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Total Recall: What It's Like To Remember Every Day Like It Was Yesterday

You know how you can, for the most part, remember what happened to you yesterday? Well what if you were able to remember almost EVERY day that clearly? All the way back to when you were very young?

How would your day-to-day choices be affected, knowing that you’ll remember what you did forever? Do we all have our memories stored inside our brains like they do, but we don’t have a way to access them? Or something else?

Meet two of around 60 people in the world who are known to have Highly Superior Autobiographical Memories, or HSAM.

Plus, hear from an expert studying the people with this ultra-rare condition, and what we can learn about our brains, our memories, and ourselves.

Join the conversation onFacebook,Twitter, and email.

GUESTS:

  • Dr. James McGaugh is a professor of neurobiology and behavior at the University of California, Irvine, specializing in the neurobiology of learning and memory. He leads a team of experts who are studdying Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory (HSAM)
  • Bob Petrella is a Film Studies Professor at Santa Monica University, and he was the fourth person identified with HSAM
  • Alyssa Aey is a senior at Wadsworth Highschool in Wadsworth Ohio who has HSAM

Catie Talarski contributed to this show.

Chion Wolf is the host of Audacious with Chion Wolf on Connecticut Public, spotlighting the stories of people whose experiences, professions, or conditions defy convention or are often misunderstood.

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SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

Fund the Facts

You just read trusted, local journalism that’s free for everyone, thanks to donors like you.

If that matters to you, now is the time to give. Join the 50,000+ members powering honest reporting and a more connected — and civil! — Connecticut.