Why We Remember

Resumen del libro

A radically new and engaging explanation of how and why we remember.' MATTHEW WALKER'Life-changing.' SIDDHARTHA MUKHERJEE---Memory is far more than an archive of the past. This groundbreaking book by a pioneering Professor of Neuroscience and Psychology, Dr Charan Ranganath, reveals the powerful role memory plays in nearly every aspect of our lives. Combining fascinating tales of the peculiarities of memory as well as cutting-edge science, Dr Ranganath shows the surprising ways our brains record the past and how we use that information to understand who we are in the present, and to imagine and guide our futures.

Memory shapes how we experience the world, and it does that in often invisible, active and sometimes destructive ways. Dr Ranganath argues that we can use this knowledge to make better use of our flawed memories, whether in daily tasks like finding our keys or dealing with memory loss as we age. What's more, when we work with the brain's ability to learn and reinterpret past events, we can shed our biases, learn faster and heal after grief or trauma.

This is a vital, accessible guide to understanding memory's quirks - and its power.

Biografía del autor

El Dr. Charan Ranganath es miembro de la Fundación Guggenheim, director del Memory and Plasticity Program y profesor de Psicología y Neurociencia en la Universidad de California en Davis. Dirige el Dynamic Memory Lab y es pionero en el uso de técnicas de imágenes cerebrales como las resonancias magnéticas funcionales (IRMf) para estudiar los mecanismos cerebrales que nos permiten recordar eventos pasados. Su trabajo ha sido reconocido con varios premios, y en 2015 fue uno de los once expertos de Estados Unidos en recibir una beca de la National Security Science and Engineering Faculty. Cuando no está estudiando la mente, es el líder de la banda de avant-punk Here Knows When. Vive en Davis, California, con su esposa y sus hijos.