Thanks For The Memories

For the longest time it was thought that neurons were unable to regenerate. However, we now know that there is a small part of your brain that is able to continue making new neurons throughout life in a process called “adult hippocampal neurogenesis”. This plays a role in memory – in particular, a type of memory that allows you to tell the difference between two very similar events. In this talk, we will explore how our lifestyles, e.g., nutrition and exercise, can have an impact on neurogenesis and our memory as we age. Can we really prevent our memory from getting worse as we get older?

Do you remember the last time you went to a restaurant with your friend? Do you notice any difference between your memory of your friend’s face and your memory of the decoration in the restaurant? Some results show that people have better memory for the surrounding environment while having a better memory for emotional items (e.g. friend’s smiling face). Others reveal that the memory of the environment fades while the memory of the emotional items is strengthened. We're going on a journey to discuss these differences!

Are there ways in which our cognition and memory can be augmented beyond the brain? The idea that thinking is not solely limited to the brain is not a new one, especially as our brains have biological and evolutionary limits when it comes to these different domains. Meanwhile, demands on our memory and cognitive function are going up rapidly, in the fast-paced world we live in. We will be exploring the emerging research about how we can leverage the full range of our bodily, environmental, and social “extra-neuronal” resources to improve our memory and cognitive abilities, beyond the brain.