Hi folks,

just wanted to get some thoughts on how some of you define a Photographic Memory.

Is it that someone can look at a page of writing, read a book, see a face and have the image
etched into their memory there and then? There are some examples of people being able to do this.
Just Google it later, there are even some examples of it in this forum.

There are techniques you can use help improve your memory. They involve creating and using images
in your mind to remember whatever you want, whenever you want.
This techniques when used correctly are very effective and can improve your memory immensely.

So what I'm getting at is this. An image is just like a photograph. So if anyone can use the technique I
mention above, does that mean everyone has the potential to have a photographic memory? If yes then
it is implied that we already have photographic memories because your brain/mind thinks and operates
on images.

So everyone already has a photographic memory by default(your mind thinks in images), most of us just
need to develop it and some lucky few have the innate ability of being able to remember anything at will
built into them.

What do you think?

Sincerely,
David Meade

Photographic Memory

Might be somethingthere useful to ya.



Cheers,

Gene

Thanks Gene, I had read that before, it's interesting.

Ever watch Derren Brown? I saw him perform what's called Photo Reading.
He memorises a book in 20 minutes. I've seen examples from his show
where he used techniques to memorise the street maps of the whole of
London (I think it was London, I may be wrong but you get the point).

There are memory champions who can memorise 100(and more) digits in the space of a couple
of minutes and recall them perfectly using the technique of creating your own images I mentioned
above.

If you didn't know of the technique the memory champions were using, you would be forgiven
for thinking that they just have and exact replica image of the 100 digits stored in their memory i.e. Eidetic Memory.

Fascinating subject. I'd still like to know what people in general think a photographic memory is. And if this
is the first time they've been made aware that there are techniques to drastically improve your memory, has
their opinion changed.

Here's just one example from youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSThUCIg5i8

Sincerely,
David Meade

I would also like to change the question in the topic. I wasn't really looking for a direct
definition.

I was wondering what definition people in general and within this forum had on what is
a photographic memory.

Sincerely,
David Meade

I didn't look at the links ((I'll go back and do that after I post)) but both my oldest brother and I can do this; Photgraphic Memory. It's helped a lot in school and in my career.

Basically, in school I would read what we were to be tested on. After reading the pages I would just LOOK at the headings/ topic on page and page number. In my test if I would have a problem on a question I would go to that page in my head and visualize the answer. I thought a lot of people could do that. My mother said that only my brother and I could in my family (four kids total), she can do it, my daughter can do it and 2 of my brother's 6 kids can do it. My Bro graduated Manga Cum Laude from Duke Univ.; and I graduated Univ. of MD on the Dean's List. You think that has something to do with that? So, what does THAT MEAN? Ugh, do I have another brain oddity?

Okay, and since it's like no one's ever really going to know me here I'll tell you something else. I've traveled A LOT in my life and I can recall specific pictures I take in my mind. What I do is I look at the "picture" for example looking port view up into San Tropez. What I do is pinch and hold somewhere on my body; then later (it's been 10 years for that one) I pinch the same spot and can visualize the exact picture. Is that weird? Or can anyone do that? I've taught other's I've travelled with to do that and it's worked for them too... they were amazed.

Let me know okay? Jody

speeeeeeeeeeeeling
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Okay I read the article and I find a few things interesting. We joking call my sister the "idiot savant" because you can tell her any number sequence ie... phone number and she will remember it forever. She even has all of her credit card numbers memorized and her drivers license number and so on.... interesting. Common sense is good but book smarts? NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! (Sorry sad but true)

I also found it interesting what what said about Asperger's syndrome. My nephew (my sister's son - same sister - was diagnosed with years ago - before I had ever ever head it existed) I wonder how this relates back to everything. MY SON (11-years-old) was also tested at one point for Asperger's syndrome but was in no way dignosed with that but something else... Hmmm. This is all very interesting and informative to me. Any more information would be greatly appreciated Jody

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Goalienan - Both of my children did that too. I was a little freaked until I was told kids love repetition to the point of ad nauseum.

