Being tested on information helps us remember thingsbetter.

Researchers have long believed that changes in brain neurons are associated with the formation of memories. Today, most experts believe that the formation of memory is associated with the strengthening of existing connections or the growth of new connections between neurons.

The connections between nerve cells are known as synapses, and they allow information carried in the form of nerve impulses to travel from one neuron to the next. In the human brain, there are trillions of synapses forming a complex and flexible network that allows us to feel, behave and think. It is the changes in the synaptic connections in areas of the brain such as the cerebral cortex and hippocampus that is associated with the learning and retention of new information.