The past is constructed through memory from "summary" of Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer
The idea that the past is constructed through memory may seem counterintuitive at first. After all, we tend to think of memory as a faithful record of past events - a sort of mental filing cabinet where our experiences are stored for safekeeping. But as I delved deeper into the world of competitive memorization, I began to see things differently. Memory, it turns out, is a lot less like a filing cabinet and a lot more like a construction site. When we remember something, we're not simply retrieving a static snapshot of the past. Instead, we're actively reconstructing it, piece by piece, using the raw materials of our memories. This process is highly subjective and malleable, influenced by a whole host of factors like emotion, personal bias, and even the passage of time. As I witnessed firsthand during my training for the US Memory Championship, our memories can be surprisingly pliable. By employing mnemonic devices and memory techniques, I was able to transform my own recollection abilities from mediocr...
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