I remember being snow-in one weekend with just my daughter (when it was just her and me) and we watched 101 Dalmations like 500 times!! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

Now, years later, I also found out that tends to be a sign of a very high IQ (they call it here "gifted" in our school system). Funny thing is BOTH of my kids are ADD/ADHD too. **(((I think I had it and I was just labeled "wild" many many years ago - I got kicked out of nursery school (5 years old) for talking all my classmates to stand and jump (at the same time) on this one table and we cracked it in half - I meant no harm. I think I just was interested in how much weight was needed to actually split the table in two.)))** UGH. Anyway, all these labels nowadays... whatever. My kids are very smart and if they get bored (like I used to) they act like crazy kids. Okay...stopping my novel now Jody

Hi Dave...Now are you talking about a photographic memory, pertaining to reading, or are you including educational shows, or educational dvd's to watch...I'm asking because of 4year old grandson has not yet learned to read full pages, but when watching one of the education shows, he will repeat verbatim what he learned and keep it in his memory...He does not forget what the subject was about, stores it, and a year later will repeat it...

A photographic memory in my mind is someone who can look at, say, a picture, or the page of a book, study it for a while and then recall it in great detail. A photo in the memory if you like.

The memory can be trained to a very high standard, one of the best examples I saw was on a TV show, whereby the "memory-man" asked a member of the audience to open up a telephone directory, tell him what page they had opened it at and to give him the number of the line on that page - well, they did all this and he immediately gave the name, address and telephone number on that line! Bloody amazing it was, I wouldn't fancy playing cards against him, I would end up skint

To me true photographic memory not only allows you to remember great detail after studying something (which can be trained with memory tricks) but also recall details that weren't deemed important initially.

So for example, when reading a book.. it's easy to see what's important - the words. But if your thinking about observing some scenes (and not just a single photo) - there are a lot of minute details.. and it's difficult to know where to focus your attention.

This is also different than most memorization technique which don't rely on detailed accurate imagery, but usually more abstract / generalized.

Eh.. Rofl I find it hard enough to remember what happened yesterday let alone trying to memorise 300 page books and all this. Last week is like :|.. Seriously need to sit down and think lol not even sure what day it is most of the time. Like 2? weeks ago in class I actually had to ask someone what year it was because I fully thought it was 2006 but it didn't seem right and neither did 2007 for some reason. That's my memory for ya.

The brain I think stores everything that happens to it but only gets rid of what it doesn't use later. Our abilities to actually recall that what which is stored is photographic memory. Your brain automatically picks up everything in your peripheral vision but it doesn't use a lot of it and this is why you won't remember it because you have no reference to it unless you were paying attention to it at the time. Its pointless building a one way street from a source because your not ever going to get back there. Several two way streets increases the chance of you getting back to the source. I think this is similiar to how the brain works. We find it a lot easier to recognise images and remember them then what we ever will with words (unless serious practice takes place.)

If you had the picture of say a farari flashed infront of your face for like half a second I guarantee you will know what you were shown. On the other hand if you were flashed a collection of numbers filling the same area you will not remember those numbers even though the numbers hold just as much content as the picture of the ferari. The brain just more readily creates "two way streets" for images. The more you have to remember something the more chance that you will and the more practiced you are at the more it will become second nature.

i don't know if what i have is a photographic memory, but i seem to have an uncanny ability to remember every single person i ever met in my life and I have a numbers thing too. It doesn't seem to matter if i met the person once or haven't seen them in ten years I always know exactly where and when i met them. Down to who they were with and what we talked about. Its perverse because the flip side is nobody sems to remember me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=95L-zmIBGd4

I have Eidetic memory is both a curse and a blessing for me anyway. In regards to school remembering everything and never really having to study allowed me to excel light years beyond my classmates. Things that would normally only be considered short term are stored as long term for example when i was 4 I seen a picture of the periodic table and to the day i still remember every element and it's placement etc. Like wise with other things as well....

There are things from my very early childhood I wished I could forget for example my parents changing my diapers and only crawling cause I could not walk etc. These memories still bring overwhelming feelings of helplessness. I can remember some books I have read word for word as well, although as time goes on older books and other stuff I read get a little hazy from time to time.

I recently did an experiment with my fiance to see how good my memory was with several decks of cards shuffled and each card simply flashed and put back into the decks.... I remembered 57 decks of cards with ease.

The explanation I got for this is simply that instead of my brain is simply wired differently. My brain puts memories that would normally be put into short term memory into my long term where it is then stored. While I have heard of people who have trained their brains to be memory machines these people can never do what I can do naturally or as well.

To put it simply people like me can remember almost anything in abundance and with extreme accuracy.



