In a message dated 12/2/1999 7:10:45 PM EST, spike66@ibm.net writes:
<< I think I posted to another list the notion that if we manage to work out some means of greatly extending life, we may need to work out a way of methodically discarding information from our brains:
Randomly eliminating memories?
Systematically erasing the oldest memories?
How about eliminating those memories of ourselves doing something
stupid or embarrassing? That should free up a lotta space in my case.
{8^D spike >>
Or how about consolidating redundant memories. Where there are several memories which are not very unique or important, they could be consolidated into just a handful of abstract memories, such as one memory of walking to a particular school when young. One archtypal composite memory could probably serve as well as memories of every time I walked to school. A few memorable walks might remain separate, or as additions to the composite memory. I suspect that redundant events are already stored this way to some extent.
Glen Finney