The scientific questions

During the symposium the speakers will tackle 12 “big questions”:

• How does memory work?

• Are there different memory systems? How many?

• What sorts of memories can last for a lifetime?

• Why are some stimuli remembered and not others?

• Where are memories stored in the brain?

• What it is the difference between short and long-term memory?

• Is there a limit to the number of things we can remember?

• Can memories be overwritten?

• What causes forgetting?

• Are forgotten memories lost for ever?

• Can you deliberately forget something?

• What is the role of sleep in memory?

And for each session, we have a shortlist of specific questions that we will try to address.

For the Evolution, Development and Neural Mechanisms of Memory session:

• How does memory differ between different types of animal?

• Do we have species-specific memories?

• Do animals have episodic memories?

• Is language necessary for memory?

• How does memory differ between babies, infants, children and adults?

• Why can we not remember things from early infancy?

• What are the key cellular mechanisms involved in memory?

• Do epigenetic memories exist?

• Do all memories involve synaptic changes?

• When does the brain need neurogenesis?

For the Sensory Processing and Memory session:

• Are perception and memory different?

• How are sensory memories coded?

• Is attention needed for memory storage?

• Is awareness needed for memory storage?

• Are there memory modules in the ventral stream?

• Do visual and auditory memories use the same underlying mechanism?

• Do sensory memories and semantic memories use different mechanisms?

• Is flash-bulb memory different from other types of memory?

• What is the mechanism underlying iconic memory?

• Does eidetic memory exist?

For the Long-Term Memory in Humans session:

• What is the role of consciousness in memory?

• Do we have unconscious memories?

• Is there a difference between "remembering" and "knowing"?

• Does it get harder to store new memories when you get older?

• Are episodic memories different to other forms of memory?

• Are autobiographical memories special?

• What happens during "déjà vu"?

• What is the role of the hippocampus in memory?

• What sorts of memories can be stored without the hippocampus?

• Why do hippocampal neurons have such long latencies?

For the Neuronal Selectivity and Long-Term Memory session:

• How does neuronal selectivity change between early and late processing stages?

• Local vs Sparse vs Distributed coding?

• Is neuronal selectivity stable over time?

• What causes repetition suppression?

• What is the difference between representations in neocortex and hippocampus?

• Do we have dark matter in cortex?

• Can we run out of neurons?

• Do we have grandmother cells?

• Do we need grandmother cells for long-term memories?

• Why do hippocampal neurons have such long latencies?

For the Computational Models of Learning and Memory session:

• What do artificial systems teach us about biological memory?

• Does a Convolutional Neural Network have memories?

• Can humans do error back-propagation?

• Are spikes important for memory?

• What can STDP do?

• What determines which stimuli get stored?

• Is repetition enough for memory storage?

• Is feedback needed for memory?

• Is reward critical for memory formation? If so, how does it work?

• Do memories need to be refreshed

• Can oscillations facilitate memory formation?

• Is learning in the visual system partly supervised?

Finally, everyone will be welcome to consider the 10 provocative claims of the M4 project - but this time stated as questions

• Can humans can recognise visual and auditory stimuli that they have not experienced for decades?

• Is recognition possible after very long delays without reactivating the memory trace in the intervening period?

• Does memory strength increase roughly linearly with the number of presentations?

• How many presentations are needed to form a memory that can last a lifetime?

• Does attention‐related oscillatory brain activity help store memories efficiently and rapidly?

• Do long-term memories need “Grandmother Cells” that only fire if the original training stimulus is experienced again?

• Does neocortex contains totally silent cells (“Neocortical Dark Matter”) that constitute the long-term memory store?

• Can Grandmother Cells can be produced using STDP and competitive inhibitory lateral connections?

• Can selectivity be explained using just binary synaptic weights that are either “on” or “off”?

• Could artificial systems using memristor-like devices can implement the same principles?

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