Memories Can Now Be Created — And Erased — in a Lab

Sources

Time Science and Spcae
Science Daily

Have that bad memory that you will never forget? Well the day may be near when you can say goodbye to those bad memories. On the flip side there could be one day where you wake up and you have memories of events you never really experienced. So far this is only being done on rats, but who knows, maybe the Fed is all ready on top of this one.

There definitely is some good reasons for this technology, but I can think of a whole lot of nefarious ones too. Who knows maybe Total Recall is just around the corner.

Two recently published studies describe scientists implanting fabricated memories and selectively erasing unwanted memories in the brains of lab rodents.

Researchers at UC Irvine have found that by playing a particular tone while stimulating the release of a brain chemical associated with memory formation they can artificially “condition” a response to the tone in lab rats, which is recalled and observable the following day. Fabricated memories have the same features as naturally-occurring memories,Science Daily reports, “including long-term retention.” Researchers say this represents “the first evidence that memories can be created by direct cortical manipulation.”

reply to post by vip867
I wonder what this sort of thing would cost a person...How long before they start doing clinical trials on humans...And where can I go to sign up as a volunteer??? It would be cool if they offered this in a package deal form, like economy rate for short term memory where you put your keys and little things like that)



But seriously who could we trust with this? The big pharma? The Feds? The shrinks? I will keep my bad memories and my forgetfulness...No memory boost for this gal...

reply to post by vip867


I better get my ass to mars then.



This thread also reminds me of "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" one of Jim Carrey's unsung gems.

Yeah, Thorneblood, but I have to say, there's way more to it than forgetting an impossible love affair.
How bout you're a victim of rape, and wind up dating your rapist, later....

reply to post by vip867


Reminds me of this:

How happy is the blameless vestal's lot!
The world forgetting, by the world forgot.
Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind!
Each pray'r accepted, and each wish resign'd;
Alexander Pope

Did you see that movie?



reply to post by Thorneblood


Like minds!

reply to post by windword


Lol yes I did, in fact in the article they mention that movie too. I also think about the movie Paycheck with Ben Afleck where he reverse engineers other peoples technology for other companies to rip off. Then when he is done with a project they go in and burn out and remove any trace of what he did. Like a super confidentiality agreemwnt.

reply to post by tetra50


Not everything has to be so damned negative. All this doom and gloom crap whenever they make a scientific advance is reminiscent of old world values and religious sanctimony and it always ends up sounding like something a bunch of pitch fork wielding villagers would tell each other to justify their own desire to destroy that which they don't understand.

Would it be possible to date your rapist without knowing it, sure.

It would also be possible to implant "movie memories" that put you as the star of the story. (IE: Total Recall)
Download an entire years worth of education into your mind in minutes. (IE: The Matrix)
Play another person's memories like a dvd (IE: Strange Days)

.....
How could we have forgotten Strange Days!!!!! One of Ralph Fiennes best roles!

Thorneblood
reply to post by tetra50

 

Not everything has to be so damned negative. All this doom and gloom crap whenever they make a scientific advance is reminiscent of old world values and religious sanctimony and it always ends up sounding like something a bunch of pitch fork wielding villagers would tell each other to justify their own desire to destroy that which they don't understand.

Would it be possible to date your rapist without knowing it, sure.

It would also be possible to implant "movie memories" that put you as the star of the story. (IE: Total Recall)
Download an entire years worth of education into your mind in minutes. (IE: The Matrix)
Play another person's memories like a dvd (IE: Strange Days)

.....
How could we have forgotten Strange Days!!!!! One of Ralph Fiennes best roles!

Thanks so much for the religious, sanctimonious, pitchfork wielding comparison, there, Thorneblood.
As much as I agree and concur with the "superpowers" angle to it, the possible pain and torment of it should be rendered, as well. sorry. but that's the way I see it. If you wanna continue to push it via superpower mania, go ahead. But understand clearly, it can totally screw one's life up in the wrong hands, as well.

And I have just as much right to point that out without judgement as you do about downloading an entire education in an hour....ever thought that might drive someone over the brink, perhaps? Andf btw, I completely resent your doom and gloom portrayal of me. I understand quite realistically and logistically, the plusses, but as with anything and everything, everyone should understand the down side, as well, as many of us live it every friggin day. Thanks for your erudite, doom and gloom , judgement and assessment. Let's just listen to another music video, shall we?
Tetra

Sorry, for more doom and gloom info: but here you go, just to make sure someone who is using said tech is using it in the RIGHT WAY, for that's why some of us post here. It's not all roses and sunshine, after all.
Someone needs to demand the right applications of technologies, and if we weren't making an effort to educate as to the WRONG WAY, well, where would everyone be, then?

EDOM also stands for Electronic Dissolution of Memory...

Radio Hypnotic Intra-Cerebral...

ATS Thread on EDOM

Electronic Dissolution - Wikipedia

Borrowed from another poster on another thread, but good info.

