# The synaptic correlates of serial position effects in sequential working memory

## TL;DR

This paper explores how the brain remembers the order of information using a model that shows how synaptic changes affect memory accuracy.

## Contribution

The study introduces a model using synaptic short-term plasticity to explain serial position effects in sequential working memory.

## Key findings

- The model reproduces the transition from primacy to recency effects in memory recall.
- Synaptic short-term plasticity parameters determine the timing of this transition.
- The interval between stimuli influences the serial position effect in the model.

## Abstract

Sequential working memory (SWM), referring to the temporary storage and manipulation of information in order, plays a fundamental role in brain cognitive functions. The serial position effect refers to the phenomena that recall accuracy of an item is associated to the order of the item being presented. The neural mechanism underpinning the serial position effect remains unclear. The synaptic mechanism of working memory proposes that information is stored as hidden states in the form of facilitated neuronal synapse connections. Here, we build a continuous attractor neural network with synaptic short-term plasticity (STP) to explore the neural mechanism of the serial position effect. Using a delay recall task, our model reproduces the the experimental finding that as the maintenance period extends, the serial position effect transitions from the primacy to the recency effect. Using both numerical simulation and theoretical analysis, we show that the transition moment is determined by the parameters of STP and the interval between presented stimulus items. Our results highlight the pivotal role of STP in processing the order information in SWM.