Maddenation
Early First Memories
A student of mine discovered this research abstract that says that smarter people have earlier first memories. I think my first memory was before I was 2 years old (when I got a hernia operation). Dad’s first memory is also from when he was about 2.
Isn’t it weird how when you hear something like this, you wish you could reach back and grab an earlier first memory? But there’s nothing you can do. You’ve got your first memory, and there’s nothing you can do to change it. Except maybe forget it.
Patrick • News • 05/02/06 • 3 comments
Comments
Dad • 05/03/06 • 10:09 PM:I don’t think it’s weird to reach for an early memory to “prove” you’re smart. I think we all would like to be smarter, and certainly want to be thought of as smart. If a study came out that associated eyebrow bushiness with intelligence, we’d all want Andy Rooney brows.
Patrick • 05/16/06 • 11:28 AM:I guess what I mean is that you can’t get an earlier first memory than you already have. It’s not something you can choose; it’s not something you realized when it happened would be your first memory. You were just living your simple, happy life, doing a decent job of remembering certain things day to day (like how to walk, certain words, what Mommy looks like, don’t touch that hot stove, etc.), but those things were not distinct first memories, they melded into the generalized whole of experience. One day, things converged, and you formed “a memory” instead of a general notion. You didn’t do it on purpose. And maybe later you forgot some things, so you’re left with whatever you think got in there first (which is, itself, hard to tell). You can’t really reach back and get an earlier one, no matter how much you want to prove your smarts. And if you’re already very smart and happen to have a late first memory, it doesn’t mean you’re truly dumb under it all.
Dan • 05/18/06 • 10:39 AM:My first memory might be wrong. I can “remember” building our deck, which we built in 1980, probably summertime. That puts me at less than a year old. Is that possible? I swear I remember our cat Midnight from that day and Dave, Kath, and Pat stepping across the sideways beams.
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