Models of Working Memory

Catalog description

Working memory (WM), a core cognitive function, enables the maintenance and manipulation of a limited amount of information over disruptions in sensory input. This correlates with measures of academic achievement and general intelligence, and the neural mechanisms of WM can be effectively studied in animal model systems. We will survey the history of models of WM, with emphasis on modern study of WM capacity limits in humans and animals based on performance in visual tasks. We will cover theoretical & computational models of behavioral performance on WM tasks, theories of the neural mechanisms supporting WM, and how such models can be evaluated empirically in animal model systems and with human cognitive neuroscience methods.