Forgetting
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| + | In "[[What is a Nation?]]" [[Ernest Renan]] states what has become one of the most famous and enduring ideas of [[nationalism]]. "[[Forgetfulness]], and I would even say [[historical error]], are essential in the creation of a [[nation]]."--Sholem Stein | ||
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| + | "O most ingenious [[Thoth |Theuth]] ... you who are the father of [[letter (alphabet)|letters]] ... this discovery of yours will create [[Forgetting|forgetfulness]] in the learners' souls, because they will not use their [[memory|memories]]; they will trust to the [[writing|external written characters]] and not remember of themselves. The specific which you have discovered is an aid not to memory, but to reminiscence, and you give your disciples not truth, but only the semblance of truth."--[[ Phaedrus (dialogue)|''Phaedrus'']] by Plato | ||
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| + | "[[Remember, remember the fifth of November]]" | ||
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| + | [[Image:Eruption of Vesuvius (Turner).jpg|thumb|right|200px|[[Pompeii]] was forgotten for hundreds of years. | ||
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| + | Illustration: ''[[Eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79|Eruption of Vesuvius]]'' ([[1817]]) by [[William Turner]], an eruption of [[Vesuvius]]]] | ||
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| + | To '''forget''' is to lose [[remembrance]] of; to cease remembering. It can refer to a person or an animal forgetting something, or, the forgetting by a society, as in a 'forgotten hero' or a '[[forgotten book]]'. | ||
| + | ==Of people== | ||
| + | '''Forgetting''' ([[Memory retention|retention]] loss) refers to apparent loss of information already encoded and stored in an individual's long term memory. It is a spontaneous or gradual process in which old [[memory|memories]] are unable to be recalled from memory storage. Problems with remembering, learning and retaining new information are a few of the most common complaints of older adults. | ||
| + | ==Of societies== | ||
| + | Things are forgetten when [[knowledge]] of them has been [[lost]], when it is no longer [[remember]]ed, such as Pompeii after the eruption. | ||
| - | '''Forgetting''' (retention loss) refers to apparent loss of information already encoded and stored in an individual's long term memory. It is a spontaneous or gradual process in which old [[memory|memories]] are unable to be recalled from memory storage. It is subject to delicately balanced optimization that ensures that relevant memories are recalled. Forgetting can be reduced by repetition and/or more elaborate cognitive processing of information. Reviewing information in ways that involve active retrieval seems to slow the rate of forgetting. | + | [[Forgetfulness, and I would even say historical error, are essential in the creation of a nation]] said Ernest Renan in "What is a Nation?". See also [[oblivion]], the [[ash heap of history]]. |
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| - | Forgetting functions (amount remembered as a function of time since an event was first experienced) have been extensively analyzed. The most recent evidence suggests that a power function provides the closest mathematical fit to the forgetting function. [http://www.psychology.iastate.edu/~shacarp/Wixted_Carpenter_2007.pdf] | + | |
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| - | == History == | + | |
| - | One to study the mechanisms of forgetting was the German psychologist [[Hermann Ebbinghaus]]. Using himself as the sole subject in his experiment, he memorized lists of three letter nonsense syllable words—two consonants and one vowel in the middle. He then measured his own capacity to relearn a given list of words after a variety of given time period. He found that forgetting occurs in a systematic manner, beginning rapidly and then leveling off. Although his methods were primitive, his basic premises have held true today and have been reaffirmed by more methodologically sound methods{{Fact|date=March 2007}}. | + | |
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| - | ==Theories of forgetting== | + | |
| - | The four main theories of forgetting apparent in the study of psychology are as follows; | + | |
| - | ====Cue-dependent forgetting==== | + | |
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| - | [[Cue-dependent forgetting]] (also, [[context-dependent memory|context-dependent forgetting]]) or retrieval failure, is the failure to recall a [[memory]] due to missing [[Stimulus (physiology)|stimuli]] or cues that were present at the time the memory was [[Encoding (memory)|encoded]]. It is one of five [[cognitive psychology]] theories of forgetting. It states that a memory is sometimes temporarily forgotten purely because it cannot be retrieved, but the proper cue can bring it to mind. A good [[metaphor]] for this is searching for a book in a library without the [[Library of Congress Classification|reference number]], title, author or even subject. The information still exists, but without these cues retrieval is unlikely. Furthermore, a good [[Information retrieval|retrieval]] cue must be consistent with the original encoding of the information. If the sound of the word is [[emphasis|emphasized]] during the encoding process, the cue that should be used should also put emphasis on the [[phonetic]] quality of the word. | + | |
| - | Information is available however, just not readily available without these cues. | + | |
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| - | == Trace decay == | + | |
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| - | Trace decay focuses on the problem of availability caused when memories decay. Hebb said that incoming information causes a pattern of neurons to create a neurological memory trace in the brain which would fade with time. Repeated firing causes a structural change in the synapses. Rehearsal of repeated firing maintains the memory in STM until a structural change is made. | + | |
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| - | ====Organic causes==== | + | |