Your grandson is a perfect example of a child who has Photographic/Eidetic memory, chances are he will do very well in school especially in math and science etc. like I did.



It's funny how I am the only one in my family besides me has this type of memory, I can tell you that if you are anything like me then yeah school should be super easy for you. By grade 3 I was already taken out of regular elementary school and put in classes far more advanced with other kids who displayed 'promise' in regards to education. I finished elementary school when I was 10 and high school when i was 14.....



You should learn to organize your memories like a library or encyclopedia.... Pinching is your way of recalling certain events etc. I know others who I went to school with who did similar things to remember things. For me though no effort is required I can simply recall almost everyday of my life, for example I can remember I can remember what I did on May 19th, 1989 as if it happened today.

I have met lot's of people with Eidetic memory some people are more gifted then others, the only person I have ever met who had a better memory then me was a 10 year old autistic savant.



Yes if you can remember random people and recall a conversation from 10 years ago and memorize numbers in a similar fashion then you do ha Eidetic memory.

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For all you Eidetic memory types like me here beat my personal best for memorizing decks of cards which I did 2 years ago in which I memorized 57 decks.... I can still remember most of the decks too.

mine doesn't work that way. Im not good at card tricks, it only works for faces and number sequences like combinations telephone numbers and dates.

The best thing my dad ever did with me was take me on a memory course . I'm pretty rubbish at directions (partly because I can't tell my left from right, *genuinely*, I've been told this is because I can use both halves of my brain equally, with a slight bias to the left, which is strange sinse I'm right handed, anyway, thats a whole different story), but if I've been somewhere once before, I can find my way home from there.

The key to remembering is assigning something visual, or a story to it. I can be given a list of about 30 things to remember, and I can recall them in sequence (which, may not be that impressive, but hey, gets the shopping done).

For eg. If I was given the list of *looks round desk* Fluffy toy, ice cream, notebook, camera, wallet, and Darth Vader (man, what does that say about my desk?! =P), I'd give it a story. Sinse my brain works pretty logically, in my head, the story won't continue without a previous part.

Oh, FYI, for those who are interested: ("The fluffy toy likes ice cream. So much so, he wrote it in his notebook and took a photo on his camera of it, and put it in his wallet right next to the picture of his loved one; Darth Vader"). Being so obscure, it won't be forgotten. But gven a squence, it can easily be recalled.

I think I have photographic memory.. Like if I have a test at school, I can go back and find the page in my mind. Then I can "see" the page and the text.

I've got the same prob with directions and left/right Thank god for sat nav!

I'm also ambidextrous with slight bias to left, although I write with my right hand. Sometimes I feel like everything is 'left' and I have to concentrate to find my right side. For example, if you say 'right' to me, I will think left first... hard sensation to describe really...

My visual memory is also very strong and I would say my memory works best in the photographic like way that has been described. I memorize everything in image form.

I don't do card tricks I memorize them and then recite them with only ever needing to look at them once.



I've never had this right/left problem although my brother is pretty bad lol I have always had a good sense of direction etc.

Hi folks.

I'm blown away by some of your talents. I guess those of you with a naturally memory
are used to it as you've had it your whole lives. But to me I'm super impressed like you've
no idea.

AtheistGod, I'm a little jealous of you, but not so much when I read about your been able
to remember your diaper being changed Seriously though having an eidetic memory
seems to have helped you a lot.

Well since I started this thread I've been off doing a bit of investigating and research on
improving my own memory. I've come across a lot of information with lots of similarities.

Sooooo I decided to work on simple things and focus more on stuff like how to remember someones name.

I work as a barman so I thought that would be pretty good to have. Not that I have a poor memory, I'm actually
pretty good with names but there's always someones name I forget or get mixed up with someone else. I also
thought that if I'm learning something new I'd have a better chance of applying my newly learned skills if they're
applicable to my everyday life.

So I'm implementing some 'techniques' that seem to come naturally to some of you to remember names
and it's working so far.

I'm also using similar technique to remember words, why you may ask?? Well I've always threatened to learn a
new language or six, so while I have the ball rolling I thought I'd give it a go. It also may come in handy as where I
work receives a lot of tourists.

Well I haven't implemented the language/vocab techniques yet but will do this week and let you know how I get on.

Anyone else got a story or talent about memory to share please post it here

Cheers,
Dave