Howard Eichenbaum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Howard Eichenbaum
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| Born | October 16, 1947 |
| Died | July 21, 2017 (aged 69) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Psychology, Neuroscience |
| Institutions | Boston University, Wellesley College |
Howard B. Eichenbaum was an American scientist who studied the brain and how we remember things. He was born on October 16, 1947, and passed away on July 21, 2017. Dr. Eichenbaum was a professor at Boston University, where he led a center focused on memory and the brain. He also worked at Wellesley College. He was even the main editor for a science magazine called Hippocampus, which is all about brain research.
Contents
Understanding Memory: The Hippocampus's Role
Dr. Eichenbaum did a lot of research on a special part of the brain called the hippocampus. He wanted to understand how the hippocampus helps us form and recall memories. His ideas were very important because they showed that the hippocampus does more than just help us remember places. It also helps us connect different pieces of information.
How the Hippocampus Connects Memories
Eichenbaum and his team found that neurons (brain cells) in the hippocampus react to more than just where you are. For example, they showed that these brain cells would respond to specific smells. They also reacted when a reward was given during a task. This research helped us understand that the hippocampus links different experiences together.
Brain Cells and Context: Remembering Details
Dr. Eichenbaum's research also showed that brain cells in the hippocampus react differently based on the situation. This is called "context-dependence." Imagine you are in the same spot, but something different happens each time. Your brain remembers these different events.
How Context Affects Brain Activity
One study from his lab looked at rats running a maze. The rats would run up the same path, but what happened next would change. Even though the rat was in the same place and moving the same way, the brain cells in its hippocampus would fire differently. This depended on what the rat had done before or what it was about to do. This showed that the hippocampus helps us remember different "episodes" or events, even if they happen in the same location.
Time Cells: Brain's Internal Clock
Eichenbaum and other scientists discovered special brain cells that fire at specific times during tasks. He called these "time cells." He believed that these same cells could also act as "place cells," which help us remember locations.
Time Cells and Recalling Past Events
These time cells might help us remember the order of events in our memories. For example, they could help us remember what happened first, second, and third in a specific experience. This is important for what scientist Tulving called "mental time travel." This is our ability to mentally go back and recall past events. Losing these time cells might be why some people, like patient HM, have trouble remembering new events.
