Twenty years ago, Dr Ericsson tried to prove it by training some ordinary laboratory volunteers up to prodigy-level performance in a number-memory task.

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As the rats did this memory task, electrodes in the implants recorded signals between two areas of their brains involved in storing new information in long-term memory.

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Especially confusing, says Gazzaley, is that key brain functions, like short-term memory, processing speed, and the capacity to multi-task, decline steadily as we age.

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Factors that may have influenced the single status of childhood cancer survivors included short stature, history of tumor recurrence, poor self-reported physical functioning, emotional distress, problems with task efficiency, problems with organization, and problems with memory, the study said.

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This is because the memory network in your brain that is responsible for remembering is disrupted by the interrupting task and has to be reactivated.

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Mr Pollock would prefer to see the task go to an independent advisory body, manned by economic heavyweights to provide institutional memory of past crises.

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