Limits to human memory

[Hans de Vries]

We know that there are people with very good memories. There also people with extremely vivid imagination who can basically experience their imagined world as if it was real. IT's called hyperphantasia.

 

Would it be feasible to create (say via gene editing) a human being who would have a memory so good that he would remember every second of his life and experience it like a movie/

[iNow]

There are different types of memory, so it's important to be specific. There's spatial memory, and visual memory, and emotional memory, and memory for trivia, and memory for music, and memory for smells, and memory for social interactions and people who have helped or wronged us.

I suppose it may be possible to tweak some of these capabilities via genetic engineering, but a better question is whether or not we actually should.

The ability to forget is a massively helpful experience so we aren't forever tortured and tormented by the hardest parts of our lives. Being able to forget the intensity of the feeling when you broke your arm, or the hurt you felt after a breakup, or the sense of tremendous loss when someone you love very much dies painfully... forgetting is crucial to good health and mental wellbeing.

[Curious layman]

2 hours ago, Hans de Vries said:

Would it be feasible to create (say via gene editing) a human being who would have a memory so good that he would remember every second of his life and experience it like a movie/

Some people can already do this: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon_Shereshevsky

https://dreamhawk.com/interesting-people/the-man-who-remembered-everything-superminds-2/

Quote

Solomon Shereshevskii had a memory so perfect that he could recall every minute of his life in graphic detail. This fantastic capacity was further distinguished by the fact that he could “feel” images, “taste” colours, and “smell” sounds.

Its not like a super power though,

Quote

Another problem Solomon faced was that he often found it difficult to recognise people he had know for some time, or recognise whose voice it was on the telephone. Solomon’s awareness of detail was so acute that slight changes in a person’s facial colouring or voice made it difficult to recognise them. Most of us do not even notice such small changes of complexion or vocal sound.

I imagine the death of someone close would be hard to deal with. Must be extremely difficult to move on if you can remember everything like it just happened.

Edited November 4, 2020 by Curious layman

[CharonY]

4 hours ago, Hans de Vries said:

Would it be feasible to create (say via gene editing) a human being who would have a memory so good that he would remember every second of his life and experience it like a movie/

Fundamentally there is the issue that only a part of information (visual, auditory etc.) is being transmitted to the brain in the first place. I.e. a significant part of information is already pruned and curated. Much of the memory is related to effort. I.e. if there are certain things that you recall frequently it gets committed more efficiently than others. Even then, memory is an active process. Drawing from memory we create a kind of mental map of memories which might or might not be accurate. There are specific cases (e.g. sometimes called savants) where memory is extraordinary for certain things (i.e. deep, but narrow). I.e. Practice and repetition plays an important role and even in conditions like hyperthymesia, what is being remembered seems to be selective. In other words, folks may remember certain things in incredible detail, but might be unable to remember other aspects. 

There are tons of literature out there, but the only simple theme that one can make out is clearly that memory is not simply a recording of events. Rather it is a mental re-creation of sorts. And I think the possibility to have perfect recall is not seen as possible, as this is not how the brain seems to work.

 

2 hours ago, Curious layman said:

Some people can already do this: https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solomon_Shereshevsky

These stories have to be taken with quite a bit of salt. Many of these stories are not carefully documented and/or exaggerated to make a better story. I am not sure about this particular case, but I do remember numerous classic case studies that have been questioned in more modern times.

[iNow]

27 minutes ago, CharonY said:

think the possibility to have perfect recall is not seen as possible, as this is not how the brain seems to work.

Excellent points overall. In addition, each time we recall the memory it seems to degrade and get rewritten a bit. 

[Phi for All]

3 hours ago, iNow said:

Excellent points overall. In addition, each time we recall the memory it seems to degrade and get rewritten a bit. 

When I rewrite my memories, I usually give them an upgrade. Fish are a little bigger, hills are steeper, it was hotter or colder, the wait was longer, and it was more expensive or a lot cheaper. I also lose weight and get prettier. 

[iNow]

15 minutes ago, Phi for All said:

I also lose weight

I’m pretty sure I’ve found it and am holding on to it

[Phi for All]

6 minutes ago, iNow said:

I’m pretty sure I’ve found it and am holding on to it

I remember many people telling me not to let go of something once I had it. Protect what's yours, they told me. Don't let them take it away! 

6 hours ago, Curious layman said:

Must be extremely difficult to move on if you can remember everything like it just happened.

But according to your article, Solomon had trouble recognizing things and people he'd seen before if there was anything different about them. If true, it sounds like he had an automatic way to cope with change. Anything different was simply a new thing. 

[dimreepr]

19 hours ago, Curious layman said:

I imagine the death of someone close would be hard to deal with. Must be extremely difficult to move on if you can remember everything like it just happened.

Most of us remember, very clearly, all those traumatic moments in life; it's not how you remember them, that allows one to move on.

I cherish all of my memories, even the ones I can't remember, 😉