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What's Your Earliest Memory?
spazoid12 writes "I've been curious lately about memory. For example, why is it that my earliest memory is from about 7 years of age? (I'm mid-30's now) Most people I know remember much further back. How far back can a person remember? Is there a theoretical limit? What are the requirements for acquiring memories? I've read that oxygen is one; as in actual breathed-in stuff. This is supposed to explain why you can't remember anything from within the womb. That seems silly to me. My own theory (with nothing to back it up) is that language is required. We spoke mostly Brasilian Portuguese and some Russian in the home up until I was about 5 or 6. We moved to Brasil for a year when I was 8 and I barely remember anything from that trip. I really don't know either language today-- could this explain why I have no memories of those years? What if I re-learned those languages now, 30 years later? Would memories flood back?"
> take a class, read a book, learn.
Taking a class is probably more important in modern neurosciences than reading textbooks.
The leading edge of knowledge in neuroscience is moving forward very quickly and in many different directions. Biochemistry, genetics, molecular biology, computer science, systems biology, and the traditional subjects of brain and cognitive science are all taking their own productive directions in the areas of learning, memory, behavior, ailments, and intelligence. Lots of the neatest stuff isn't in textbooks yet, and the best way to get an understanding of the state of the art is to take classes or seminars.
If I was an undergrad having to choose my major again, I couldn't be more excited. As it is, joining the business world, the areas of neuro imaging, pharma/biotech, and neuro medical devices have so much potential and are growing such that getting into neurotechnologies is really a no-brainer.
The infant brain is most certainly functional already at birth, and even before.
I didn't say it wasn't functional - clearly it is. If your brain doesn't function, you don't breathe, for a start.
However, it isn't organised. Large areas of it are unassigned to any specific function, and indeed will reassign to new functions in a way that an older brain cannot. For example, removing an entire cortex may not cause a hemiplegia (paralysis in half the body) if done early enough in life. Yet in an adult the effects of this are profound.
So many of the neurons that relate to higher functions aren't even assigned as such. This should come as no surprise to anyone that actually interacts with newborn children and infants. They don't really know how to do much.
In addition, the brain is not structurally complete. An example of this is the blood brain barrier which separates the adult brain from the circulation isn't fully functional until after the first year of life. Likewise myelination of nerve sheaths isn't even near completion until after 2 years of age.
Michael
There is no cryptographic solution to the problem where the intended receiver and the attacker are the same entity.
Most every study Ive read about the development of the brain in babys states that the brain does not finish developing the ability to get meaningful data from vision for two weeks or so after birth.
The brain knows there is light, but doesnt yet know how to focus those images or even form images in the mind at two days.
I wish I had some links to these but I have no idea where I read the articles in question.
There could be a number of other explanations for her 'early memorys' and in fact they may not be memorys at all.
To the consious mind, there is no difference between a memory of an event, and the actual event being percieved by the senses.
Durring normal waking state memorys are inhibited by the brain by hormones specifically so we dont confuse our senses with a memory.
However durring REM sleep (and im sure other stages the brain can be in) tose hormones are themselfs inhibited, which is why we dreams seem so real.
In essence, they are.
When a person becomes consious in the REM state (What is called lucid dreaming) you become free to use your imagination to create a memory of something going on or happening to you, and as the memory inhibitors are being inhibited, it seems like reality for all intents and purposes.
When the brain gets 'crossed' so to speak, and one is in REM state but still being able to percieve the senses and communicate with the outside world, your perception of reality changes almost totally.
What would be interesting is if she had some sort of cross between a hypnotic state of consiousness, and a lucid REM state, where she literally Could turn on and off the senses and resouces of her body to only percieve the parts of the world she wanted, which left more time to focus on the specific details she wanted to (IE no vision but very good sound perception as you desrcibed)
Maybe that was her way of interpreting 'two days from when she had consiousness' which would have been over the two week period.. But i dont believe it was literally when she was two.
Vision doesnt come until two weeks, and its believed consiousness and self awareness still another month or so after that.
Had she reminded you of some incident or another that you had forgotten then that would better demonstrate your point. For example, if she described that jumper your wife just loved dressing her in when she was 3 months old.
If you decide to quiz her on said jumper or some such, be on guard against Clever Hans syndrome.
Observationally, I've noticed that for most people, it only takes a couple verbal repetitions of a false or inaccuate memory before they develop an unshakeable belief in its reality.
~REZ~ #43301. Who'd fake being me anyway?