our current experience

as we move forward.

It allows us to make sense of the world around us.

But it does have certain limits.

Now working memory is great for allowing us to communicate.

We can have a conversation,

and I can build a narrative around that

so I know where we've been and where we're going

and how to contribute to this conversation.

It allows us to problem-solve, critical think.

We can be in the middle of a meeting,

listen to somebody's presentation, evaluate it,

decide whether or not we like it,

ask follow-up questions.

All of that occurs within working memory.

It also allows us to go to the store

and allows us to get milk and eggs and cheese

when what we're really looking for

is Red Bull and bacon. (Laughter)

Gotta make sure we're getting what we're looking for.

Now, a central issue with working memory

is that it's limited.

It's limited in capacity, limited in duration,

limited in focus.

We tend to remember about four things.

Okay? It used to be seven,

but with functional MRIs, apparently it's four,

and we were overachieving.

Now we can remember those four things

for about 10 to 20 seconds

unless we do something with it,

unless we process it, unless we apply it to something,

unless we talk to somebody about it.

When we think about working memory,

we have to realize that this limited capacity

has lots of different impacts on us.

Have you ever walked from one room to another

and then forgotten why you're there?

You do know the solution to that, right?

You go back to that original room. (Laughter)

Have you ever forgotten your keys?

You ever forgotten your car?

You ever forgotten your kids?

Have you ever been involved in a conversation,

and you realize that the conversation to your left

is actually more interesting? (Laughter)

So you're nodding and you're smiling,

but you're really paying attention to this one over here,

until you hear that last word go up,

and you realize,

you've been asked a question. (Laughter)

And you're really hoping the answer is no,

because that's what you're about to say.

All of that talks about working memory,

what we can do and what we can't do.

We need to realize that working memory

has a limited capacity,

and that working memory capacity itself is how we negotiate that.

We negotiate that through strategies.

So what I want to do is talk a little bit about a couple of strategies here,

and these will be really important

because you are now in an information target-rich environment

for the next several days.

Now the first part of this that we need to think about

and we need to process our existence, our life,

immediately and repeatedly.

We need to process what's going on

the moment it happens, not 10 minutes later,

not a week later, at the moment.

So we need to think about, well, do I agree with him?

What's missing? What would I like to know?

Do I agree with the assumptions?

How can I apply this in my life?

It's a way of processing what's going on

so that we can use it later.

Now we also need to repeat it. We need to practice.

So we need to think about it here.

In between, we want to talk to people about it.

We're going to write it down, and when you get home,

pull out those notes and think about them

and end up practicing over time.

Practice for some reason became a very negative thing.

It's very positive.

The next thing is, we need to think elaboratively

and we need to think illustratively.

Oftentimes, we think that we have to relate new knowledge to prior knowledge.

What we want to do is spin that around.

We want to take all of our existence

and wrap it around that new knowledge

and make all of these connections and it becomes more meaningful.

We also want to use imagery. We are built for images.

We need to take advantage of that.

Think about things in images,

write things down that way.

If you read a book, pull things up.

I just got through reading "The Great Gatsby,"

and I have a perfect idea of what he looks like

in my head, so my own version.

The last one is organization and support.

We are meaning-making machines. It's what we do.

We try to make meaning out of everything that happens to us.

Organization helps, so we need to structure

what we're doing in ways that make sense.

If we are providing knowledge and experience,

we need to structure that.

And the last one is support.

We all started as novices.

Everything we do is an approximation of sophistication.

We should expect it to change over time. We have to support that.

The support may come in asking people questions,

giving them a sheet of paper that has an organizational chart on it

or has some guiding images,

but we need to support it.

Now, the final piece of this, the take-home message

from a working memory capacity standpoint is this:

what we process, we learn.

If we're not processing life, we're not living it.

Live life. Thank you.

(Applause)