Why We Forget and How to Remember Better: The Science Behind Memory - Hardcover

by Andrew E. Budson (Author), Elizabeth A. Kensinger (Author), Daniel L. Schacter (Foreword by)

Remember things better by understanding how your memory works.

If memory is a simple thing, why does it so often go awry? Why is forgetting so common? How can you be certain about something you remember--and be wrong about it? Why is it so difficult to remember people's names? How can you study hard for an exam but not be able to recall the material on the test? In Why We Forget, Dr. Andrew Budson and Dr. Elizabeth Kensinger address these questions and more, using their years of experience to guide readers into better memory.

Why We Forget and How to Remember Better shows you how to use these answers to improve your memory. In its pages you will learn:
- How memory's most important function isn't to help you remember details from your past.
- How memory is actually a collection of different abilities.
- How you create, store, and retrieve memories of your daily life.
- Ways to control what you remember and what you forget.
- Ways to distinguish between a true and false memory.
- Effective ways to study for an exam.
- How to remember people's names, all your passwords, 50 digits of Pi, and anything else you wish.
- How memory changes in normal aging, Alzheimer's disease, depression, anxiety, PTSD, ADHD, and other disorders-including COVID brain fog.
- How exercise, nutrition, alcohol, cannabis, sleep, mindfulness, and music affect your memory.

Why We Forget and How to Remember Better uses the science of memory to empower you with the knowledge you need to remember better, whether you are a college student looking to ace your next exam, a business professional preparing a presentation, or a healthcare worker needing to memorize the 600+ muscles in the human body.

Author Biography

Andrew E. Budson, Chief, Cognitive & Behavioral Neurology and Associate Chief of Staff for Education, VA Boston Healthcare System, Associate Director & Education Core Leader, Boston University Alzheimer's Disease Center, Professor of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine, Lecturer in Neurology, Harvard Medical School

Andrew Budson majored in chemistry and philosophy at Haverford College, graduated cum laude from Harvard Medical School, interned at Brigham and Women's Hospital, attended the Harvard-Longwood Neurology Residency Program, and then pursued a clinical fellowship in behavioral neurology and dementia at Brigham and Women's Hospital and a research post-doctoral fellowship in experimental psychology and cognitive neuroscience at Harvard University. He has given over 700 talks and published over 150 papers in peer-reviewed journals. From the American Academy of Neurology he received the Norman Geschwind Prize in Behavioral Neurology in 2008 and the Research Award in Geriatric Neurology in 2009.

Elizabeth Kensinger, PhD, Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Boston College

Elizabeth Kensinger majored in psychology and biology at Harvard University and received her Ph.D. in neuroscience at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After a postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard University and the Massachusetts General Hospital, she joined the faculty of Boston College, where she is now a Full Professor and Chairperson of the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience. She directs a research laboratory that investigates many aspects of human memory, including how emotion, stress, and sleep affect memory, and how memory strengths shift as adults age, and she teaches courses on these topics.