Analysing human memory

Name: Professor Morris Moscovitch

Position: Max and Gianna Glassman Chair in Neuropsychology and Aging, held since 1996

Affiliation: Department of Psychology
Education: PhD, University of Pennsylvania

Area of Expertise:  Human memory 

Teaching

PSY 379  Memory Lab

PSY 4706 Human Neuroanatomy

PSY 5203 Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience

Publications

– M. Moscovitch et al. “What makes face-recognition special? Evidence from a person with visual object agnosia and dyslexia but normal face-recogniton,” Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience (1997)

– “Memory and working with memory: A component process model based on modules and central systems," Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience (1992) 

– “Memory consolidation, retrograde amnesia and the hippocampal complex,” with L. Nadel. Current Opinion in Neurobiology (1997)

Major Awards & Honours

Inaugural PGSA Most Valuable Professor Award
Senior Scientist at the Rotman Research Institute of Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care

How do our brains process memories?

Fifty years ago, the mechanisms of human consciousness were considered the domain of philosophy rather than science. In the last few decades, however, technological advances have given neuroscientists the ability to monitor brain activity as it happens, allowing them to pinpoint which parts of the brain are active when we perform specific cognitive tasks. Using data from functional neuroimaging, psychologists and neurophysiologists have begun to construct models of how our brains process language and vision, how they sift through our conscious experiences, and how they store and retrieve short-, mid- and long-term memories.

Professor Morris Moscovitch, the Max and Gianna Glassman Chair in Neuropsychology and Aging, specializes in the study of memory. His research focuses on neurological and psychological distortions of memory including confabulation (false memories) and amnesia. Over several decades, Moscovitch has constructed a detailed model of exactly how our brains carry out routine activities such as paying attention, or recalling faces and names, in order to determine how they are affected by age, brain damage or the onset of senile dementia.

Moscovitch’s model of the brain groups memory processing according to four key neurophysiological areas:  the posterior neocortex (PN), which handles memories acquired without conscious effort; the medial temporal lobes (MTL), which deals with conscious memories; the frontal lobes, which store memories gathered from both the PN and MTL; and the parietal cortex, which helps us concentrate when we create new memories, or retrieve those we have already stored. By comparing psychological tests and neuroimagery from healthy people with results from clinical populations who suffer brain lesions or degenerative illnesses such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's Disease, Moscovitch and his collaborators are attempting to unravel the mysteries of memory dysfunctions, and to lay the groundwork for more effective treatments and cures.

The Dr. Max and Gianna Glassman Chair in Neuropsychology was endowed in 1996. The work of the chair aims to treat or manage memory problems associated with aging. Philanthropists Dr. Max Glassman and his wife Gianna gave the gift through the Baycrest Centre for Geriatric Care, a research and care institute devoted to enriching the quality of life of the elderly.

Story by Brendan de Caires
Photo: Courtesy of Morris Moscovitch