Can any of you scientists explain how/why this happens?

Question

He's obviously not a savant.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hFp44BFFQxoYdVx9CLq386uvex2gD8UVI06O1

Answer 1

I knew a kid like this when I was growing up, a friend of the family. He could recall every detail of events that had gone by years ago, including dates and times. He wanted to becom a radio DJ and walked around everywhere with a tape recorder, with which he did a radio show every day for noone.

He was not what you would consider normal. He was very intelligent, but if you were hanging out with him you might think he was mentally handicapped. He just didnt really function with other people normally. You might say he was socially handicapped.

He eventually moved down into the deep south where I heard he became a radio host from his parents who I lost contact with.

Some peoples brains are just wired differently, thats all. Its a trade off, all that memory, but no way of ever functioning normally in a social setting.

Answer 2

My first wife was like that.

She remembers all my faults.

Answer 3

It's called a Photographic Memory. My mom had it as did one of my 1/2 brothers. I don't have quite the photographic memory - but more so then not.

The thing is they do remember everything and anything - even boring mondane stuff. My 1/2 brother could read a book and tell you page by page what was said word for word. He passed a lot of tests w/little to no effort .

He's dead now - DUI a good number of years ago ....

Answer 4

some people have good memory

Answer 5

What excites me is the thought that a true genius might have had a question or two for this site, or maybe answered a few!

Answer 6

Seeing Dr. James McGaugh, a research professor at the University of California has studied this for three years and still can't explain it ,what do really think the probability is of someone on this forum being able to do so in any meaningful manner?

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People often indeed surprise me with their answers, I am surprised at the amazing, incredible and impossible things that are offered as explanations on this forum.

I note you've posted the question under 'alternate' so I am guessing that you are hoping for one of those totally unbelievable answers that you like so much.

And since you claim to believe that other people can put thoughts into your head I think a scientific answer might be a waste of typing time anyway.

Answer 7

No.  There's no explanation.  Some people are just born with amazing memory

Answer 8

Not yet. I can offer some basic explanations and suggestions that I"m pretty sure they are or will be doing.

First, when anyone is exposed to anything (any experience) it goes into short term memory. Unlike, was previously thought current research suggest that everything you were exposed to does not stay with you. If this information is rehearsed (like repeating a phone number) then it gets transferred into long term memory.

Where minus a brain injury or disease it does stay with you. Information can be called up by our brain (some of us are better than others at recall). Some information is easier to call up by recognition (this is the difference between a multiple choice test and a fill in the blank test).

This is in a normal typical human brain.

Obviously these individuals have placed the experience into long term memory. Now this is where social (human) research gets messy unlike high school physics. Did the family speak of these experiences to reinforce these memories as the person grew up. For example, remember last year when we stopped at Bobs on vacation and you....

Or was the memory stored without being reinforced by other people?

These individuals seem to have excellent recall of their memories abilities. Some research has shown people of both high intelligence and high creativity have more neural pathways (same neurons more connections).

So, its possible that neurons are connecting around personal experiences.

Thus, questions:

1. Is the original experience being processed the same

    way?

2. Is the recall stimulated by the same area of the brain?

Some of those questions could be studied using an fMRI (functioning magnetic resonance imaging) of the brain during an experience and during recall.

As for why that is an endless question but how I'm sure is answerable with time and resources.

Psi