| - | Forgetting that occurs through physiological damage or dilapidation to the brain are referred to as organic causes of forgetting. These theories encompass the loss of information already retained in [[long term memory]] or the inability to encode new information again. Examples include [[Alzheimer's]], [[Amnesia]], [[Dementia]], consolidation theory and the gradual slowing down of the central nervous system due to [[Memory and aging|aging]]. | + | |
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| - | ====Interference theories==== | + | |
| - | [[Interference theory]] refers to the idea that when the learning of something new causes forgetting of older material on the basis of competition between the two. In nature, the interfering items are said to originate from an over stimulating environment. Interference theory exists in three branches: Proactive, Retroactive and Output. Retroactive and Proactive inhibition each referring in contrast to the other. Retroactive interference is when new information (memories) interferes with older information. On the other hand, proactive interference is when old information interferes with the retrieval of new information.<ref>Underwood, B.J. (1957). 'Interference and forgetting' in Psychological Review</ref> Output Interference occurs when the initial act of recalling specific information interferes with the retrieval of the original information. | + | |
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| - | ====Decay theory==== | + | |
| - | Decay theory states that when something new is learned, a neurochemical, physical "memory trace" is formed in the brain and over time this trace tends to disintegrate, unless it is occasionally used. | + | |
| - | '' | + | |
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| - | ==Definitions and controversy== | + | |
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| - | Forgetting can have very different causes than simply removal of stored content. Forgetting can mean access problems, availability problems, or can have other reasons such as [[amnesia]] caused by an accident. | + | |
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| - | A debatable yet popular concept is "[[decay theory|trace decay]]", which can occur in both short and [[long-term memory]]. This theory, applicable mostly to [[short-term memory]], is supposedly contradicted by the fact that one is able to ride a bike even after not having done so for decades. "[[Flashbulb memories]]" are another piece of seemingly contradicting evidence. It is believed that certain memories "trace decay" while others don't{{Fact|date=March 2007}}. Sleep is believed to play a key role in halting trace decay{{Fact|date=March 2007}}, although the exact mechanism of this is unknown. | + | |
| + | ==Etymology== | ||
| + | From Middle English ''forgeten, forgiten, forȝeten, forȝiten'', from Old English ''forġietan'' (“to forget”), from Proto-Germanic ''*fragetaną'' (“to give up, forget”), equivalent to ''for-'' + ''get''. Cognate with Scots ''forget, forȝet'' (“to forget”), West Frisian ''ferjitte, forjitte'' (“to forget”), Dutch ''vergeten'' (“to forget”), German ''vergessen'' (“to forget”), Swedish ''förgäta'' (“to forget”). | ||
| == See also == | == See also == | ||
| * [[Amnesia]] | * [[Amnesia]] | ||
| - | * [[Cue-dependent forgetting]] | + | * [[Cultural memory]] |
| - | * [[Experience curve effects]] | + | * [[Forgotten]] |
| - | * [[Educational psychology]] | + | * [[Historiography]] |
| + | * [[History]] | ||
| * [[Memory]] | * [[Memory]] | ||
| + | * [[Oblivion]] | ||
| * [[Repressed memory]] | * [[Repressed memory]] | ||
| - | + | * [[Tip of the tongue]] | |
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| {{GFDL}} | {{GFDL}} | ||
Current revision
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In "What is a Nation?" Ernest Renan states what has become one of the most famous and enduring ideas of nationalism. "Forgetfulness, and I would even say historical error, are essential in the creation of a nation."--Sholem Stein "O most ingenious Theuth ... you who are the father of letters ... this discovery of yours will create forgetfulness in the learners' souls, because they will not use their memories; they will trust to the external written characters and not remember of themselves. The specific which you have discovered is an aid not to memory, but to reminiscence, and you give your disciples not truth, but only the semblance of truth."--Phaedrus by Plato |
Illustration: Eruption of Vesuvius (1817) by William Turner, an eruption of Vesuvius
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To forget is to lose remembrance of; to cease remembering. It can refer to a person or an animal forgetting something, or, the forgetting by a society, as in a 'forgotten hero' or a 'forgotten book'.
Contents |
[edit]
Of people
Forgetting (retention loss) refers to apparent loss of information already encoded and stored in an individual's long term memory. It is a spontaneous or gradual process in which old memories are unable to be recalled from memory storage. Problems with remembering, learning and retaining new information are a few of the most common complaints of older adults.
[edit]
Of societies
Things are forgetten when knowledge of them has been lost, when it is no longer remembered, such as Pompeii after the eruption.
Forgetfulness, and I would even say historical error, are essential in the creation of a nation said Ernest Renan in "What is a Nation?". See also oblivion, the ash heap of history.
[edit]
Etymology
From Middle English forgeten, forgiten, forȝeten, forȝiten, from Old English forġietan (“to forget”), from Proto-Germanic *fragetaną (“to give up, forget”), equivalent to for- + get. Cognate with Scots forget, forȝet (“to forget”), West Frisian ferjitte, forjitte (“to forget”), Dutch vergeten (“to forget”), German vergessen (“to forget”), Swedish förgäta (“to forget”).
[edit]
See also
- Amnesia
- Cultural memory
- Forgotten
- Historiography
- History
- Memory
- Oblivion
- Repressed memory
- Tip of the tongue
Unless indicated otherwise, the text in this article is either based on Wikipedia article "Forgetting" or another language Wikipedia page thereof used under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License; or on research by Jahsonic and friends. See Art and Popular Culture's copyright notice.
