Final answer:
The forgetting curve demonstrates that memory loss happens gradually over time, with around 50% of information forgotten after 20 minutes, and 70% lost after 24 hours. It is not instantaneous, related to sleep, or specific to the review process, but occurs as a function of time passing after learning.
Step-by-step explanation:
The forgetting curve illustrates that memory loss is most significant gradually over time. This concept was researched by Hermann Ebbinghaus, who discovered that shortly after learning, an average person will lose much of the newly acquired information. Specifically, he found that after 20 minutes, 50% of the information can be lost, and after 24 hours, this increases to about 70%. This rapid decline of memory retention slows down and eventually levels off, indicating that the majority of memory loss occurs not instantaneously, nor only during sleep, nor when reviewing information, but rather as part of a gradual process following the initial learning event.
Long-term memory (LTM) has a large capacity for information storage; however, when information is not used or revisited, storage decay can result in forgetting over time. The memory loss that occurs due to storage decay is part of normal cognitive functioning and is a well-established phenomenon in psychological research.