Final answer:
Iconic memory is a type of sensory memory that involves a fast-decaying store of visual information. It is the brief storage of visual stimuli that lasts only a fraction of a second before it is either transferred to short-term memory or lost.
Step-by-step explanation:
The iconic memory is a fast-decaying store of visual information. It is a type of sensory memory that briefly retains images of visual stimuli. This form of memory allows for a quick processing of the physical features of an object or scene, but the information is not stored for long unless attention is directed towards it and it is transferred to short-term memory. Iconic memory can hold a large amount of visual information for a very short period of time, usually lasting a fraction of a second. Sensory memory is the initial, temporary storage for sensory information, which includes sensory experiences like sights, sounds, and tastes. The Atkinson-Shiffrin model posits that information needs to pass through sensory memory, then short-term memory, before it can be stored in long-term memory as explicit (declarative) or implicit memory. The visuals provided by iconic memory might then be encoded and later stored as either semantic or episodic memory, depending on the nature of the information and the processing it undergoes.