Forgetting things could really make you smarter.
Two researchers from the University of Toronto, Canada, recall in an article published in Neuron that memory is not about transmitting the most accurate information, but rather the most useful information, the one that allows decision-making More intelligent.
Forgetting does not mean that you are stupid and, as Marie-Céline Jacquier notes for Futura-Sciences: "an effective memory can not be conceived as an accumulation of data: the preservation of precise information can indeed prove to be against -productive. " Forgetting the superfluous allows the brain to focus on the important. The idea is reminiscent of this episode of The Big Bang Theory where Sheldon leaves the dice in his place to decide primary decisions to allow his brain to focus on "the essentials", namely the study of dark matter.
As noted by Blake Richards and Paul Frankland in their paper, the brain does not just store data, it also strives to erase them: "It is important that the brain forgets irrelevant details and instead focuses on Things that will help make decisions in the real world, "says Richards. "We find much evidence from recent research that there are neural mechanisms that promote memory loss and that these are distinct from those involved in storing information," Frankland said this time.
So why is the brain trying to make us forget some things? Richards and Frankland think there are two reasons. On the one hand, forgetting helps us to adapt to new situations by releasing memories that we no longer need. If your favorite coffee has moved to the other side of the city, forgetting its former location helps you remember the new for example. On the other hand, forgetting allows us to generalize past events to help us make decisions about new ones, a concept known in artificial intelligence as "regularization". If you remember the basics of your previous visits to the cafe rather than all the insignificant little details, you will more easily and quickly determine what to do next time you drink your coffee.
"If you try to navigate the world and your brain constantly emits multiple conflicting memories, it makes it harder for you to make an informed decision," says Richards. How does the brain do it? Two mechanisms are at work: one of them is to weaken synaptic connections between neurons that serve to code the memory, while the other generates new ones from stem cells: "When the neurons' Integrate into the hippocampus, new connections reshape existing circuits, making access to certain information more complicated. This would explain why children, in whom the hippocampus produces more new neurons, forget a lot of information, "one can read about Futura-Sciences.
Thus there is no doubt that forgetting information can be experienced as a frustrating experience - and perhaps a sign of more serious problems - but this new research suggests here that a certain level of forgetfulness Is actually a well integrated mechanism designed to be more intelligent.