Do you believe your memory is correct?
Why does your memory of an event differ from someone else's who was there?
Unfortunately, we can't fully trust our own brain. It is arguably the most intricate system on the planet, but there is not one scientist that completely understands the workings of the brain. What we can all agree on is that it works in ways we aren't even aware of- such as the Sunk Cost Fallacy. The subconscious and super subconscious will have us do things and believe things that if our logical mind were in action would make us gasp in awe, (and sometimes shame!)
When you need to focus you turn down the volume. This is because we just cannot handle too many impluses all at once. Over time our brain-filter has learned what we deem important and deliberately ignore the stuff that is useless to us.
This is also why we can hear our name called in a crowded room. This phenomenon is called the Cocktail Party Effect and is an example of our brain filtering the noise from what is important to us.
Our memories are a subjective representation of how we perceived an event. So what your memory may tell you is absolute fact, may be remembered differently by another person because of their perception at the time. Also, did you know that your memories actually change? Each time you remember something it is effected by your current beliefs and emotions. And our memories can even be influenced by others, and even manipulated.
Here is an interesting experiment to try. Watch the short video before reading on:
What do you think?
Do you still believe you can trust your brain?
Selective Attention is one of the most popular mind tricks in the world of psychology. It is used by preachers and terrorists, magicians and corporations, lawyers and governments and interrogators, and even teachers and salesmen.
It's not only what we say, but also what we don't say.
Mental manipulation is used to influence memories all the time. Legal cases are one frightening example. In one study, people were influenced greatly just by how a question was phrased. The participants were shown videos of car accidents. One group was asked how fast the cars were traveling when they "smached" into each other. The other was asked the same question but with the word "hit" replacing "smashed".
Question everything, even your own cognitive competency :)
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The Sunk Cost Fallacy
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Brilliant. Insightful, well researched and fascinating.
The point about legal cases is frightening. In fact, when you look at all the ways that we can be manipulated and what the impact is on others, it's hard not to conclude that we need to completely overhaul the system. How is it justice, if those making the decisions cam be so easily blindsided?
Justice is one sided. The man with the best lawyer always wins...
Perhaps not quite always, but certainly the side with the money has a distinct advantage. There is a notorious rape trial happening in Ireland at the moment, and the poor (alleged) victim is being subjected to unbelievable psychological pressure with literally weeks of intense cross-examinations. How she is holding up is beyond me.
I am not sure what one would call it, but it doesn't feel like "justice" to me.
That sounds disgusting to me
Torture is more accurate...
It's revolting. I have followed the case, and they look as guilty as hell to me. The accuser has been unbelievably strong. I think that "reasonable doubt" will see them all walk.
This makes me truly sick. I feel for the poor woman. Nobody should have to go thru that victimization.
That's funny because the post before this one that i read was a Mandela effect. Do you think its just a memory trick?
Ah, the Mandella Effect. Now that is a fascinating study, and a deep wormhole when you start delving into it!
Hmm... Funny that you should bring that up... Considering what I am learning about how tricky the brain is, I am inclined to do more research into these.
At this point, without having considered and researched in depth, I am inclined to think it just might have something to do with it.
I think some of it might be memory tricks but a lot of them have something else going on. Too many people have different memories on some of them. It's really a deep rabbit hole to dive into for some nights you can't sleep lol
Oh it is. My youngest son discovered it a year ago. He came running to me, wanting me to watch a video on it. When he learned I was familiar, he was full of questions. He's been obsessed big time since!
It truly takes you into some dark territory when you allow yourself to think about it!
Wow. I knew that I wasn't seeing all the basketball passes - knew that I'd have a wrong number. But how could I have missed the gorilla??!! That's definitely Selective Attention. Makes me wonder what else in life is passing me by without my noticing because I'm concentrating too hard on something else.
Right under your nose, even! Then that leads me to wonder what I'm missing "new" because my mind is used to the "old"stuff.
It's almost scary.
My brain and I never got along. It always forgets too quickly but holds on to memories of movies and songs for the longest. Now I don't trust it at all. Who knows what kind of lies it might me feeding me...
In all seriousness this is quite unnerving. Psychology is such a powerful tool and is mostly misused.
I DID NOT SEE THE GORILLA!!! I am freaked out about this. this is most likely used as a weapon. I'm sure all wars in history were gained support through such manipulation by creating an enemy that didn't exist.
