With partial support from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Caltech scientist Erin Schuman and collaborators have found the mechanism by which the mind encodes strong memories. When memory-related neurons fire at the same frequency as certain brain waves (called theta-waves), the encoded memories prove much stronger and last longer. This work could help develop treatments for people with learning disabilities and dementia. Their findings appear in the March 24^th online edition of Nature.

Grants from the Foundation helping to fund Schuman’s work include those to Caltech for the Neurobiological Foundations of Reward and the Proteome Exploration Laboratory.

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http://today.caltech.edu/today/story-display-blurb?story_id=43187