Long-term potentiation refers to the way in which chemcial changes in individual neurones can alter firing (either making it easier or harder) for a period of time from seconds to hours. This can give rise to mezzanine memory or long-term working memory that lasts over periods of up to a few hours. In contrast, human short term memory and {[conscious reasoning}} are deternines by very short term electrical (ionic activity) and long-term memory is based on actual growth or decay of the axions and synapses that connect neurones.
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