What Is Transience Memory?

Transience--the decreasing accessibility of memory over time. While a degree of this is normal with aging, decay of or damage to the hippocampus and temporal lobe can cause extreme forms of it.

How does transience affect memory?

Transience describes much of our memory. These are things we don't regularly need to recall or use. Much more can be remembered of recent events than those further in our past. Our memories have a use-it-or-lose it quality, so memories that are called up and used frequently are less likely to be forgotten.

Does transience enhance memory?

Specifically, we argue that transience (1) enhances flexibility, by reducing the influence of outdated information on memory-guided decision-making, and (2) prevents overfitting to specific past events, thereby promoting generalization. ...