Why Memories Change: How the Brain Rewrites the Past

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https://neurosciencenews.com/episodic-memory-change-30022/

Why Memories Change: How the Brain Rewrites the Past

December 5, 2025

Summary: A new review explores how episodic memories are formed, stored, and reshaped over time, revealing why our recollections of past events often change. Rather than functioning like fixed files, memories consist of multiple components that can lie dormant until triggered by environmental cues.

When retrieved, these components blend with general knowledge, past experiences, and current context, creating updated versions of the original event. The findings help explain memory distortion and offer insights for mental health, learning, and legal settings where accuracy matters.

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A key part of the study focused on how the brain physically stores memories, highlighting the role of the hippocampus - a part of the brain that helps form and organise memories. Credit: Neuroscience News
Why Memories Change: How the Brain Rewrites the Past
FeaturedNeuroscience·December 5, 2025
Summary: A new review explores how episodic memories are formed, stored, and reshaped over time, revealing why our recollections of past events often change. Rather than functioning like fixed files, memories consist of multiple components that can lie dormant until triggered by environmental cues.

When retrieved, these components blend with general knowledge, past experiences, and current context, creating updated versions of the original event. The findings help explain memory distortion and offer insights for mental health, learning, and legal settings where accuracy matters.

Key Facts

* Dynamic Memories: Episodic memories are continually updated, not stored as perfect copies.

* Trigger-Based Recall: Hidden memory traces become conscious only when activated by cues.

* Real-World Impact: Memory reshaping affects mental health, education, and legal decision-making.

Source: University of East Anglia

A study from the University of East Anglia is helping scientists better understand how our brains remember past events – and how those memories can change over time.

A new paper published today explores episodic memory – the kind of memory we use to recall personal experiences like a birthday party or a holiday.

The team say their work has important implications for mental health, education, and legal settings where memory plays a key role.

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