Man, I would just love the educational point of it. To be able to learn what you want at will, if this ever does become a reality and everyone can become super educated, just think of the problems that could be solved. I think new and amazing projects wouod be coming left and right. But like all plus sides there are the negative, so there could suddenly become super smart villains too.

I 've created and erased a lot of memories in my LABatt blue beer research.. I never got to write in a prestigious journal about my drinking days

reply to post by tetra50


Sorry if you took it personally, since i have obviously upset you i will simply remove myself from the discussion. However, in my defense, most people never want to see the benefits of these advances and prefer to focus solely on the negative potential. After awhile it builds into purely ignorant paranoia and any possible good that can come of it is ultimately buried beneath a bunch of fears and conspiracy theories.

That being said, i apologize again. Peace.

Thorneblood
reply to post by tetra50

 

Sorry if you took it personally, since i have obviously upset you i will simply remove myself from the discussion. However, in my defense, most people never want to see the benefits of these advances and prefer to focus solely on the negative potential. After awhile it builds into purely ignorant paranoia and any possible good that can come of it is ultimately buried beneath a bunch of fears and conspiracy theories.

That being said, i apologize again. Peace.

No need to apologize, surely. I am not "most people." I surely see the up-side, for it would save my current experience in this life, surely, if someone offered such a thing to me. I am not so much a dolt I cannot see that. However, I think it would behoove us to see that many of us may actually suffer what we do in order to propel that particular paradigm angle......

And I simply feel it necessary to represent the other side of the information, as the "good" side is how it is always "sold," while a few suffer for that selling. Just my take on it, Thorneblood. Peace to you, as well. I mean no harm, really.

My thought is, these are complex times, with an interface between a given paradigm and a choice of man's creation to better what is circumstantially provided now. In other words, shall we become our own creator's, having wrecked what we were given? Not meaning to go all religious implication and pitchfork wieding conservative on you, but there is always a price. Who shall pay it? What will it be? I feel those are inherent questions as to the debate, for if it is anything like the world we currently experience and how value has become skewed, then those of the least value will invariably get those "superpowers" before those who think first, and act last. And without that control mechanism firmly in place, then it will be sociopaths in charge of ultra human powers.....and I don't happen to think that will end well, my friend.
Tetra50

reply to post by tetra50


See, if this was all ready avaiable, you could both just remove your memory of what had been posted.

They have finally perfected it.... or did they perfect it 40+ years ago. After Roswell?

reply to post by vip867


Why would you want to erase your memories when it is the sum of those memories that makes us who we are?

Erase one traumatizing event from our core and you could completely change the "Individual".

Now, creating them is an entirely different story. I think that could have HUGE Educational Implications.

reply to post by Thorneblood


You've exaggerated or misunderstood that sense of fear, causing it to seem bad or unjust.

First off, it's not a fear of the unknown or of what is uncertain, but a fear of the negative possibilities.

And secondly, fear of possibilities is not irrational or illogical. It's built in to protect you - so that you may continue to produce your concepts. Knowing that someone else fears a thing, you would be wise to heed their warning, for they may actually be thinking more clearly, or have a better understanding, than yourself.

-Just saying.

edit: I see that you already understand to a degree so disregard the above. I wasn't trying to beat a dead horse - I just knee-jerked before reading the rest of the posts, sorry. Was trying to help you understand that that sort of fear is only quasi bad.

reply to post by vip867


I'm on the side who say this is bad. We need to earn and keep our memories for learning to be better. I feel like learning to be better is the whole purpose of this life, so interfering with memories is counter-product to all involved.

Even the matrix style learning would not benefit us because we need to grow into our mind-sets. We need the experience of the knowledge more than the knowledge itself. The learning is more valuable than the knowledge...

And their research implies that having knowledge automatically means you understand it, which I do not believe. So, that sort of memory implant could potentially destroy the psyche.

Could you imagine having all the knowledge in the world but understanding none of it? That would destroy you.

I think.

Edit to clarify: The way you understand something would be due to your interpretation of said thing and not your memory; and the way you interpret something will be based on the whole sum of your memories and psyche - that, I do not believe they can change.

But if anyone is incline to mess with their brain, I don't have a problem with it. It's their brain, not mine.

There are a lot of memories I would love to lose.

Memories that contribute to my low self esteem top the list

Memories that affect my current self in a lot of ways.

There are some people I'd love to forget. But, it's not that I've had some terrible life. I would just appreciate a fresh outlook. A lot.

As far as memories "gained", I'm not so sure. I think you would spend the rest of your life trying to figure out which memories were faked and which ones were real.

All in all though, I'm very much for this kind of discovery and research.

Of course, there is that terrifying quality to it, knowing what could be done with it.

I'm looking at this from a glass half full perspective, this memory finding could have positive implication in education. Just think about have a highly skilled society, everyone can reach there potential effortlessly. Mentor-ship is important in education as well, but this should make things go smoother.