The Working Memory Advantage

May 6, 2013
Socrates worried that the advent of writing would allow people to put things to paper and immediately forget them. Today, we outsource our memories to expensive computers and forget the free hardware we all have: our brains. No wonder, then, that our capacity for memory seems to be lagging. In this mental workout workbook, the Alloways set out to help the reader exercise and strengthen his or her working memoryâthat is, the kind used every day to process information and solve problems. This type of memory requires conscious and sustained effort, and the husband and wife duo (the latter is a psychologist at the University of North Florida) provides readers with plenty of memory exercises and mental tests, revealing explanations and technical descriptions of the mnemonic mechanisms at work, and strategies for creating habits and managing emotions. They even offer dietary suggestions meant to better nourish a hard-working brain. For the skeptics out there, the Alloways insist it's worth the workâa strong correlation has been shown between a robust working memory and feelings of happiness. Occasionally, the book slips into more general self-help territory, but it's still a valuable guide for readers looking to put their minds to work. Agent: Mollie Glick, Foundry Literary + Media.