How to Change a Memory: One Neuroscientist’s Quest to Alter the Past

Can memories be artificially erased, enhanced, reactivated, or—as in the 2010 movie Inception—flat-out falsified? Yes to all, contends neuroscientist Ramirez in his riveting debut, which blends personal narrative and scientific analysis. Research reveals that memory is not as reliable as many believe; memories are naturally malleable, reshaping themselves with each recall such that they eventually become “pastiches of experience” that can easily be imbued with psychological fictions. It was this observation that led Ramirez and his colleague Xu Liu to embark on “Project Inception,” a study in which they successfully instilled—and then activated—false fear-provoking memories in mouse brains. Underpinning this and other memory research, Ramirez notes, is a technique called optogenetics, which uses lasers and a photosensitive protein from pond slime to activate memories, and is helping scientists discover more about how memories are formed, stored, and reconfigured, as well as the role they play in identity, creativity, and the ability to make predictions. While the idea of memory manipulation may seem creepy, the potential for good is immense, according to Ramirez, who convincingly posits that these new tools may lead to treatments for PTSD, anxiety disorders, and addiction, and might even be able to reactivate memories lost to dementia. It’s an illuminating look at a dynamic area of neuroscientific research. (Nov.)