[Script Info]
Title: 
[Events]
Format: Layer, Start, End, Style, Name, MarginL, MarginR, MarginV, Effect, Text
Dialogue: 0,0:00:00.27,0:00:03.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'd like to invite you to close your eyes.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:03.12,0:00:07.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Imagine yourself standing
Dialogue: 0,0:00:07.75,0:00:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,outside the front door of your home.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:11.00,0:00:14.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'd like you to notice the color of the door,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:14.79,0:00:18.40,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the material that it's made out of.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:18.40,0:00:24.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now visualize a pack of overweight nudists on bicycles.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:24.71,0:00:28.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They are competing in a naked bicycle race,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:28.71,0:00:32.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and they are headed straight for your front door.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:32.46,0:00:34.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I need you to actually see this.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:34.21,0:00:37.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They are pedaling really hard, they're sweaty,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:37.50,0:00:39.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they're bouncing around a lot.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:39.25,0:00:44.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And they crash straight into the front door of your home.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:44.21,0:00:47.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Bicycles fly everywhere, wheels roll past you,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:47.25,0:00:51.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,spokes end up in awkward places.
Dialogue: 0,0:00:51.96,0:00:54.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Step over the threshold of your door
Dialogue: 0,0:00:54.58,0:00:57.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,into your foyer, your hallway, whatever's on the other side,
Dialogue: 0,0:00:57.21,0:01:01.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and appreciate the quality of the light.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:01.38,0:01:07.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The light is shining down on Cookie Monster.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:07.08,0:01:10.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Cookie Monster is waving at you
Dialogue: 0,0:01:10.79,0:01:12.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from his perch on top of a tan horse.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:12.54,0:01:13.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's a talking horse.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:13.42,0:01:19.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You can practically feel his blue fur tickling your nose.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:19.08,0:01:23.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,You can smell the oatmeal raisin cookie that he's about to shovel into his mouth.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:23.08,0:01:27.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Walk past him. Walk past him into your living room.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:27.17,0:01:30.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In your living room, in full imaginative broadband,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:30.96,0:01:32.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,picture Brittany Spears.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:32.71,0:01:38.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,She is scantily clad, she's dancing on your coffee table,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:38.54,0:01:40.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and she's singing "Hit Me Baby One More Time."
Dialogue: 0,0:01:40.92,0:01:44.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And then follow me into your kitchen.
Dialogue: 0,0:01:44.21,0:01:48.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In your kitchen, the floor has been paved over with a yellow brick road
Dialogue: 0,0:01:48.00,0:01:52.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and out of your oven are coming towards you
Dialogue: 0,0:01:52.12,0:01:54.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Dorothy, the Tin Man,
Dialogue: 0,0:01:54.79,0:01:56.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the Scarecrow and the Lion from "The Wizard of Oz"
Dialogue: 0,0:01:56.54,0:02:00.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,hand-in-hand skipping straight towards you.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:00.00,0:02:02.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Okay. Open your eyes.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:02.62,0:02:07.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I want to tell you about a very bizarre contest
Dialogue: 0,0:02:07.79,0:02:10.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that is held every spring in New York City.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:10.88,0:02:13.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's called the United States Memory Championship.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:13.50,0:02:15.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I had gone to cover this contest a few years back
Dialogue: 0,0:02:15.88,0:02:20.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as a science journalist
Dialogue: 0,0:02:20.04,0:02:21.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,expecting, I guess, that this was going to be
Dialogue: 0,0:02:21.79,0:02:22.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,like the Superbowl of savants.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:22.67,0:02:26.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This was a bunch of guys and a few ladies
Dialogue: 0,0:02:26.79,0:02:31.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,widely varying in both age and hygienic upkeep.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:31.79,0:02:33.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter)
Dialogue: 0,0:02:33.46,0:02:38.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They were memorizing hundreds of random numbers,
Dialogue: 0,0:02:38.67,0:02:40.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,looking at them just once.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:40.42,0:02:44.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They were memorizing names of dozens and dozens and dozens of strangers.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:44.33,0:02:48.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They were memorizing entire poems in just a few minutes.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:48.12,0:02:50.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They were competing to see who could memorize
Dialogue: 0,0:02:50.75,0:02:54.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the order of a shuffled pack of playing cards the fastest.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:54.75,0:02:55.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I was like, this is unbelievable.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:55.62,0:02:59.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,These people must be freaks of nature.
