Memory

Memory is what makes us human. Its what gives us a connection between each other,
and form a relationship. It establishes trust within yourself and for others and distinguishes the
aroma from freshly cut grass, to grasping knowledge taught from professors. Its also one of the
most precious things people take for granted. You start to realize how much you dont know until
you try remember things. What we also dont realize is that people can take advantage over our
memories and rearrange how we remember them, the scary part is we can also do it to ourselves.
Memory will always be a fascinating feature of us humans, which is why I believe that even how
beautiful it can be, it will always be just a little bit more dangerous.
Tom Whipples article False memory of sex abuse can be inspired by police deals with
the role and impact that people of importance or status can play on another. He believes that with
the right set of skills that we can convince an innocent person that they are guilty of committing
a crime. By getting a witness or victim to just imagine themselves committing a crime
introduces a false memory, soon after they are convinced that they are the ones that did it. This
type of process can be called, unintentional police-directed process, which was observed from
Julia Shaw from London South Bank University. It is situations like these where I start to feel
disgusted because people do not understand the amount vulnerability you have, so therefore they
take advantage. Whipple goes onto stating that, ...once they have changed there is nothing to
distinguish a false memory from a real one -- it becomes our reality (Whipple). This is the
terrifying factor that memory can have on people, but it also makes you think that if one person
can easily convince you that youve committed a crime, then what can we convince ourselves?
Neil Reid is from chapter two in Invisible Gorilla, by Christopher Chabris and Daniel
Simons. His story correlates to the article by Tom Wipples in a way where it shows the dangers

of how memory can play on someone. Tom Wipples article is how someone can introduce false
memories into another, but in this chapter it takes Neil Reids story and shows how a person can
make their own false memory. To believe strongly in an event you thought happened, only to
know that outside influences can affect your ability to remember a situation can be dangerous.
After a game Neil Reid was grabbed in the front of the neck by his coach for several seconds and
was shoved back, no one broke up the confrontation they just watched. The issue is that Neil
Reid had formed his own false memory believing that his coached grabbed him by his throat
numerous times and was convinced that people broke them apart. The reasoning for this was
believed that because Neil Reid was never grabbed by the neck before this unusual situation it
made the memory distorted and became a traumatic event.
The article that was released by Baylor University called, Personal Memories of 9/11:
We May Be Confident, But Not Necessarily Accurate, conducts information that shows how
memory can deteriorate over time, but yet our confidence remains strong when remembering
events. To make it clear Charles Weaver, Ph.D. who is a professor at Baylor University and
teaches psychology and neuroscience states, Your memories of major events are characterized
not by accuracy, but by confidence. And confidence is a very poor measure of accuracy. Dr.
Weaver goes onto expressing how, our minds consolidate and compress our experiences, facts
and emotions into a coherent but not necessarily precise memory. His position that our
memories can get rearranged or lack accuracy is believed to happen by talking with family or
friends and also by the one thing we cannot control, which is time. Remembering major events is
something Dr. Weaver recommends to write down so we will always retain those memories and
details. Writing down notes or memories has worked for myself because I have suffered short

term memory for quite some time, but this has helped regain my strength and confidence back in
remembering situations.
Memories That Are Too Good to Be True, is a section in The Invisible Gorilla, that
describes a research that was conducted on people by psychologists David Rubin and Jennifer
Talarico, to describe where they were when the 9/11 attacks took place. The studies picked were
students from Duke University. They were told to recall any prior memory before the attacks as
well as the 9/11 attacks and told to answer a questionnaire. Rubin and Talarico hoped to compare
how well the students could recall both events from about the same time period. After this part
was finished they waited about 1 to 32 weeks to ask the subjects about each of the events again.
They soon found they as time passed on the students became more inaccurate and more false
details were described. This fit into the category of a flashbulb memory, because even though
the subjects were inaccurate, they believed strongly with what they remembered. Dr. Weaver
suggested that over a period of time our memories are configured together by other sources, and
as David Rubin and Jennifer Talarico stated, When they cannot recollect details well, they
become less trusting of their memories (page 76). Both professionals can agree that our own
memories should be doubted and that people do not have a strong recollective awareness.
States News Services article, Illusory Memories Can Have Salutary Effects, reflects on
how false memory can be a new way to receive information and incorporating into what we
already know. This perhaps does seem dangerous, but they explain that there can be upsides and
they also suggest that it, leads to errors small or large, and those illusions are more tenacious
than facts. The article then explains that what we remember may not be all it was. An example
they state is, remembering our childhood as happier than it was may help you have more
satisfying intimate relationships in adulthood. They even go onto explaining how a false

