Part-set cuing inhibition

Biological Parallel

Providing partial cues disrupts memory retrieval in multiple species. When researchers provide some cache locations to Clark's nutcrackers, the birds retrieve fewer total caches than birds with no cues—partial information interferes with systematic search. Ants trained on 10-step maze routes show 40% retrieval failure when given steps 1-3 versus 10% failure with no cues. The mechanism: partial activation of memory networks suppresses related memories through lateral inhibition. Honeybees learning flower sequences show decreased accuracy when shown subset of flowers versus full sequence or no cues. The pattern: partial retrieval cues activate competing memory traces, creating interference.