How did I not see the gorilla???
I agree, this can and has been used for manipulation probably for almost as long as intelligent man walked the Earth. And the sad thing is almost anybody can use it to their advantage, no matter what field their in...
That is scary. How can people protect themselves from such attacks though? Is it possible to defend against an invincible enemy?
Thank you for the upvote. Much appreciated.
I believe that just being aware of them is the biggest step you can take...
That requires a high level of cognitive control to do. With practice anything is possible.
I agree. However I also agree that they have some tricks up their sleeves that we cannot even comprehend! But by practicing awareness we can catch them at most of their games ;)
Lol. We are doomed! I forgot to follow you yesterday. Just fixed that mistake. I will be browsing around your work. You appear to be an interesting writer. Thank you for the responses.
Wow....such a wonderful and interesting topic for blogging....
We rely on our mind for everything — every thought, decision, opinion or idea you can conjure up is thought to come from the mind. But did you know your mind can’t always be trusted? Living inside your head is dangerous. This is where your saboteurs are triggered, and that is when your internal enemies come to light, habitual mind patterns creep in and negative self-talk takes over.
As Shirzad Chamine writes in his book, Positive Intelligence, your saboteurs manifested themselves when you were a child and shaped your outlook on the world. They were survival tools that you developed to protect and cope with physical and emotional forces and they remain into adulthood — even though you no longer need them. Your saboteurs are so ingrained in your mind that they shape all of the behaviors and thought patterns that work against you....
Wel done and perfect work my dear friend @arbitrarykitten mam...
Cheers~~
The saboteurs in this book you're referring to- are they similar to Ego in this article?
In a time where so much money and effort goes into deception and muddying trust in our perception and that of experts, this is a much needed piece to remind everyone to be mindful, be guarded.
The legal implications you brought up in this article are terrifying! and the mass marketing and politicizing shows just how powerful mental manipulation can be on a macro scale.
Thank you so much for sharing this, @arbitrarykitten, it's so important!
Yes! Fascinating yet terribly frightening!
If the changing memory effect doesn't have a name, I dub it the "fishing story effect"
Anyone who's been raised in Louisiana knows by the age of 6 that every adult is a gigantic liar with no working memory.
BTW I got 14 passes, and I did see the gorilla. That makes me the character in the movie who gets the close up when he's standing in a crowd and notices the alien mother-ship coming into our atmosphere before anyone else.
The Fishing Story Effect. I like it! So fitting ;)
You'll definitely by that guy :) Good news is you'll have the head start ;)
@arbitrarykitten Our Brain is tricky and has its faults, but it’s all you have to guide you through the world. Make sure to make the most of it while keeping it sane and healthy , This will lead to a better, simpler and more relaxed life .. If you want to be healthy, surround yourself with healthy things :)
You are what you eat, and you are who you hang around with. These are very true statement.
Wow, just hearing about the cocktail party effect. The brain is really a powerful part of our body and it has been said that we use only 5% of our brains and that if it increased, we would be smarter that the Super computer so I am not surprised at all at what the brain can do. It's indeed very powerful.
I think we use enough of our brain that is needed at this point in time- if that makes sense.
I recently read a publication where they affirmed that the truths are built because everyone has different perception on the same point or fact happened. Very interesting your post thanks for sharing.
True story. That's why a lot of worthlessYour accounts to a crime are the same- because all of their emotions are similar- fear, helplessness, etc. And why normal events are remembered differently by each who was there because each had different emotions at the time...
noooo, those passes are so confusing i really don't know how many passes those were. am so confused .
Did you watch it to the end?
I did watch to the en they said they were 15 passes but i couldn't count
Did you see the gorilla?
Our brains all interpret stimuli differently, and decide what to filter out because of its level of importance. This is why each person develops into a unique individual, because each person has a series or choices they make from the time they are born. Each person has a specific view on the world because of their surroundings and environment. No one is the same and that is a great thing.
It is a wonderful thing.
If we all were the same, the Earth would be an awfully boring place!
@arbitrarykitten all I know is when Kittens Purr I Feel Good..
And best of all, the purrs are created to heal both human and cat :)
Well definitely we cant trust our mind. It can also experience memory overloading or overlapping which might be the cause of forgetting some events. It also has the capaci ty to create stories when disordered. But it has the capacity to bring back memories of the past which long been forgotten. The thing called dejavu!
