New research in mice finds that the brain has two levels of memory connected to place—one for the task of creating mental maps, and another for recalling locations of emotional significance.
"A specific part of the brain seems to be responsible for learning and remembering the precise locations of places that are special to us," according to an article by Andy Coghlan, sharing the unprecedented findings of research in mice.
"Place cells are neurons that help us map our surroundings, and both mice and humans have such cells in the hippocampus – a brain region vital for learning, memory and navigation," explains Coughlin, "in mice, the CA1 layer where general environment maps are learned and stored is different to the one for locations that have an important meaning."
The article includes more details of how the study reached its conclusion.
FULL STORY: Memories of favourite locations have a special place in brain
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