Identify the correct description of encoding, storage, and retrieval in memory.

• A. Encoding stores information permanently; storage changes memory; retrieval forgets.
• B. Encoding transforms input into a mental representation; storage maintains it over time; retrieval accesses stored information when needed.
• C. Encoding is the retrieval of memory; storage is the forgetting process; retrieval encodes.
• D. Encoding stores information; storage encodes; retrieval recalls only irrelevant info.

Answer: (B)

Encoding transforms input into a mental representation that can be stored. Storage then maintains that representation over time, and retrieval brings the stored information back into use when needed. This three-step flow matches how memory is typically understood: we first encode experiences, keep them during the passage of time, and later retrieve them to use or report them. The other descriptions mix up the roles—encoding isn’t simply storing, storage isn’t the act of transforming, and retrieval isn’t about forgetting—so they don’t fit how memory processes are defined.