Open AccessMemory, Neuroscience and Memory Enhancement
Author(s) -
Marcos Alonso Fernández
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
canadian journal of bioethics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.163
H-Index - 3
ISSN - 2561-4665
DOI - 10.7202/1068759ar
Subject(s) - perspective (graphical) , cognitive science , construct (python library) , computer science , narrative , process (computing) , cognitive psychology , episodic memory , semiconductor memory , psychology , neuroscience , artificial intelligence , cognition , linguistics , philosophy , programming language , operating system
This paper advances a new and updated understanding of memory that should alsochange the coordinates of the memory enhancement debate. Instead of thinking of memory as astorehouse, we should think of memory from a narrative perspective. This view allows for abetter understanding of the process in which we actually construct our memories byelaborating meaningful summaries, rather than adding discrete elements. I argue that thisnew way of thinking about memory makes most of the memory enhancement technologies we haveor will have in the near future much less ethically problematic. The main idea is that(biological) memory interacts with memory enhancement in the creative and re-elaborative wayit ordinarily does. To conclude, I discuss some cases to illustrate the previouspoints.