Dialogue: 0,0:02:59.75,0:03:03.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I started talking to a few of the competitors.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:03.38,0:03:04.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is a guy called Ed Cook
Dialogue: 0,0:03:04.75,0:03:05.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who had come over from England
Dialogue: 0,0:03:05.62,0:03:07.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where he had one of the best trained memories.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:07.38,0:03:11.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I said to him, "Ed, when did you realize
Dialogue: 0,0:03:11.42,0:03:13.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that you were a savant?"
Dialogue: 0,0:03:13.83,0:03:16.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And Ed was like, "I'm not a savant.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:16.46,0:03:17.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In fact, I have just an average memory.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:17.96,0:03:20.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Everybody who competes in this contest
Dialogue: 0,0:03:20.58,0:03:24.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,will tell you that they have an average memory.
Dialogue: 0,0:03:24.17,0:03:26.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We've all trained ourselves
Dialogue: 0,0:03:26.71,0:03:30.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to perform these utterly miraculous feats of memory
Dialogue: 0,0:03:30.38,0:03:32.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,using a set of ancient techniques,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:32.12,0:03:35.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,techniques invented 2,500 years ago in Greece,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:35.46,0:03:39.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the same techniques that Cicero had used
Dialogue: 0,0:03:39.67,0:03:40.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to memorize his speeches,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:40.54,0:03:44.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that Medieval scholars had used to memorize entire books."
Dialogue: 0,0:03:44.58,0:03:48.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I was like, "Whoa. How come I never heard of this before?"
Dialogue: 0,0:03:48.38,0:03:50.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And we were standing outside the competition hall,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:50.12,0:03:55.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and Ed, who is a wonderful, brilliant,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:55.12,0:03:58.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but somewhat eccentric, English guy,
Dialogue: 0,0:03:58.38,0:04:03.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,says to me, "Josh, you're an American journalist.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:03.33,0:04:04.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Do you know Brittany Spears?"
Dialogue: 0,0:04:04.21,0:04:09.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I'm like, "What? No. Why?"
Dialogue: 0,0:04:09.38,0:04:13.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Because I really want to teach Brittany Spears
Dialogue: 0,0:04:13.33,0:04:14.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,how to memorize the order of a shuffled pack of playing cards
Dialogue: 0,0:04:14.21,0:04:17.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on U.S. national television.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:17.50,0:04:20.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It will prove to the world that anybody can do this."
Dialogue: 0,0:04:20.83,0:04:21.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter)
Dialogue: 0,0:04:21.71,0:04:28.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I was like, "Well I'm not Brittany Spears,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:28.88,0:04:30.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but maybe you could teach me.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:30.62,0:04:34.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I mean, you've got to start somewhere."
Dialogue: 0,0:04:34.58,0:04:38.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And that was the beginning of a very strange journey for me.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:38.38,0:04:40.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I ended up spending the better part of the next year,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:40.12,0:04:43.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,not only training my memory,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:43.38,0:04:45.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but also investigating it,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:45.12,0:04:46.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,trying to understand how it works,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:46.00,0:04:48.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,why it sometimes doesn't work
Dialogue: 0,0:04:48.62,0:04:49.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and what its potential might be.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:49.50,0:04:53.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I met a host of really interesting people.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:53.71,0:04:55.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is a guy called E.P.
Dialogue: 0,0:04:55.17,0:04:58.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He's an amnesic who had, very possibly,
Dialogue: 0,0:04:58.58,0:05:01.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the very worst memory in the world.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:01.29,0:05:02.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,His memory was so bad
Dialogue: 0,0:05:02.17,0:05:03.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that he didn't even remember he had a memory problem,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:03.92,0:05:06.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which is amazing.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:06.96,0:05:07.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And he was an incredibly tragic figure,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:07.83,0:05:11.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but he was a window into the extent
Dialogue: 0,0:05:11.29,0:05:13.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to which our memories make us who we are.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:13.92,0:05:17.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The other end of the spectrum: I met this guy.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:17.12,0:05:19.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is Kim Peek.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:19.71,0:05:22.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He was the basis for Dustin Hoffman's character in "Rain Man."
