Forgetting may be essential for the brain to remember
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There's nothing more frustrating than trying to remember a fact or memory only to realize it's gone. You may ask yourself, is this the beginning of mental decline or the beginning of a degenerative brain disease? You probably don't think forgetting is a good thing. But it's possible. New research on memory suggests that it is actually a healthy and necessary brain function that is becoming increasingly important in our rapidly changing lives. “You want to be able to adapt to your environment because the environment is always changing. But if you get too attached to your initial experience, you won't be able to act adaptively,” he says. thomas ryan At Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland. Interestingly, his research also suggests that forgotten memories remain in the brain and could be restored if needed.
Everyday forgetfulness, such as not remembering what you had for dinner last week, is called natural forgetfulness. This is in contrast to pathological forgetfulness caused by conditions such as brain injury or Alzheimer's disease. Far from being a problem, natural forgetfulness supports one of our most unique and powerful traits: our ability to generalize. There are times when having a very detailed memory can be invaluable, such as when reviewing for an exam or acting as a witness to a crime, but you can't generalize without considering the specifics quickly and flexibly. says Mr. edwin robertson At the University of Glasgow, UK. “For a chair to be considered a chair…
Source: www.newscientist.com
