Memory - Permanent Impermanence

There is one sticking point that I always seem to come to during these discussions and the proposal of swappable memories is no different. The point is simple – there is a vast difference between doing something because we can and doing something because we should.

As Katie and others have pointed out, memory is changing and intangible. Like a living thing it seems to adapt itself to all the many contexts we apply it to, allowing itself to be flexible to suit our needs. Some memory stays with us for out entire lives, pulled to the surface by the most subtle things like a trace of a scent vaguely familiar, others are fleeting and remain only so long as they serve some utilitarian purpose. Perhaps there is a reason for this?

Suppose that we could, in fact, record memories and relive them over and over again with absolute clarity. We must admit that this would be the first step, an individual experience that cannot be swapped or shared with others. In this case we could relive our most important memories with certainty unknown to us now – but certainty is hardly flexible.

Admittedly, in this version, we could find a vast array of positive uses for this technology. We would never again fear the loss of knowledge again and our capacity for retention would be amazing. To have our memories on file like the library of music on our iPods would truly be an amazing thing – but with all good intentions there comes a cost.

Human beings have a fascinating way of clinging to memories, molding and shaping them so that in many cases they are more fantastic and ‘real’ than the experience that caused them. As Erika mentioned, a first kiss is more than just the experience of that physical sensation, it touches a part of us that is undefined by human anatomy. Our feelings for that person, for that moment, get wrapped up in a memory and it is the victim of our bias – but in many cases making for a much richer and important experience. Even still, as time passes that memory begins to fade and we long with a sense of nostalgia for that feeling once more but we move on, experiencing other moments that build off of that one.

Now this begs the question, how would this change if we could relive the exact same kiss again and again at the push of a button? This not only depreciates the value of the kiss but is leads to other destructive possibilities. What of the people who develop an obsession with these memories and seek nothing else? Where is their motivation to ever have another kiss? Another first love? Like a drug these people might waste away their entire lives lingering only on past memories and never forging new ones.

I’m sure with little effort you could expand this notion to a wider audience. Like Leslie suggested, these memories could be used to make up for some of our flaws but where does it stop? Why would the crippled man choose to live a crippled life when he can relive the live of a walking man again and again? When do we realize that memory often is, and possibly could be, the most potent vice we have?

I feel as though I often become a herald of woe when it comes to these discussions but I cannot look at the vast opportunities any media may provide without taking into consideration the ramifications it may have on our lives. Why can we not see that nothing, including memory, lasts forever and maybe, just maybe, it never should?