209“9x6” b2726 Self and the Phenomenon of Life: A Biologist Examines Life from Molecules to Humanity20910. Self and Memory...........................................................
Chapter 10
Memory is the paint applied on the canvas of your self-portrait.Overview: Memory is the stuff out of which the biographical self is built. Much
of our personal identity depends on where we came from, what we have done,
and what has happened to us. Without a reliable memory, much of the self is
lost. Memory enhances fitness for survival as past experience influences future
action in a way beneficial to the organism. The consolidation of memory involves
synaptic modifications and requires activation of genes and protein synthesis. In
higher animals the brain structure called the hippocampus plays a crucial role
in converting short-term to long-term memory. Long-term changes in hippo-
campal neurons are detectable by electrical recording as sustained firing. Some
neurons are involved in space memory, while others can be correlated with the
sense of time.
10.1 Memory and the Making of Biographical Self
In December of 2013, a man turned up in a snowdrift in Oslo, Norway.
He spoke five languages and appeared intelligent, but he could not
identify himself when questioned by Oslo Police. He carried no ID card
and could not provide his name, age, address, and nation of origin, and
had no idea what had happened to him. Four months later the police
released his picture to the public, and only then was he recognized
by his parents who lived in the Czech Republic. This true story was
reported by NBC News.^1 How the man ended up one thousand miles
away from home is irrelevant to this book, but the case illustrates the