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As Chuck pointed out in the comments, it's important not to take a metaphor too literally. Comparing our memory to a mailbox may have some validity, it is not true that our memory can "fill up"-- i.e., that we have a limited capacity for knowledge in general. No matter how old or how many facts you have learned, you will always be capable of learning new ...

No. Different parts of the brain are responsible for different functions, and the brain would not spontaneously reorganize based only on a improved WM. Memory is a huge factor in intelligence, and improving WM would likely result in increased scores on intelligent tests, and in general is a good thing. References: Increased prefrontal and parietal ...

The conclusions drawn in Inoue & Matsuzawa's (2007) study, which seems to be available here, are suspect. First off, the sample sizes (6 chimp, 9 human subjects) are simply too small to draw good inferences about working memory, at least about human working memory, but as I imagine chimps are somewhat expensive subjects, c'est la vie. Secondly, and more ...

High working memory is associated with greater ability to learn meanings of abstract symbols, such as is required to do mathematics. I would be highly skeptical of a claim that there is a trade-off between WM and general intelligence. Ian M. Lyons, Sian L. Beilock, Beyond quantity: Individual differences in working memory and the ordinal understanding ...

General Review of Mindfulness Meditation on Cognitive Performance There is a review article Chiesa et al (2011) which would provide a good starting point. They review 23 studies looking at the effect of mindfulness meditation on performance on objective cognitive tests. Twenty three studies providing measures of attention, memory, executive ...

The answer hinges on the definition of working memory. If we look at synthetics, with their massive visual memory correlations to time, numbers, etc, definitely not. They are worse in mathematics, they are constantly bombarded by memories triggered by unrelated events, some synethesiacs with OCD revolving around their personal lives are constantly ...

It looks like there is a developmental relationship between WM and general IQ: Fry, A. F., & Hale, S. (1996). Processing speed, working memory, and fluid intelligence: Evidence for a developmental cascade. Psychological science, 7(4), 237-241. Cole, M. W., Yarkoni, T., Repovš, G., Anticevic, A., & Braver, T. S. (2012). Global Connectivity of ...

There is strong evidence that suggests there are changes in neural pathways, synapses, and even birth of new neurons due to changes in behavior, environment and neural processes. That is known as Neuroplasticity, which suggests that our brain's capacity can be "recycled" and even augmented in many cases. If I had to choose a metaphor to make an analogy of ...