The Seven Sins of Memory

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The Seven Sins of Memory: How the Mind Forgets and Remembers

Author	Daniel L. Schacter
Published	2001
Publisher	Houghton Mifflin
ISBN	0618040196

The Seven Sins of Memory: How the Mind Forgets and Remembers is a book by Daniel Schacter, former chair of Harvard University's Psychology Department and a leading memory researcher.

The book revolves around the theory that "the seven sins of memory" are similar to the seven deadly sins, and that if one tries to avoid committing these sins, it will help to improve one's ability to remember. Schacter argues that these features of human memory are not necessarily bad, and that they serve a useful purpose in memory. For instance, persistence is one of the sins of memory that can lead to things like post traumatic stress syndrome. However persistence is also necessary for long-term memory, and so it is essential, according to Schacter.