Question

when hippocampal neurons degenerate—whether due to age, trauma, or disease—the effects on memory are not always immediate or uniform. that is because the brain’s memory architecture is not centralized: while the hippocampus encodes new episodic memories, stable retrieval of older memories often involves neocortical regions, which gradually “take over” long - term storage. this transition process, known as systems consolidation, means that memories once dependent on the hippocampus become increasingly resilient to hippocampal damage over time. this implies that some memories ______
which choice most logically completes the text?
a) may persist largely intact despite significant hippocampal impairment, provided they have undergone sufficient transfer to different areas of the hippocampus rather than being concentrated in one region.
b) are more dependent on neocortical regions when it comes to successful retrieval than others, a trait that correlates to some extent with the time elapsed after memory formation.
c) could be reconstructed in the event that the hippocampus is severely damaged since the neocortex contains redundant traces of the information stored in the hippocampus.
d) might remain accessible under ordinary conditions but degrade rapidly unless other interconnected cortical regions are simultaneously compromised to similar degrees.

Explanation:

The text states that the hippocampus encodes new episodic memories, while older memories rely on neocortical regions as systems consolidation transfers long-term storage there. This means older memories (formed longer ago) are more dependent on neocortical regions for retrieval, which matches option B. Option A incorrectly focuses on hippocampal area transfer, not neocortical takeover. Option C's "reconstructed from redundant neocortical traces" is not mentioned. Option D's claim about rapid degradation without cortical compromise contradicts the text's note that older memories are resilient to hippocampal damage.

Answer:

B) are more dependent on neocortical regions when it comes to successful retrieval than others, a trait that correlates to some extent with the time elapsed after memory formation.