Create stories? I haven't heard that one yet. Does it have a name?
This is a great creative blog. Your writing style really impressed me. I can believe my memory.. but I didn't believe me. At past time I promise with me but I don't protect my promise and have broken again and again.
You have taken the most important first step in having an awareness of this. Now, combating it is easy :)
Your perception is your reality.
"Reality is merely An illusion albeit a vary persistent one."
Albert Einstein
Vary nice post @arbitrarykitten. Thanks for sharing.
Exactly.
Thank you :)
I counted and clearly saw the gorilla as well.
Is my brain weird? 😅
I wouldn't say weird. I saw the gorilla the first time they showed me this video too. I suspected there was something going on, and I believe that opened my awareness to catch everything.
I have come to believe that we must learn to accept ambiguity in our lives and the brain/mind/spirit/soul is the most ambiguous of fellows.
Your piece here is intriguing and challenging and gets a person thinking for sure!
:)
Memory and perception are so very personal but the mind can be easily influenced and/or manipulated ~ there are, however, as many versions of truth as people in our world.
xox
Well said :)
OMG! hahaha
thanks for this @arbitrarykitten
i just had a laugh reading this. never knew it could be like this.
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@arbitrarykitten, it is amazing that most of us fully trust ourselves. We forget about the biases we bring to the table and how easily our minds are deceived.
I like your point about how our brains filter stimuli so that we do go crazy.
Great article!
I'm happy you enjoyed it :)
Very interesting. Thanks for sharing. I seen the Gorilla but miscounted the passes by 2.
Interesting!
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If I remember my psychology classes right(15 years ago, so dont be mad if I got something wrong) brain always make shortcuts to decisions, perceptions, inputs to conserve enregy because it is a large energy consumer. So what you wrote here makes all sense. SO the answer is no. Never trust yourself :)
Exactly- the brain makes shortcuts based on what you have taught it is important to you, as well as what you need to survive.
Ive seen the video with the gorilla before years ago and it still nearly got me (I was busy counting how many times the ball was being passed ) and then I noticed something not right and remembered I had seen this before! This shows how strong our selective attention can be!
I work in a school and it is so bust but just about no matter what you can always hear your own name being called (your brain is tuned in to hearing this and filtering out 'white noise' (which there is lots of at work so I have become a pro at this!)
Right! Another fascinating fact is that even if a child is separated from his mom at both, he will always hear her voice in a crowd. Even if he doesn't know why her voice is standing out...
Yeah that sound right as it fits with attachment theory.
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very interesting! i heard about this a while ago, which just adds to my overthinking hahaha. I keep a journal and its interesting how my perspective at the time of the event changes or stays the same years later. inside out also did a good job explaining how certain things in the brain get forgotten to make room for new memories!
Journaling is the best way to realize how your memory changes :)
Wow, this was really fun! I got the number of passes correct but did not see the gorilla! Isn't that strange?
I wonder if we miss out on lots of other stuff if we're zoned in on one thing like that? Probably so and it actually makes sense. But it's actually a little scary that I might be missing some good stuff!
I believe we're missing out on a lot of things that are right in front of our faces!
I think you're probably right!
I saw the ape because I've seen a lot of misguided attention type videos and my mind is somehow trained so I guess I'm spoiled for that kind d of funny surprises. Sorry :( But I completely get it and understand your point. We usually remember only selective parts of a a conversation. Furthermore, we tend to think our immediate social surroundings can be extrapolated to a greater extent ot the world. Which is a huge cognitive bias. Great video. My upvote.
I have seen this video with the gorilla a way back and I started laughing so hard when he entered the scene that I ruined this exercise for everyone in the room who was watching it with me :)
This was an excellent post, I especially like your last sentence. We really should question everything, you never know what thing, that we were so firm on thinking was correct, will turn out wrong.
Thank you for sharing this. 💚
I can definitely - 100% assure anyone, that the mind, or memory is subjective.
I lived in Hollywood for three years and drove every single day on the roads there.
I grew up in the UK (we drive on the opposite side to the US.....)
Here is the really trippy bit....
If I think back at that time - in my head (and visualizing the roads) _ I am driving on the 'left'_. (not the right, as it should be)
I know this to be absolutely -100% - incorrect.
And even if I try to imagine driving on the correct side (as I did every day for 3 years) - it doesn't compute!
It was very strange coming to the realization.
