What is the encoding capacity and duration?

Encoding capacity refers to the amount of information that can be processed and stored in memory at a given time, often described in terms of the "magical number seven, plus or minus two," which suggests that most people can hold about 5 to 9 items in their short-term memory. The duration of this memory is typically brief, lasting anywhere from 15 to 30 seconds without rehearsal. Long-term memory, on the other hand, has a much larger capacity and can potentially last a lifetime.