Endel Tulving facts for kids

Endel Tulving (born May 26, 1927 – died September 11, 2023) was a famous Canadian psychologist and brain scientist. He was born in Estonia. He studied how human memory works. Tulving is best known for showing that we have two main types of long-term memory: semantic memory and episodic memory. He was a professor at the University of Toronto for many years. In 2006, he received the Order of Canada, which is a very high honor in Canada.

Biography

Endel Tulving was born in Petseri, Estonia, in 1927. When he was 17, in 1944, he and his younger brother had to leave their family. They went to live in Germany because of the war. In Germany, he finished high school. He also worked as a teacher and helped translate for the U.S. army.

He studied medicine for a short time at Heidelberg University. Then, in 1949, he moved to Canada. In 1950, he married Ruth Mikkelsaar, whom he had met in a refugee camp. They had two daughters, Elo Ann and Linda.

Tulving studied at the University of Toronto, earning his first two degrees. He then got his PhD in experimental psychology from Harvard University in 1956. His PhD research was about how our eyes adjust and how well we see.

In 1956, Tulving started teaching at the University of Toronto. He stayed there for his whole career. He even led the Department of Psychology from 1974 to 1980. He became a full professor in 1985.

Research on Memory

Endel Tulving wrote over 200 research papers and book chapters. Many other scientists have used his work in their own studies. He was one of the most cited psychologists of the 20th century.

In the 1970s, his work became very important. At that time, scientists started using brain scans to understand memory better. Tulving helped map which parts of the brain are active when we form and remember memories. He showed that a part of the brain called the hippocampus is important for episodic memory.

He also studied how we organize information in our minds. He looked at how different sides of the brain specialize in memory.

Episodic and Semantic Memory

Tulving first explained the difference between episodic and semantic memory in 1972. This idea changed how scientists thought about memory.

• Episodic memory is like a mental diary. It helps you remember specific events from your life. For example, recalling your last birthday party or a family trip to a theme park. You remember when and where it happened.
• Semantic memory is like a mental encyclopedia. It stores general facts and knowledge. For example, knowing that Paris is the capital of France, or that dogs are mammals. You know the fact, but you don't remember when you learned it.

Tulving's ideas were based on experiments and how the brain works. Later studies using brain scans showed that these two types of memory use different parts of the brain. In his 1983 book, Elements of Episodic Memory, he explained these ideas more deeply. He believed that only humans can "mentally time travel" back to past events. This ability is a key part of episodic memory.

Encoding Specificity Principle

Tulving also developed the "encoding specificity principle." This idea is about how we remember things. It says that to recall a memory, the clues you use must match how the memory was first stored.

Imagine you learned something while listening to a specific song. If you hear that song again, it might help you remember what you learned. This is because the song was part of how the memory was "encoded" (stored).

This principle suggests that sometimes we forget things not because the memory is gone. Instead, it's because we don't have the right clues to find it.

Amnesia and Consciousness

Tulving's research also showed how important episodic memory is for our sense of self and time. He worked with a patient known as KC. KC had severe brain damage from an accident. He could remember facts (semantic memory) but could not remember any personal events (episodic memory).

Working with KC, Tulving showed that episodic memory is key to feeling like you are living through time. KC could not remember his past. He also struggled to imagine or plan for his future. Tulving called this ability "autonoetic consciousness."

Tulving also created a test called the "remember"/"know" procedure. This test helps scientists measure different ways people experience memory. It's used a lot in psychology and brain science.

Implicit Memory and Priming

Tulving also looked at the difference between conscious memory (like episodic memory) and more automatic memory. He called these automatic memories "implicit memory."

An example of implicit memory is priming. This is when seeing or hearing something makes it easier to recognize or remember something else later. For example, if you see the word "doctor," you might be quicker to recognize the word "nurse" afterward. You don't consciously try to remember "doctor."

Tulving and his student, Daniel Schacter, found important evidence for implicit memory. They suggested that different types of memory might use different brain systems.

Honours and Awards

Endel Tulving was a member of many important scientific groups, including:

• Royal Society of Canada
• Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
• Royal Society of London
• American Academy of Arts and Sciences
• National Academy of Sciences
• Academia Europaea
• Estonian Academy of Sciences

He also received many awards:

• 1983: Award for Distinguished Scientific Contributions to Psychology, American Psychological Association
• 1983: Award for Distinguished Contributions to Psychology as a Science, Canadian Psychological Association
• 1994: Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement in Psychological Science, American Psychological Foundation
• 1994: Izaak Walton Killam Memorial Prize, Canada Council
• 2005: Canada Gairdner International Award, Gairdner Foundation
• 2006: Officer of the Order of Canada
• 2007: Inducted into the Canadian Medical Hall of Fame

See also

In Spanish: Endel Tulving para niños