Chapter 8 Memory

This week I read chapter eight in our textbooks which was about memory. I found the parts about memory loss very interesting. The part about childhood amnesia especially, which is how as adults we cannot remember infancy, being fed by our parents, taking first steps, or uttering our first words. I can't really remember many things before the age of four, unlike some people who can recall as early as the age of two. According to the text we cannot have an autobiographical memory of ourselves until we have a self to remember.  Also the level at which a young child understands events is curbed by their knowledge of people's interactions with each other. In addition to childhood amnesia, I found the decay theory to be interesting. It refers to memory traces fading with time if they are not accessed now and then. I found this chapter fascinating because how important memory is to us as people. A single memory can change our demeanor and actions while it can also repressed as Freud theorized. The 30 second limit on short term memory is an interesting concept. Especially when overlaid with the working memory and our ability to learn. It was important the book began the chapter by describing faults in memory with the Alan newton story. It makes it clear from the beginning that memory in a subjective thing.