Interesting

Interesting Things We Learned from Memory and Sleep Studies  

Katherine Ripley
851 votes 191 voters 15.6k views 16 items

List Rules Vote up the most interesting findings that have been uncovered by memory and sleep studies

Sleep and memory are intimately connected. Without the former, the latter does not function at full capacity. Both sleep and memory studies have led us to make fascinating new discoveries about the human brain - an organ which scientists are still trying to understand. This list is full of facts from cool sleep and memory studies that you need to know about.

All of these things found by sleep and memory studies give us new insight into how our brains work and how we can change our daily habits so that we are healthier and happier. You'll probably be surprised by a lot of these discoveries. Vote for the sleep or memory fact that you think is the most interesting.
1
Sleep Flushes Toxins Out of Your Brain
Sleep Flushes Toxins Out of Yo... is listed (or ranked) 1 on the list Interesting Things We Learned from Memory and Sleep Studies
Photo:  bykst/Pixabay/CC0 1.0
According to new research, your brain flushes out neurotoxins that can cause diseases like Alzheimer's twice as fast when you're sleeping than when you're awake. This is because cerebrospinal fluid flows more freely and flows to more parts of the brain during sleep. This groundbreaking discovery provides a key insight into why sleep is necessary.
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2
The Strongest Memories Are Emotional
The Strongest Memories Are Emo... is listed (or ranked) 2 on the list Interesting Things We Learned from Memory and Sleep Studies
Photo:  Susana Fernandez/via Flickr
When your brain sorts through memories during sleep, the emotion centers are particularly active. Several studies have indicated that we are likely to retain the most emotional parts of a memory, and this might be because our emotion centers are so active during sleep.
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3
Nature Improves Memory
Nature Improves Memory is listed (or ranked) 3 on the list Interesting Things We Learned from Memory and Sleep Studies
Photo:  Picography/Pixabay/CC0 1.0
A 2008 study found that participants performed 20 percent better on a memory test after a walk through an arboretum. For comparison, a walk down a busy street did not improve the participants's memory test results at all. It seems as though nature does wonders to revitalize the mind.
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4
Sleep Improves Memory
Sleep Improves Memory is listed (or ranked) 4 on the list Interesting Things We Learned from Memory and Sleep Studies
Photo:  CollegeDegrees360/via Flickr
Stop pulling all-nighters immediately. Science says that you retain information much better if you go to sleep after you learn it. Researchers think that our brains actively work on making memories while we're sleeping. Even a nap as short as six minutes after learning can help you remember the information better.
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