It is totally empirical evidence, and not a subjective 'I think..'
Now I'm beginning to question if I really do remember everything in my past clearly hahahaha, the way your blog was written is like how a lawyer is questioning a witness, mental manipulation 😊😊😊,, now i realized that I have to think twice or thrice on everything before saying it .... about the cocktail party effect this is so true even if we are in a crowded and noisy shopping mall when my mom do her unique way to call us (pssssssssssssttttttt) me and my sinlings can hear it....
Thank you again ms. @arbitrarykitten for a very informative and mind questioning blog.... 😊😊😊❤️
Waiting for the ep.4 😄😄
wou, I did not know that memories changed.
This publication is very good. Thanks for sharing.
Whatever the core of your post, I want to say that human memory has limitations in remembering events in the past. The incident that just happened could not we flashback accurately one hundred percent, except for very simple events is still possible. This is because humans have limitations. However whatever my opinion, your post is very interesting to read @arbitrarykitten
Incredibly thought provoking! Thanks for sharing.
Haha, I feel for the trap while watching the video! I did notice something else coming out from the corner, but I thought it's another person wearing black and i thoughts he's just trying to ruin my focus! Didn't even notice all the moves the "gorilla" did while in the middle.
It's always fun to see what our minds are capable off and even experience it in real time.
Seems like I can't trust my mind any longer!
This phenomenon endlessly fascinates me, and the degree to which this happens increases exponentially when you think back to things that happened in childhood. There are things that I vividly remember that I know didn't happen. I think it's either because I thought back and wished that certain things happened in retrospect, or whatever I "remember" was a lie or exaggeration I came up with to impress others, or maybe I simply applied my imagination and fabricated entire events in my brain.
I struggle with memory a lot, especially childhood memories. I had a lot of repressed memories and most of my childhood is still a complete blank even years after working through a large portion of my 'stuff'.
This was absolutely a fascinating post and I suppose if I wasn't dosed up on cold medicine, I'd probably have something more intelligent/coherent to say.
Suuuuper cool @arbitrarykitten! Subjective memories, that is fascinating! Out brains love to play a trick on us dont they?
Amazing post as always! I remember back in my early twenties well going to university I was working at a pub in the back kitchen. It was a Sunday and always a slow night. It was just two girls on the bar staff and just me. I had just closed the kitchen and sat a the bar as always when two masked me came in. I won't go over the whole story but to relate back to what @arbitrarykitten highlighted in this post, each one of us had provided different descriptions of the men to the police. It was the weirdest thing. We all have been there but remember the different color of jackets as well different tones in the voice. I thought they were younger guys but the other two though older with deeper voices. It was weird.
Amazing work and thank you for sharing!
Wow, It's very interesting!
Its amazing how the brain works, how it tends to focus so much on one thing, leaving the other entirely. And the other, been a very significant aspect of everything.
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Many thanks for the interesting read @arbitrarykitten. The takeaway to some extent seems to be that one is usually mislead by the brain/mind/ego complex (or whatever the engine of misinformation is labelled as :)...... in other words, who then can I trust?
Ok, so this generally applies to the trusting or not of sensory data as it comes in and interacts internally with one's emotions and past experiences (thereby causing unique and different instances of memory around the same event!?). This data is filtered in, and as such must exclude a lot of info which is not presented to the conscious mind. This state-of-affairs leaves me confused and adrift. I might turn to someone (or some 'thing' or concept) for help, but the same thing applies - what basis do I have for trusting what's coming in?
Is there then no solution? Are we enslaved by these limitations of perception? Is there no state of being/consciousness that might be able to perceive and react with reality directly and not rely on 'interpretations'?
And even more enigmatically....could it be that the confusion is akin to setting up the game of life? When we untangle this confusion, we have the prospect of true freedom......perhaps! But it rather depends on us and our willingness to face our own stuff with honesty and integrity and non-judgement, IMHO.
...... just wondering and throwing it up there :D
Trust the feeling you get! Your own inner voice that leads you to success!
Thanks for sharing! Have a blissful day!
Fascinating stuff. Thanks for sharing
haha. I find this interesting. Though I must say, I definitely saw that there was someone not among the original ball players passing by as the people kept passing balls around, but I did not know it was a gorilla. XD
Interesting read, it is bad that you constantly have to doubt your own memories and that you sometimes replay them over so much that you can distort it.