Memories....

This is something i've often pondered on in my life. Memories...what is it's real purpose?

Are having memories proof that my conscience will continue when my time on this earth is gone? Why would i be able to remember that i ever existed if when i die everything were to go black and my "soul" would be erased? If that were true then why can i know that i am here now? Why can i remember my past?

When we forget something, it's as if it never happened in our own minds. What about people with alzheimers (spelled wrong)? If all memory is lost then their conscience is erased? What happened to them if the body still remains?

I'm not trying to get into religious issues here...this is just something i've always thought about and usually confused myself with..lol.

I've often thought that having memories is what proves "something" after death. What that "something" is i do not know.

Has anyone else here thought about this? Sorry if this is confusing, i'm having a hard time trying to describe my thoughts into words.

The few times i have tried to explain this to others that i know personally, I can't seem to get them to understand what i'm talking about.

Memories are useful to stop your history repeating itself. Group memories ditto.

I believe this is one of the more profound statements I've heard and I am in complete aggreeance. Memories do give the next life some credibility.

But an athiest or evolutionists may just say this is our brains mechanism to keep us in the evolutionary scheme of things, to keep us well, evolving.

We aren't the only species with memory either. Hmmm. Thank you, this will keep me pondering for a while.

Originally posted by David9176
This is something i've often pondered on in my life. Memories...what is it's real purpose?

Are having memories proof that my conscience will continue when my time on this earth is gone? Why would i be able to remember that i ever existed if when i die everything were to go black and my "soul" would be erased? If that were true then why can i know that i am here now? Why can i remember my past?

When we forget something, it's as if it never happened in our own minds. What about people with alzheimers (spelled wrong)? If all memory is lost then their conscience is erased? What happened to them if the body still remains?

I'm not trying to get into religious issues here...this is just something i've always thought about and usually confused myself with..lol.

I've often thought that having memories is what proves "something" after death. What that "something" is i do not know.

Has anyone else here thought about this? Sorry if this is confusing, i'm having a hard time trying to describe my thoughts into words.

The few times i have tried to explain this to others that i know personally, I can't seem to get them to understand what i'm talking about.

How so? I can think of all kinds of way you can store information in completely mundane ways. There's no reason the brain couldn't be doing something along the same lines. We store information in books by making marks on paper. Information is stored in optical media by making microscopic marks on a disc. In magnetic media by selectively magnetizing tiny segments of a magnetic medium. Physical memory in machines is achieved through a logical feedback loop. ROM consists of floating gate transistors Information can be stored in molecules like proteins, or in slowed light pulses. Memristors can store their last resistance value. Information can be stored in magnetic field polarity

There are all sorts of ways of storing information in the world without invoking anything supernatural. Can't think of why the means with which I store information myself be any different in concept.

There's some research that suggests that human memory is stored in synapse pattern, evidence for such is that memory can't be formed without the ability to synthesize the protiens that make up neural synapses. Human memory is actually very inaccurate (save for a very rare few with a photographic memory).

I don't really see any reason it wouldn't be possible for memory to be a product of brain activity.

Originally posted by David9176
This is something i've often pondered on in my life. Memories...what is it's real purpose?

Are having memories proof that my conscience will continue when my time on this earth is gone? Why would i be able to remember that i ever existed if when i die everything were to go black and my "soul" would be erased? If that were true then why can i know that i am here now? Why can i remember my past?

When we forget something, it's as if it never happened in our own minds. What about people with alzheimers (spelled wrong)? If all memory is lost then their conscience is erased? What happened to them if the body still remains?

I'm not trying to get into religious issues here...this is just something i've always thought about and usually confused myself with..lol.

I've often thought that having memories is what proves "something" after death. What that "something" is i do not know.

Has anyone else here thought about this? Sorry if this is confusing, i'm having a hard time trying to describe my thoughts into words.

The few times i have tried to explain this to others that i know personally, I can't seem to get them to understand what i'm talking about.

I know exactly what you mean.

With Alzheimer's I personally do not believe that the memories are lost at all but more that the connections and the way the brain recalls them are impaired. So you could say that the experience (memories) are still there when they eventually die from the disease. If you have ever had to unforunately experience a family member suffering from this it is evident when they suddenly spring to life and remember who you are but occasionally they may get you mixed up or worse etc.

I have often wondered if a brain has a critical mass in terms of storage, but even at that if you were to fill a brain up with all of my or your experiences would that make that person you or me?

I believe we are here to create infinity (god) as individuals from the finite in terms of experience which is memories. You could say that if you took every single memory from every person that existed and will exist in the future. Jammed it into the one brain, you would have God's (or alternatives) mind.

Interesting question and Ive pondered on it for a while.

Your question is a stepping stone to a much larger question and I mean LARGE lol.



[edit on 16-1-2009 by XXXN3O]