7 Sins of Memory - Which Are You MOST Guilty Of?

[Cleverboy]

I was listening to a radio program today and they were discussing memory, and the speaker, Daniel Schacter, mentioned a book he'd written called "The Seven Sins of Memory: How the Mind Forgets and Remembers". He proceeded to mention something he calls the 7 Sins of Memory, and I thought they were fascinating. Apparently, someone thought it was more than important enough to be wikiable...

The Seven Sins of Memory
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Seven_Sins_of_Memory

Three sins of forgetting

• Absent-mindedness - The mind is too distracted to encode information.
• Transience - Memories are fleeting, for they decay over time.
• Blocking - Inability to access previously stored information. The 'tip of the tongue' phenomenon.

Three sins of distortion

• Misattribution - Confusing the source of information.
  For example, believing one had heard a joke from a friend, but having read it from a book in reality.
• Suggestibility - The manifestation of misinformation.
• Bias - A present state, emotional or intellectual, having an altering effect on a past memory.

One sin of intrusion

• Persistence - Unwanted memories remain.

Much of this begins to come into play with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. It's truly scary when you run into issues of misattribution (your own error) and you find yourself wondering how it could have happened.

~ CB

 

[imac/cheese]

I am often the victim of misattribution. I will often tell my wife things that I "heard" and she will remind me that she was the one that told me that in the first place.

 

[yellow]

The only 2 I don't suffer from are Misattribution and Suggestibility. At least I think that's what Jesus told me.

 

[zioxide]

none of them?

 

[imac/cheese]

none of them?

are you sure you're not forgetting one or two?

 

[xsedrinam]

Don't know which category forgetting names would be under, but I annihilate names.

 

[zioxide]

are you sure you're not forgetting one or two?

no, i have a really good memory

 

[CalBoy]

Don't know which category forgetting names would be under, but I annihilate names.

I found that there are two kinds of people: those who are good with names, and those who aren't. It seems that there's no logical pattern to it either, because my sister is horrible with names (she can forget within five minutes) while I'm great with them

I guess you should invest in some flash cards

I chose the Sin of Persistence. I have a hard time letting go.

 

[yellow]

<-- bad with names.
<-- great with faces.


Go figure.

 

[pooky]

For me it's...

shoot, what was the question?

 

[xsedrinam]

I found that there are two kinds of people: those who are good with names, and those who aren't.

I guess you should invest in some flash cards

Thanks, CamBoy. Will do.

 

[mahashel]

I couldn't in good faith leave any of those boxes unchecked.
What can I say? I'm well on my way to joining Ozzy in the speech pathologist's office, where we'll argue about who told us whatever it was that we had for breakfast.

 

[Rodimus Prime]

no, i have a really good memory

wouldnt that mean you have memories you would rather forget. I know I have a few memories of things I would much rather want to well not remember.

 

[iSaint]

Did you say something?

That's only if my wife is talking and I'm on MR.

I voted Blocking. Although it would really be closer to a tie between that and Absent-Mindedness.

I'm a space cadet at times.

 

[Stampyhead]

Transience and blocking for me. If I'm lucky enough to remember that I know something I usually can't remember what it is.

 

[Principessa]

Persistence... I recall everything. A blessing and a curse.

 

[Cleverboy]

"Absent-mindedness" and "misattribution" haunt me like Marley's Ghost. Whether its typing a sentence and thinking I type "you" when I meant to type "your" or swaring up and down about the source of some information, only to be presented with proof of my idiocy in black and white. T'aint pretty. T'aint pretty t'all. I need to do more crossword puzzles.

Otherwise, I have a pretty solid memory. When you have bad memories you'd rather forget, that's when it sucks to have it be so vibrant. Crap... I guess that would be "peristance" wouldn't it? Ug.

~ CB

 

[killerrobot]

none of them?

Yeah, I feel I'm in the same boat - none of them ring a bell at least and make me want to check them.

@Cleverboy - Interesting find. Thanks for posting.
Could you make a "None" or a "Nothing rings a bell" or a "I have no memory problems - I'm perfect. I just want to see everyone else's memory problems" option? Thanks.

 

[Cleverboy]

@Cleverboy - Interesting find. Thanks for posting.
Could you make a "None" or a "Nothing rings a bell" or a "I have no memory problems - I'm perfect. I just want to see everyone else's memory problems" option? Thanks.

Mm... yes, there appears to be quite a few of you fascinatingly flawless people cropping up in this thread. Interesting... Worth noting... some of these "sins" require independant confirmation, so you may be your own worst witness.

~ CB