memory can actually prepare us to tolerate a situation better or help in problem solving. So
maybe a false memory isnt always dangerous, and as they state Just because a memory is false
doesnt make it bad. This article gives a deeper thought into the upsides of having false
memories, but I still believe that no person should have to lie to themselves in order to get
through life or a situation. After failing exams or anything to that extent I would make myself
believe the opposite of those outcomes. I personally saw no harm in it, until my own false
memory became a lie I had to tell not just friends, but coworkers, parents and my boyfriend. It
wasnt like I robbed from a bank, but I became self- conscious and small as a person, it morally
didnt feel like I handled the situation correctly. In the end, I couldnt remember which was a lie
from the truth. I couldnt remember if Id actually pass or failed that exam because my memory
became filled up with so many false memories that I felt lost. I soon found a way to learn, get
through it, and get stronger as a person. Lying to yourself and others may get you through that
moment, but its not going get you through life unless you hang on to those memories as they are
and overcome those obstacles.
In Invisible Gorilla a story about what a young couple witnessed one night correlates with
the article by States News Services, in a way that proves false memories can be dangerous and
not to just ourselves. As they stopped at a traffic light Leslie Meltzer saw a man on a bike and
another one approached him, then starts stabbing him. Meltzer called 911, but after less than a
minute of being on hold she couldnt be sure of the victims or assailants description. Her
boyfriend Tyce Palmaffy suggests that the assailant was wearing sweatpants, but Meltzer said he
was wearing jeans. They basically couldnt agree on any form of description, not even his race.
There was a reason of doubt to trust any memory or contents that they had stated. Fast forward
six years later their interviews were described as more vividly. Leslie thought the assailant was

larger than the victim. Tyce stated he called 911 while Leslie was driving, but in fact he was the
one behind the steering wheel. False memories seem like it can be either be a positive or negative
based on its context, but if we deliberately use false memories to get through a procedure, how
do we know that its not training our brain to believe in anything. In other words, will we still
have control on what we know is true? In the couples case no, but we shouldnt have to fake
ourselves out of a situation as the article suggests and form an illusion that can hurt us later in
life.
If we decide to remember memories as they are than personally for me thats signifying
the type of person you want to become. Memory can be dangerous and these article prove that.
From being vulnerable to time passing by shows that our memory does adjust and change as well
as diminish. If we can change what we know to either benefit ourselves or even others, should
we do it even if theres a risk that thats what will replace what we already know? Take it from
someone who does not remember her childhood, middle school years, and slowly forgetting high
school as well, I would give anything to get those memories back just as they are. When people
recall events in a testimonyOne thing people should take their memories as is a way to answer
the question, Who am I.

Illusory Memories can have salutary effects. States News Service. Web. 4 Oct 2011.

False memory of sex abuse can be inspired by police. Time [London, England]. Academic
Onefile. Web. 16 November 2016.

"Personal Memories Of 9/11: We May Be Confident, But Not Necessarily Accurate." States
News Service, 7 Sept. 2011. Academic OneFile. Web. Accessed 19 Nov. 2016.

Chabris, Christopher F, and Daniel J. Simons. The Invisible Gorilla: And Other Ways Our
Intuitions Deceive Us. New York: Crown, 2010. Print.