Dialogue: 0,0:05:22.33,0:05:25.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We spent an afternoon together
Dialogue: 0,0:05:25.29,0:05:29.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the Salt Lake City Public Library memorizing phone books,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:29.08,0:05:31.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which was scintillating.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:31.71,0:05:34.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter)
Dialogue: 0,0:05:34.96,0:05:38.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I went back and I read a whole host of memory treatises,
Dialogue: 0,0:05:38.54,0:05:42.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,treatises written 2,000-plus years ago
Dialogue: 0,0:05:42.67,0:05:45.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in Latin in Antiquity
Dialogue: 0,0:05:45.96,0:05:46.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and then later in the Middle Ages.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:46.83,0:05:49.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I learned a whole bunch of really interesting stuff.
Dialogue: 0,0:05:49.04,0:05:50.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,One of the really interesting things that I learned
Dialogue: 0,0:05:50.79,0:05:54.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is that once upon a time
Dialogue: 0,0:05:54.08,0:05:59.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this idea of having a trained, disciplined, cultivated memory
Dialogue: 0,0:05:59.92,0:06:04.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was not nearly so alien as it would seem to us to be today.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:04.08,0:06:09.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Once upon a time people invested in their memories,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:09.92,0:06:14.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in laboriously furnishing their minds.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:14.96,0:06:17.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Over the last few millenia
Dialogue: 0,0:06:17.54,0:06:20.52,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we've invented a series of technologies --
Dialogue: 0,0:06:20.52,0:06:23.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from the alphabet to the scroll
Dialogue: 0,0:06:23.38,0:06:25.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to the codex, the printing press, photography,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:25.12,0:06:27.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the computer, the smartphone --
Dialogue: 0,0:06:27.50,0:06:30.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that have made it progressively easier and easier
Dialogue: 0,0:06:30.12,0:06:33.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for us to externalize our memories,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:33.12,0:06:34.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,for us to essentially outsource
Dialogue: 0,0:06:34.88,0:06:37.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,this fundamental human capacity.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:37.54,0:06:42.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,These technologies have made our modern world possible,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:42.12,0:06:43.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but they've also changed us.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:43.00,0:06:46.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They've changed us culturally,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:46.04,0:06:47.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I would argue that they've changed cognitively.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:47.79,0:06:51.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Having little need to remember anymore,
Dialogue: 0,0:06:51.54,0:06:54.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it sometimes seems like we've forgotten how.
Dialogue: 0,0:06:54.17,0:06:56.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,One of the last places on earth
Dialogue: 0,0:06:56.58,0:06:58.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where you still find people passionate about this idea
Dialogue: 0,0:06:58.33,0:07:03.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of a trained, disciplined, cultivated memory
Dialogue: 0,0:07:03.08,0:07:05.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is at this totally singular memory contest.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:05.75,0:07:06.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's actually not that singular,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:06.62,0:07:08.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,there are contests held all over the world.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:08.38,0:07:13.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I was fascinated, I wanted to know how do these guys do it.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:13.33,0:07:17.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,A few years back a group of researchers at University College London
Dialogue: 0,0:07:17.38,0:07:21.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,brought a bunch of memory champions in the lab.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:21.58,0:07:22.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They wanted to know:
Dialogue: 0,0:07:22.46,0:07:23.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Do these guys have brains
Dialogue: 0,0:07:23.33,0:07:27.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that are somehow structurally, anatomically different from the rest of ours?
Dialogue: 0,0:07:27.54,0:07:31.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The answer was no.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:31.62,0:07:33.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Are they smarter than the rest of us?
