BrainMatters • Spring/Summer 2022 • 17
As we get older, we tend to experience a decline in
our everyday memory. Fortunately, there are ways
to combat this.
Dr. Morgan Barense is the new Dr. Max and Gianna
Glassman Chair in Neuropsychology, a joint position
at Baycrest and the University of Toronto. She and
her team have created a smartphone-based app,
the HippoCamera, to boost everyday memory in
individuals at risk for Alzheimer's disease. The
HippoCamera aims to mimic memory encoding and
retrieval performed by the hippocampus, a region of
the brain that is critical in supporting our memories.
The app is easy to use and has only two buttons:
record and replay. First, the record function targets
memory encoding, that is, what happens in the
hippocampus when we first experience an event and
"learn" a memory. This function includes recording
a short video as well as a verbal description of the
event, which are then turned into powerful memory
cues. Second, the replay function helps users "study"
their memories by replaying these cues.
Early research demonstrates that when users capture
one memory per day and replay their memory cues
once per day using the HippoCamera, they remember
close to 50 per cent more details from events.
HELPING
OLDER ADULTS
BETTER REMEMBER
E VENTS
• Throughout the day, ask yourself,
"What is the most important event that
happened to me today?"
• Remind yourself why the event is important
and link it to other events in your life.
• Take a picture or video of the event, and look
at it later to trigger your memory.
TIPS TO REMEMBERING EVENTS
The HippoCamera is not yet available to the
public as it is being tested and refined. However,
Dr. Barense shares the following advice and tips
for older adults to improve their memory on
their own:
"The most important tip I can give is to live life
with the intention to remember the events that
happen to you," says Dr. Barense.
