The key to lasting memories, Caltech researchers have determined, is teamwork. When recollections are enco­ded by “teams” of neurons firing in unison—as illustrated above—it helps memories persist over time. ”For years, people have known that the more you practice an action, the better chance that you will remember it later,” says Carlos Lois, research professor of biology, whose lab conducted the study. “Our results suggest that increasing the number of neurons that encode the same memory enables the memory to persist for longer.”

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