Why We Remember: Unlocking Memory's Power to Hold on to What Matters
Why We Remember: Unlocking Memory's Power to Hold on to What Matters
by Charan Ranganath
Couldn't load pickup availability
Share
About the Book
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • LOS ANGELES TIMES BESTSELLER • Memory is far more than a record of the past. In this groundbreaking tour of the mind and brain, one of the world’s top memory researchers reveals the powerful role memory plays in nearly every aspect of our lives, from recalling faces and names, to learning, decision-making, trauma and healing.
A BEST SCIENCE BOOK OF THE YEAR: Financial Times, Smithsonian Magazine, The Telegraph, Waterstones“
Why We Remember offers a radically new and engaging explanation of how and why we remember.” —Dr. Matthew Walker, author of Why We Sleep“
Prominent neuroscientist and Guggenheim Fellow Charan Ranganath guides us through the science of our memories with incredible insight and clear science. He combines fascinating tales of the peculiarities of memory with practical, actionable steps. Not only will every reader remember better afterward, they’ll also never forget this life-changing book.” —Siddhartha Mukherjee, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Emperor of Maladies and Gene
A new understanding of memory is emerging from the latest scientific research. In Why We Remember, pioneering neuroscientist and psychologist Charan Ranganath radically reframes the way we think about the everyday act of remembering. Combining accessible language with cutting-edge research, he reveals the surprising ways our brains record the past and how we use that information to understand who we are in the present, and to imagine and plan for the future.
Memory, Dr. Ranganath shows, is a highly transformative force that shapes how we experience the world in often invisible and sometimes destructive ways. Knowing this can help us with daily remembering tasks, like finding our keys, and with the challenge of memory loss as we age. What’s more, when we work with the brain’s ability to learn and reinterpret past events, we can heal trauma, shed our biases, learn faster, and grow in self-awareness.
Including fascinating studies and examples from pop culture, and drawing on Ranganath’s life as a scientist, father, and child of immigrants, Why We Remember is a captivating read that unveils the hidden role memory plays throughout our lives. When we understand its power– and its quirks–we can cut through the clutter and remember the things we want to remember. We can make freer choices and plan a happier future.
About the Author
Charan Ranganath is a Professor at the Center for Neuroscience and Department of Psychology and director of the Dynamic Memory Lab at the University of California at Davis. For over 25 years, Dr. Ranganath has studied the mechanisms in the brain that allow us to remember past events, using brain imaging techniques, computational modeling and studies of patients with memory disorders. He has been recognized with a Guggenheim Fellowship and a Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship. He lives in Davis, California. Outside of neuroscience, Dr. Ranganath is also a songwriter and guitarist with a number of recording credits, including a song on a feature film soundtrack.
Editorial Reviews
A Best Science Book of the Year: Finanacial Times, Smithsonian Magazine, The Telegraph, Waterstones
“This is popular science at its best: entertaining, thought-provoking and an encouragement to the reader to keep an open mind.” —The Financial Times
“Illuminating” —The New York Times
“Clever, insightful and humorous…The most significant lesson is that we need not be prisoners to our incompletely remembered past.” —The Wall Street Journal
“It has never been easier to fact-check our memories against an external record and find ourselves lacking, but Ranganath is intent on giving us a new way of understanding memory.” —The New Yorker
“[Ranganath’s] descriptions of complex studies are entertaining and clarifying, and he vividly paints the intellectual history of the science of memory…He’s a generous, humble narrator…What’s most compelling about Why We Remember is that it offers a scientifically robust rationale to accept with grace that, no matter what happens in this new world, we will not remember everything we want. Memory research makes clear that there is no use in fighting the tide of forgetting that leaves some memories ashore even as it sweeps away — mercifully, at times — the rest.” —The Washington Post
“Ranganath is an astute and affable tour guide” —Undark Magazine
“A riveting overview of how memory works…Ranganath has a knack for describing neuroanatomy in accessible terms, and the science consistently surprises…Approachable and enlightening, this is worth seeking out.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“In this magnum opus, leading memory researcher Charan Ranganath turns much of what we think we know about memory on its head, revealing through hard evidence that the primary mission of our brain’s memory system is, in many respects, to forget things, in order to prepare us for a changing and uncertain future. Ranganath is a master explainer and storyteller.” —Daniel J. Levitin, author of Successful Aging and This Is Your Brain on Music
“Prominent neuroscientist and Guggenheim Fellow Charan Ranganath guides us through the science of our memories with incredible insight and clear science. He combines fascinating tales of the peculiarities of memory with practical, actionable steps. Not only will every reader remember better afterward, they’ll also never forget this life-changing book.” —Siddhartha Mukherjee, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Emperor of Maladies and Gene
”Why We Remember offers a radically new and engaging explanation of how and why we remember. More than just a record of our past, Dr. Ranganath shows us that memories are deeply involved in the present, and a path toward an anticipated future. It is a tour de force of both individual and collective importance.” —Dr. Matthew Walker, author of Why We Sleep
“Why We Remember is terrific. Ranganath balances original first-class science with lighter, more personal writing. This will be a mind-changing read for anyone who wants to better understand and use their own brain.” —Robert Sapolsky, author of Behave
“Why We Remember is going to transform readers’ understanding of memory. It’s hard to think of a topic more timely and important to communicate to the world, or a scientist who is better positioned to do so than Charan Ranganath.” —Ethan Kross, author of Chatter