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Two distinct parts of the human brain - the neocortex and the hippocampus (a part of the brain involved in higher-order brain functions) - have been shown to help protect our memories from interfering with one another.

Researchers from the Wellcome Centre for Integrative Neuroimaging at the University of Oxford have shed light on the exact neural mechanisms that make precise memory recall possible.

The research team gave participants memory tasks to perform in the MRI scanner. Over two days participants learned two overlapping but context-dependent memories. The researchers then measured interference between the two memories on the third day in the scanner.

Read more on the University of Oxford website