Dialogue: 0,0:07:33.38,0:07:36.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They gave them a bunch of cognitive tests,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:36.62,0:07:37.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the answer was not really.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:37.50,0:07:42.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There was however one interesting and telling difference
Dialogue: 0,0:07:42.50,0:07:45.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,between the brains of the memory champions
Dialogue: 0,0:07:45.50,0:07:46.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the control subjects that they were comparing them to.
Dialogue: 0,0:07:46.38,0:07:49.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,When they put these guys in a fMRI machine,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:49.67,0:07:50.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,scanned their brains
Dialogue: 0,0:07:50.54,0:07:55.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,while they were memorizing numbers and people's faces and snowflakes,
Dialogue: 0,0:07:55.62,0:08:00.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they found that the memory champions
Dialogue: 0,0:08:00.12,0:08:01.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,were lighting up different parts of the brain
Dialogue: 0,0:08:01.00,0:08:02.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,than everyone else.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:02.75,0:08:05.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Of note, they were using, or seemed to be using,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:05.96,0:08:10.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a part of the brain that's involved in spatial memory and navigation.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:10.38,0:08:15.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Why? And is there something the rest of us can learn from this?
Dialogue: 0,0:08:15.12,0:08:19.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The sport of competitive memorizing
Dialogue: 0,0:08:19.12,0:08:23.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is driven by a kind of arms race
Dialogue: 0,0:08:23.25,0:08:27.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,where every year somebody comes up
Dialogue: 0,0:08:27.12,0:08:28.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,with a new way to remember more stuff more quickly,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:28.88,0:08:29.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and then the rest of the field has to play catchup.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:29.75,0:08:33.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is my friend Ben Pridmore,
Dialogue: 0,0:08:33.50,0:08:35.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,three time world memory champion.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:35.25,0:08:37.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,On his desk in front of him
Dialogue: 0,0:08:37.08,0:08:40.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,are 36 shuffled packs of playing cards
Dialogue: 0,0:08:40.21,0:08:42.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that he is about to try to memorize in one hour
Dialogue: 0,0:08:42.83,0:08:46.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,using a technique that he invented and he alone has mastered.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:46.96,0:08:49.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He used a similar technique
Dialogue: 0,0:08:49.79,0:08:51.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to memorize the precise order
Dialogue: 0,0:08:51.54,0:08:58.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of 4,140 random binary digits
Dialogue: 0,0:08:58.04,0:08:59.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in half an hour.
Dialogue: 0,0:08:59.67,0:09:02.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Yeah.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:02.88,0:09:05.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And while there are a whole host of ways
Dialogue: 0,0:09:05.50,0:09:07.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of remembering stuff in these competitions,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:07.00,0:09:12.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,everything, all of the techniques that are being used,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:12.00,0:09:15.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,ultimately come down to a concept
Dialogue: 0,0:09:15.50,0:09:19.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that psychologists refer to as elaborative encoding.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:19.33,0:09:21.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And it's well-illustrated by a nifty paradox
Dialogue: 0,0:09:21.17,0:09:24.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,known as the Baker/baker paradox,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:24.17,0:09:25.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which goes like this:
Dialogue: 0,0:09:25.38,0:09:28.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If I tell two people to remember the same word,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:28.33,0:09:29.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,if I say to you,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:29.21,0:09:33.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,"Remember that there is a guy named Baker."
Dialogue: 0,0:09:33.96,0:09:34.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That's his name.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:34.83,0:09:38.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I say to you, "Remember that there is a guy who is a baker."
Dialogue: 0,0:09:38.25,0:09:43.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I come back to you at some point later on,
Dialogue: 0,0:09:43.29,0:09:46.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I say, "Do you remember that word
Dialogue: 0,0:09:46.50,0:09:48.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that I told you a while back?
Dialogue: 0,0:09:48.71,0:09:49.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Do you remember what it was?"
Dialogue: 0,0:09:49.58,0:09:53.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the person who was told his name is Baker
Dialogue: 0,0:09:53.54,0:09:55.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is less likely to remember the same word
Dialogue: 0,0:09:55.29,0:09:58.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,than the person was told his job is that he is a baker.
Dialogue: 0,0:09:58.96,0:10:02.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Same word, different amount of remembering; that's weird.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:02.08,0:10:03.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What's going on here?
