Module: Human Memory versus Computer Memory In some ways, human memory and computer memory are similar. For example, some general characteristics of human short-term memory resemble those of a computer’s random access memory (RAM). As discussed elsewhere on this site, human short-term memory is volatile and has a limited capacity. Computer RAM has essentially the same characteristics. Your computer often does not have enough memory to run certain programs, and when you turn it off, bye-bye data! Your long-term memory is something like a computer’s hard drive. Both of them take longer to respond, but can store a considerable quantity of data. But this latter analogy falls apart when you compare the ways that a computer and your own brain store information. Once pieces of information are recorded on a computer’s hard drive, they will not change one bit over the years. But your own memories are totally different. Over the years, they will be continuously altered and reconstructed ...
