I have a lousy memory for tasks and social commitments, and a really good memory for facts. So when I couldn't remember a name that I thought I would know, was sure I would know, and didn't know, it shocked me. I had a name-sized hole in my memory. I don't remember everything that I've ever learned, but I when a fact doesn't come immediately to mind my brain gives me a signal: I know it and I'll remember it pretty quickly; or it will take some effort, but I'll get it; or it will take a lot of effort, and I might or might not get it; or I won't be able to retrieve it, but when it's told to me, I'll recognize it; and very occasionally I know that even if someone told me the answer, I would not reliably recongize it.
A meditation on memory
A meditation on memory
A meditation on memory
I have a lousy memory for tasks and social commitments, and a really good memory for facts. So when I couldn't remember a name that I thought I would know, was sure I would know, and didn't know, it shocked me. I had a name-sized hole in my memory. I don't remember everything that I've ever learned, but I when a fact doesn't come immediately to mind my brain gives me a signal: I know it and I'll remember it pretty quickly; or it will take some effort, but I'll get it; or it will take a lot of effort, and I might or might not get it; or I won't be able to retrieve it, but when it's told to me, I'll recognize it; and very occasionally I know that even if someone told me the answer, I would not reliably recongize it.