The long and the short of it: relational memory impairments in amnesia, even at short lags.

Classic studies of amnesia led to characterizations of hippocampal function emphasizing involvement in long-term memory rather than short-term (or working) memory. In two experiments, we show that when memory for relations among co-occurring items is tested, hippocampal amnesia results in a deficit even at very short lags. Hence, we find evidence for hippocampal involvement in relational memory, even at short lags normally considered the province of working memory.