These people are gifted with what scientists call “highly superior autobiographical memory” (HSAM), which means that they can remember in vivid detail nearly every day of their life going back to childhood. But new research shows that even these special people are susceptible to forming false memories, sometimes even more so than normal people.
Knowing how HSAM people form memories would provide a great leap in our understanding. With graduate student Lawrence Patihis, McGaugh set out to fill that gap. One way to do that was to figure out if HSAM individuals are susceptible to false memories. After all, memories are easy to distort. In a study just published in the PNAS, Patihis finds that HSAM individuals can also be tricked into forming false memories.
via Ars Technica
