子どもの頃のことはよく覚えているのに、先週何をしたか思い出せない…そんな経験はありませんか。なぜ良く思い出せることと、そうでないことがあるのでしょうか。本書は人にとって欠かせない記憶の仕組みとその重要性について、神経科学、心理学の学識をもとにさまざまな事例や逸話を用いて、ときには文学や哲学も駆使して解き明かします。
   

• Shows why memories are an integral part of being human, and why they underpin our sense of who we are
• Explains the science of how the brain stores and accesses memories, and the questions surrounding memory and consciousness
• Incorporates vital recent developments in the field of neuroscience - including neuroimaging which allows us to see memories at work
• Looks at what can go wrong with memories - 'recovered memories', 'déjà vu', brain injury, and dementia
• Contains many tips for those who wish to know whether they can boost their memory power

 
Why do we remember events from our childhood as if they happened yesterday, but not what we did last week? Why does our memory seem to work well sometimes and not others? What happens when it goes wrong? Can memory be improved or manipulated, by psychological techniques or even 'brain implants'? How does memory grow and change as we age? And what of so-called 'recovered' memories? 
  
This book brings together the latest research in neuroscience and psychology, and weaves in case-studies, anecdotes, and even literature and philosophy, to address these and many other important questions about the science of memory - how it works, and why we can't live without it.