People with amnesia usually can understand written and spoken words and can learn skills such as bike riding or piano playing.
Isolated memory loss doesn't affect a person's intelligence, general knowledge, awareness, attention span, judgment, personality or identity. Someone may recall experiences from childhood or know the names of past presidents, but not be able to name the current president, know what month it is or remember what was for breakfast. Recent memories are most likely to be lost, while more remote or deeply ingrained memories may be spared. Most people with amnesia have problems with short-term memory - they can't retain new information.
