#430 – Charan Ranganath: Human Memory, Imagination, Deja Vu, and False Memories
Lex Fridman Podcast
Forming Internal Models and Memory Encoding
Internal models are essential for predicting events, such as in the example of a birthday party where individuals anticipate and follow the sequence of actions leading up to the event. These internal models rely on working memory, which is supported by both semantic and episodic memory. Semantic memory provides general knowledge, while episodic memory stores specific past events. Working memory aids in interpreting the surroundings and plays a crucial role in encoding information into long-term memory. Episodic memories are particularly potent when captured at points of high prediction error, uncertainty, surprise, or motivational significance, as these instances offer the most useful information for memory consolidation. The hippocampus and related networks exhibit increased connectivity and activity during event boundaries, which are moments of surprise or transition between events, leading to enhanced memory formation.
