RE: Relation Between Memory and Intelligence?
December 14, 2015 at 11:14 pm
(This post was last modified: December 14, 2015 at 11:17 pm by Athene.)
In Northern VA there's an assisted living facility specifically designed for former CIA employees and other persons with high security clearance, who are afflicted with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. They know entirely too much shit to be in a standard setting. Word is they give the staff a serious run for their money in keeping them from bypassing security measures and getting out.
Dementia-related memory loss typically affects short-term memory. An Alzheimer's patients may not remember what he or she had for breakfast, but they can often tell you exactly what happened when they invaded Normandy or how to prepare your tax return with perfect clarity. Their long-term memory often remains intact through the early and mid stages of the disease. Anything hard-wired, such as a life-long occupation tends to remain with them for quite some time. Of course, as the disease progresses, reasoning capabilities diminish as overall cognition function further declines.
I do believe that new tests are starting to be utilized in order to more accurately assess the level of cognitive decline in dementia patients, due to the fact highly intelligent individuals with exceptional verbal skills have been shown to "pass" current assessments, despite having a diagnosis of dementia.
All that aside, I do consider intelligence to be more dependent on the application of knowledge, rather than the collection of knowledge through memory. Neither would amount to much without the other, though.
Dementia-related memory loss typically affects short-term memory. An Alzheimer's patients may not remember what he or she had for breakfast, but they can often tell you exactly what happened when they invaded Normandy or how to prepare your tax return with perfect clarity. Their long-term memory often remains intact through the early and mid stages of the disease. Anything hard-wired, such as a life-long occupation tends to remain with them for quite some time. Of course, as the disease progresses, reasoning capabilities diminish as overall cognition function further declines.
I do believe that new tests are starting to be utilized in order to more accurately assess the level of cognitive decline in dementia patients, due to the fact highly intelligent individuals with exceptional verbal skills have been shown to "pass" current assessments, despite having a diagnosis of dementia.
All that aside, I do consider intelligence to be more dependent on the application of knowledge, rather than the collection of knowledge through memory. Neither would amount to much without the other, though.
