Read the following passage and mark the letter A , B , C , or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions Most people can remember a phone number for up to thirty seconds . When this short amount of time elapses , however , the numbers are erased from the memory . How did the information get there in the first place ? Information that makes its way to the short term memory ( STM ) does so via the sensory storage area . The brain has a filter which only allows ...

Read the following passage and mark the letter A , B , C , or D on your answer sheet to indicate the correct answer to each of the questions Most people can remember a phone number for up to thirty seconds . When this short amount of time elapses , however , the numbers are erased from the memory . How did the information get there in the first place ? Information that makes its way to the short term memory ( STM ) does so via the sensory storage area . The brain has a filter which only allows stimuli that is of immediate interest to pass on to the STM , also known as the working memory . There is much debate about the capacity and duration of the short term memoiy . The most accepted theory comes from George A. Miller , a cognitive psychologist who suggested that humans can remember approximately seven chunks of information . A chunk is defined as a meaningful unit of information such as a word or name rather than just a letter or number . Modern theorists suggest that one can increase the capacity of the short term memory by chunking , or classifying similar information together . By organizing information , one can optimize the STM , and improve the chances of a memory being passed on to long term storage When making a conscious effort to memorize something , such as information for an exam many people engage in " rote rehearsal " . By repeating something over and over again , one is able to keep a memory alive . Unfortunately , this type of memory maintenance only succeeds if there are no interruptions . As soon as a person stops rehearsing the information , it has the tendency to disappear . When a pen and paper are not handy people often attempt to remember a phone number by repeating it aloud . If the doorbell rings or the dog barks to come in before a person has the opportunity to make a phone call , he will likely forget the number instantly . Therefore rote rehearsal is not an efficient way to pass information from the short term to long term memory . A better way is to practice " elaborate rehearsal " . This involves assigning semantic meaning to a piece of information so that it can be filed along with other pre - existing long term memories . Encoding information semantically also makes it more retrievable . Retrieving information can be done by recognition or recall . Humans can easily recall memories that are stored in the long term memory and used often- however , if a memory seems to be forgotten , it may eventually be retrieved by prompting . The more cues a person is given ( such as pictures ) , the more likely a memory can be reùieved . This is why multiple choice tests are often used for subjects that require a lot of memorization . According to the passage , how do memories get transferred to the STM ?