Questions about NY Times Article

False Memories-NY Times

The New York (NY) Times article on memory loss pertains to a meeting chaired at
Harvard Medical school. The article's central theme is memory loss, a common issue in today's
society, especially among the older and older generations. A group of scientists were present to
discuss and add to the issue based on their research and findings. They had something to put on
the table that was very useful in understanding the concept.
Scientists found out that memory loss is common to everyone regardless of age.
Encoding messages in the brain is essential in preventing memory loss. Different memories of
past experiences are stored in different parts of the neocortex, whereby the limbic system
combines them. In memory loss, the most affected part is the memory source; where the event
happened, what time and the event at the time. One can remember a face vividly but may
struggle to connect the source of the face.
The article is handy in discovering how human brains work and the parts involved in
memory loss. It also assists in finding why it is straightforward to forget some phenomena while
others still stick around. Mouse models are used in the general study of cognitive behaviour,
such as the study of memory loss. Mice models are used since they behave similarly to humans
with little deviation. Henderson's case on eyewitnesses keys a new perception in determining the
truth in the court (Schacter & Loftus 2013). It is evident that the way a question is asked posses
false memories alongside true memories depending on the question's wording.
Retrieving information can be perpetrated by the kind of message being retrieved.
Authentic messages are easily and readily retrieved from sensory sources, especially when using
the fMRI. Candidly, the fMRI is a tool that differentiates between true and false memories. It can
be used in court to judge cases presented by eyewitnesses. The blood flow in the brain affects the

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truthfulness of a message part of the fMRI measure. This imaging technique is unique since it
can detect some defaults in the brain anatomy that cannot be detected by other models used.
Therefore, the fMRI can be used to determine whether the memory presented is true or false.

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References

Schacter, D. L., & Loftus, E. F. (2013). Memory and law: what can cognitive neuroscience