Daniel Alvizo, 3/23 What we remember and why
Why do we remember what we do? Why does our mind choose to remember certain things that seem trivial, and forget things that may actually be important. Actually, why do we tend to remember things that are painful? All questions I have been asking myself for a long time. I remember as clear as day, one moment when I was five or maybe six years old, going on stage in a performance as a pianist, losing my music and barely getting the first measure out before breaking into tears and walking out of the concert hall because I couldn’t remember my piece. Even now I can still feel the fear and humiliation of that day. Yet I can’t remember the answers to a test I studied for not a day before. Isn’t it strange, how that works? I still don’t entirely understand but I do have some theories. I think our memory is not actually to retain information. After all, if that is its purpose let's face it, it does a pretty poor job. I believe that the purpose for memory is to remember our failures, and give us a chance to improve. Now, every time I go on stage, or on the football field, I know I have everything I need because I triple check every hour that I do. The adrenaline is a reminder that I’m there because I do what I love, and failure is not an option. We all make mistakes we wish we could forget. However, maybe we should be thankful that we don’t forget them, as they are what keep us from making the same mistakes twice.
Hi Daniel, I really enjoyed reading your blog, and I agree with the point you made about memory helping us remember to do things we usually forget to do. Similarly to how we learn from our losses rather than our victories, if we forget something, we learn from the consequences that follow to not forget again. Therefore, memory can help us mature, and serve to be useful in many aspects of our life.
ReplyDeleteHi Daniel, I found your blog very relatable and interesting as well. I can definitely relate to going on a stage and forgetting how to play the song you have practiced for hours. However, memories like these serve as a reminder of failures and can help people acknowledge that they can improve next time. They also make sure that we learn from our mistakes and also learn not to repeat them.
ReplyDeleteFirst and foremost, I greatly admire your perseverance! Good job! Also, you present a really interesting and unique perspective of memory’s purpose(s). I would argue that memory enables us to both retain information and learn from our mistakes. After all, how can a person learn from their mistakes if they cannot remember where their home is?
ReplyDeleteHi Daniel,
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading your blog because I can definitely relate. I almost threw up on stage when I forgot the lyrics to the song I was about to perform. Memory is affected partly by how many times the event has occurred. Now, you have not forgotten that same piece on that same day multiple times, but you have probably recalled it over and over. Information for a test is harder to keep in memory because of the amount of practice or ways that we have practiced retaining the information. Although I have learned about this concept in psychology, I do not thoroughly understand it either.
Hi Daniel, I think what we remember depends on what we repeat or practice, and how many times we do so. For example, using vocabulary flashcards for an hour everyday will help you prepare well for an upcoming quiz, as it's pretty much stuck in your brain after hours of preparation. Our brain is like a body, I like to say; we need to exercise it!
ReplyDeleteHey Daniel, I feel that our memory relies on the current moment and the factors and emotions that we feel in those moments and how we feel we should deal with them. I know we remember details we otherwise wouldn't if we weren't searching for them wouldn't surface to the top of the figurative memory pool.
ReplyDeleteHi Daniel, I'd have to agree with the points you made in your post. Just like your memory of a piano performance, I too have painfully remembered things that I'd rather have forgotten, and subsequently questioned why I was continuing to remember them. But, like you've said, these embarrassing memories ultimately serve to shape us for better. Without remembering the mistakes of the past, who knows how many times we would repeat them in the future?
ReplyDeleteHi Daniel, I think that the reason we remember pain is more evolutionary than we think. We remember the pain so that we do not make the same mistake again. When someone makes a mistake in the far past, they could have died for it. Nowadays, we do not face the same risk daily; however, that way of thinking is still engraved in our brains. So I think we remember how we do due to our ancestors.
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