Your Most Cherished Memories Are Fabricated The Startling Science of How Your Brain Rewrites History

Your Most Cherished Memories Are Fabricated The Startling Science of How Your Brain Rewrites History

Remember that amazing summer vacation from your childhood? The sun always seemed to shine brighter, the ice cream tasted sweeter, and every moment felt like a scene from a perfect movie. I have so many of these crystal-clear recollections, moments I can replay in my mind with incredible detail. But here’s a truth bomb that might shake your world: your most vivid memories are likely not real. Or at least, not entirely real. They’re a masterful blend of truth, invention, and selective editing, crafted by your own brilliant, yet fallible, brain. Welcome to the unsettling, yet fascinating, science of fabricated nostalgia. Your Brain Isn't a Video Recorder For decades, we largely thought of memory like a filing cabinet or a video camera. You experience something, your brain records it, and then you retrieve it, pulling out an exact replica of the original event. Sounds logical, right? Turns out, that’s a beautiful fiction. Neuroscientists and cognitive psychologists have shown us something …