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Goshen-Gottstein, Y.

Publications and source records attributed to Goshen-Gottstein, Y..

2 recordsLinked to original sources
bioRxiv2022

What makes eye movements effective retrieval cue: The contribution of visual and the motor components to memory performance

During memory retrieval, people tend to reenact the same eye movements performed when memorized items were first displayed and to gaze at similar locations. This was hypothesized to reflect the role of eye movements as retrieval cues. However, it is unknown what is it about eye movements that makes them effective retrieval cues. Here, we examine, for the first time, the individual and combined contributions of the visual and the motor components of eye movements to memory retrieval. Results (N=70) revealed a non-additive benefit of both components of eye movements to memory performance. Additionally, we found that individuals who gained from one component, were more likely to gain from the other as well. Together, these findings unravel the central role of eye movements in episodic memory; they show how the visual and motor components are integrated into a single effective memory retrieval cue and how this integration varies among individuals.

neuroscience↗
bioRxiv2017

Spontaneous Pre-encoding Activation of Neural Patterns Predicts Memory ‎

It is well-established that whether information will be remembered or not depends on the extent to which the learning context is reinstated during post-encoding rest and/or at retrieval. It has yet to be determined, however, if the fundamental importance of reinstatement to memory extends to periods of spontaneous neurocognitive activity prior to learning. We thus asked whether memory performance can be predicted by the extent to which spontaneous pre-encoding neural patterns resemble patterns elicited during encoding. Individuals studied and retrieved lists of words while undergoing fMRI-scanning. Multivoxel hippocampal patterns during resting periods prior to encoding resembled hippocampal patterns at encoding most strongly for items that were subsequently remembered. Furthermore, across subjects, the magnitude of similarity correlated with a behavioural measure of episodic recall. The results indicate that the neural scaffold of a memory trace is spontaneously laid even before ever perceiving the to-be-encoded information.\n\nSignificance StatementIt is well-established that memory performance depends on the degree to which the learning-context is reinstated during post-learning rest or during retrieval. However, does memory also depend on the context prior to learning--namely, on processes occurring spontaneously before ever perceiving the to-be-learned information? To answer this question, we scanned participants using fMRI while they were learning and recalling word-lists and, crucially, also during resting periods before each list. Patterns of brain activity in memory-related regions which were elicited spontaneously during these resting periods resembled patterns during learning. Furthermore, the greater this resemblance, the better was memory performance. We demonstrate that memory can be predicted by the degree to which patterns of neural activity prior to learning are reinstated during learning.

neuroscience↗