Human Random Access Memory
 

An interesting look on memory, eternal truths and history vs reality
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kN_qT6V5CIg

Reminds me of a description of an experiment some researchers did (forgot what year or who the researchers were), where a group of people were led past a mock accident-like site in the wilderness, complete with "police. do not cross tape", flashlights in the half dark forest and actors in police uniforms etc etc. Months later the same group was interviewed by the researchers and this time (almost?) all vividly remembered crashed UFOs, alien corpses, armed Govt spooks and all that. The more outlandish, the more vivid the memory.

How much of what you remember having experienced, seen or heard actually happened? How trustworthy are eye witness testimonies in a courtroom, just to highlight one problem?

And no one in Casablanca ever said "Play it again, Sam." I don't recall ever hearing of Nelson Mandela until his release from prison and the supposed controversy surrounding it.

While I supposedly have an excellent long-term memory, I don't trust it any further than I can throw it.

And I don't see why he kept calling this "frightening". Sure, it's possible that everything you remember of your whole life is a lie, but since you can verify large parts of it externally it's probably likely that most of your memories are true. Yes, witnesses to events remember them differently. I first heard of this in a book on airliner crashes by Robert Serling (Rod's older brother) called The Probable Cause. One incident, a collision between an airliner and an Air Force fighter, was seen by several witnesses, every one of whom remembered it differently. It happens.

As for frightening, I suppose it makes for a more sensational video but it does raise some questions that are a bit more interesting than sensationalism, like witness accounts in trials vs severe sentences, opinions as a foundation for anything from vendettas to warfare, what is and what is not tradition, how we deal with neighbours, work colleagues and own family, could it be a cause for conspiracy theories that sometimes have dramatic or tragic outcome? How about gossip and rumours?