Learning to Imagine: Generative Models of Memory Construction and Consolidation

Tuesday, 26 May 2026, 1pm to 2pm

Abstract

Episodic memory is the (re)construction of an experience rather than the retrieval of a copy; memories involve schema-based predictions, show classic patterns of distortion, and share neural substrates with imagination. Brains need to make predictions to survive, and to achieve this must extract statistical structure from experience. Generative neural networks provide a mechanism for learning this by ‘prediction error’ minimisation. We explore how the brain develops and uses generative models in memory processing. In particular, many cognitive functions involve interplay between episodic (hippocampal) and semantic (neocortical) systems. We present a computational model in which sequential experiences are encoded in hippocampus in compressed form and replayed to train a neocortical generative network. This network captures the gist of specific episodes and extracts statistical patterns that generalise to new situations, enabling efficient reconstruction of the past and prediction of the future. The two systems interact during recall and prediction, with the hippocampus retrieving relevant episodic information into working memory as a basis for generation using the ‘general knowledge’ of the neocortical network. We simulate this interaction as ‘retrieval-augmented generation’, with the addition of mechanisms to compress episodic memories into hippocampus and to consolidate them into neocortex. The model explains changes to memories over time, including schema-based distortions, and shows how recent episodic and semantic memory contribute to new problem solving.

Speaker(s): Dr Eleanor Spens (Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Oxford)

Series: Behavioural and Cognitive Neuroscience (BEACON) Seminar Series

Venue: The Life and Mind Building - Seminar room 7 & 8 - Seminar room 7 & 8 The Life and Mind Building South Parks Road Oxford United Kingdom

Department: Experimental Psychology (Department)

Organiser: Dr Ali Mahmoodi, Dr Fei-Yang Huang

Host: Dr Alon Baram

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