Why we are built to be forgetful
The Straits Times|November 06, 2024
It is not necessarily a sign of mental impairment.
Sven Vanneste and Elva Arulchelvan

Forgetting is part of our daily lives. You may walk into a room only to forget why you went in there - or perhaps someone says hi on the street, and you can't remember their name.

But why do we forget things? Is it simply a sign of memory impairment, or are there benefits?

One of the earliest findings in this area highlighted that forgetting can occur simply because the average person's memories fade away. This comes from 19th-century German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus, whose "forgetting curve" showed how most people forget the details of new information quite rapidly, but this tapers off over time. More recently, this has been replicated by neuroscientists.

Forgetting can also serve functional purposes, however. Our brains are bombarded with information constantly. If we were to remember every detail, it would become increasingly difficult to retain the important information.

One of the ways that we avoid this is by not paying sufficient attention in the first place. Nobel Prize winner Eric Kandel, and a host of subsequent research, suggest that memories are formed when the connections (synapses) between the cells in the brain (the neurons) are strengthened.

Paying attention to something can strengthen those connections and sustain that memory. This same mechanism enables us to forget all the irrelevant details that we encounter each day. So although people show increased signs of being distracted as they age, and memory-related disorders such as Alzheimer's disease are associated with attention impairments, we all need to be able to forget all the unimportant details in order to create memories.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة November 06, 2024 من The Straits Times.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة November 06, 2024 من The Straits Times.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

المزيد من القصص من THE STRAITS TIMES مشاهدة الكل
The Straits Times

Touring exhibition of graffiti artist Banksy to open in Singapore in December

The guerilla-style political art of anonymous graffiti artist Banksy, which has popped up on streets in cities worldwide, will finally grace vandalism-tough Singapore this December—albeit indoors.

time-read
1 min  |
November 07, 2024
The Straits Times

Bag brand Aupen's founder is former national swimmer Nicholas Tan

The Singapore-founded bag brand Aupen has been seen on the arms of pop superstars Taylor Swift, Lady Gaga, and Beyonce, but the team behind the trendy label has largely kept a low profile—until now.

time-read
2 mins  |
November 07, 2024
The Straits Times

Music from Bridgerton in upcoming concert

Fans of the Netflix historical romance series Bridgerton (2020 to present) are in for a treat as songs from the hit show will be performed in Singapore.

time-read
1 min  |
November 07, 2024
Travel news Travel discounts at Trafalgar Tours' showcase
The Straits Times

Travel news Travel discounts at Trafalgar Tours' showcase

From Nov 6 to 10, Trafalgar Tours, a brand under travel company The Travel Corporation (TTC), is holding its first travel fair at the level one atrium of shopping centre Plaza Singapura.

time-read
1 min  |
November 07, 2024
Musical Six retells stories of Henry VIII's wives in pop-concert style
The Straits Times

Musical Six retells stories of Henry VIII's wives in pop-concert style

Divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived - this is how most people remember the six wives of 16th-century King of England Henry VIII.

time-read
3 mins  |
November 07, 2024
Nafa's hopes of building a print archive
The Straits Times

Nafa's hopes of building a print archive

The acquisition of a collection from Typesettingsg, Singapore's only letterpress heritage studio, has increased its holdings by about 10 times

time-read
3 mins  |
November 07, 2024
Brotherly bonds cut deeper than blades
The Straits Times

Brotherly bonds cut deeper than blades

Psychological thriller Pierce offers a bracing portrait of how young men seek out and cling to male role models

time-read
2 mins  |
November 07, 2024
Thousands of girls sold and forced into sex trade in India
The Straits Times

Thousands of girls sold and forced into sex trade in India

West Bengal a key trafficking hub, with more than 50,000 girls missing

time-read
3 mins  |
November 07, 2024
Dua Lipa gets Singapore crowd 'levitating'
The Straits Times

Dua Lipa gets Singapore crowd 'levitating'

The words \"training season's over\" flashed on the screen as British-Albanian singer Dua Lipa took the Singapore Indoor Stadium stage on Nov 5 to kick off her Radical Optimism Tour.

time-read
2 mins  |
November 07, 2024
4 movies, 2 islands
The Straits Times

4 movies, 2 islands

Singapore film-makers look to Taiwan for funding, hands-on support, cultural kinship

time-read
6 mins  |
November 07, 2024