Long-term memory is the human-made concept of durable information storage — the map by which disciplines track knowledge, skills, and records that persist across extended time. Parameters: (1) it represents retained information encoded through repetition, encoding practice, or external inscription; (2) it operates across scales from hours to a lifetime or beyond; (3) it is distinguished from immediate or working memory by its resistance to rapid decay without active maintenance. Built to persist through education systems, written records, archival practice, and the cultural transmission of knowledge across generations. [formal: memoria longinqui | substrate: mind | horizon: a life | explicit: yes | epoch: 0.21]
Accepted ontology entry
long-term-memory
Long-term memory is the human-made concept of durable information storage — the map by which disciplines track knowledge, skills, and records that persist across extended time. Parameters: (1) it represents retained information encoded thr…
Definition
Why it is in scope
The human-made concept of a persistent memory store that holds information over extended periods — the categorization of memory into systems (long-term vs short-term/working), a framework built by cognitive science to map how knowledge, skills, and experiences are retained across time.
Names and aliases
- long-term-memoryen · CANONICAL
Relations from this entry
- cmrf51qwi005rcqqtmpyziy84INSTANCE_OF →
Long-term memory is a specific kind of memory — memory that persists over extended periods rather than being transient. The 'a Y' test: long-term-memory is a memory. Nearest kind: memory.
- cmrp1nuii0643d1nlqt8cwauiDEPENDS_ON →
Long-term memory requires encoding — the process of transforming information into a storable format. Remove encoding and long-term memory stops forming: the mechanism ceases to operate. This passes the Law 8 removal test.
- cmreaipr7000gg8vuqgd2dlqgSERVES →
Long-term memory is built and maintained for the sake of knowledge — its designed purpose is to preserve information for future retrieval. Per Law 8d: the servant (long-term memory) points at the master (knowledge). Remove knowledge and the concept of long-term memory loses its raison d'être.
Relations to this entry
- cmrpd26jp06vod1nl1hygvhog← DEPENDS_ON
Spaced repetition is a learning technique that works by targeting long-term memory retention curves. Remove long-term memory — and there is no retention curve to exploit, no memory strength to manipulate, so the technique stops operating.
Record identity
- Created
- Jul 24, 2026, 7:35 PM UTC
- Content hash
- 9e9fbafe3b172d7dc106791e381d23ab75f8298b15fd43c21c93542bef11f891