If you have a fast or accurate memory recall, it’s certainly something comes in handy if you’re in school. It can also be a useful tool if you work in a large company and need to remember the names of all the important executives.
But there are some who do not have that same ability, and will often get castrated because of it. But maybe those who castigate others because of their lack of remembering things probably shouldn’t.
According to a new paper that was published in the journal Neuron, having a strong memory is overrated. The paper also concluded that not only is forgetting things normal, it actually makes us stronger.
The new report, which was written by Paul Frankland and Blake Richards, researchers from the University of Toronto, proposed that the ultimate goal of memory is not to transmit the most accurate information over time.
They believe that it’s meant to optimize intelligent decision-making by holding onto valuable information and letting the rest go.
The team came to this conclusion after reviewing years of data on memory, memory loss and brain activity in humans and animals. One of Frankland’s studies on mice found that when new brain cells are formed in the hippo campus, all the old memories and connections are overwritten.
This constant swapping of old memories to new can have huge benefits the researchers say, “It’s important that the brain forgets irrelevant details and instead focuses on the stuff that’s going to help make decisions in the real world,” said Richards.
One example would be learning new information that will help us adapt to new situations by letting go of outdated and potentially misleading information. Our brains allow is to forget specifics about past events, while still remembering the large picture. Researchers believe that this allows us to generalize previous experiences better.
So what does this mean for those who frequently forget things? Well first of all, if you are constantly forgetting things and have a bad memory, this may be a cause for concern. But if your someone who forgets the occasional detail, that’s perfectly fine. It’s a sign that your memory system is healthy and doing exactly what it should be.
With our technology advancing at a rapid rate, our brains do not need to store as much information such as phone numbers and other facts that can be found on the internet. Instead our phones and tablets can store all this information, thus freeing up more memory storage.
For a healthier memory, Richards also recommends cleaning out your memory system on a constant basis, “We know that exercise increases the number of neurons in the hippo campus, but they’re exactly those details from your life that don’t actually matter, and that may be keeping you from making good decisions.”
Do Math In Your Head: For problems that require you to do equations, try and figure out the problems in your head without using a pencil or a calculator. If you feel like challenging yourself, try doing this while walking.
Strengthen Your Hand-Eye Abilities: Try taking up a new hobby that involves fine-motor skills such as drawing, painting or taking up a sport like baseball or soccer.
Draw A Map From Memory: After you have returned home from visiting a new area, try and visualize the map of the place and try to draw it. This exercise can be done any time you visit a new place.
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