Dialogue: 0,0:10:03.08,0:10:09.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Well the name Baker doesn't actually mean anything to you.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:09.54,0:10:11.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It is entirely untethered
Dialogue: 0,0:10:11.83,0:10:15.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from all of the other memories floating around in your skull.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:15.33,0:10:16.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But the common noun baker,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:16.79,0:10:19.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we know bakers.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:19.42,0:10:21.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Bakers where funny white hats.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:21.00,0:10:22.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Bakers have flour on their hands.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:22.75,0:10:23.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Bakers smell good when they come home from work.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:23.62,0:10:25.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Maybe we even know a baker.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:25.88,0:10:27.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And when we first hear that word,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:27.62,0:10:31.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we start putting these associational hooks into it
Dialogue: 0,0:10:31.21,0:10:33.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that make it easier to fish it back out at some later date.
Dialogue: 0,0:10:33.83,0:10:37.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The entire art of what is going on
Dialogue: 0,0:10:37.08,0:10:41.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in these memory contests
Dialogue: 0,0:10:41.17,0:10:42.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the entire art of remembering stuff better in everyday life
Dialogue: 0,0:10:42.92,0:10:47.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is figuring our ways to transform capital B Bakers
Dialogue: 0,0:10:47.04,0:10:48.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,into lower-case b bakers --
Dialogue: 0,0:10:48.79,0:10:52.66,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to take information that is lacking in context,
Dialogue: 0,0:10:52.66,0:10:54.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in significance, in meaning
Dialogue: 0,0:10:54.21,0:10:55.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and transforming it in some way
Dialogue: 0,0:10:55.96,0:10:58.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,so that it becomes meaningful
Dialogue: 0,0:10:58.33,0:11:03.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the light of all the other things that you have in your mind.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:03.33,0:11:06.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,One of the more elaborate techniques for doing this
Dialogue: 0,0:11:06.38,0:11:11.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,dates back 2,500 years to ancient Greece.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:11.42,0:11:12.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It came to be known as the memory palace.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:12.33,0:11:14.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This story behind its creation goes like this:
Dialogue: 0,0:11:14.96,0:11:19.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,There was a poet called Simonides
Dialogue: 0,0:11:19.79,0:11:20.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who was attending a banquet.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:20.67,0:11:23.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,He was actually the hired entertainment,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:23.21,0:11:26.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because back then if you wanted to throw a really slamming party,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:26.96,0:11:28.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you didn't hire a D.J., you hired a poet.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:28.71,0:11:33.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And he stands up, delivers his poem from memory, walks out the door,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:33.62,0:11:39.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and at the moment he does, the banquet hall collapses,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:39.58,0:11:42.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,kills everybody inside.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:42.83,0:11:44.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It doesn't just kill everybody,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:44.58,0:11:48.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it mangles the bodies beyond all recognition.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:48.71,0:11:49.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Nobody can say who was inside,
Dialogue: 0,0:11:49.58,0:11:53.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,nobody can say where they were sitting.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:53.71,0:11:54.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The bodies can't be properly buried.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:54.58,0:11:58.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's one tragedy compounding another.
Dialogue: 0,0:11:58.67,0:12:02.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Simonides, standing outside,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:02.42,0:12:03.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the sole survivor amid the wreckage,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:03.29,0:12:08.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,closes his eyes and has this realization,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:08.29,0:12:11.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which is that in his mind's eye,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:11.58,0:12:16.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,he can see where each of the guests at the banquet had been sitting.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:16.38,0:12:19.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And he takes the relatives by the hand
Dialogue: 0,0:12:19.33,0:12:21.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and guides them each to their loved ones amid the wreckage.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:21.08,0:12:24.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What Simonides figured out at that moment
Dialogue: 0,0:12:24.92,0:12:29.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is something that I think we all kind of intuitively know,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:29.04,0:12:30.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which is that, as bad as we are
Dialogue: 0,0:12:30.79,0:12:34.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,at remembering names and phone numbers
Dialogue: 0,0:12:34.92,0:12:36.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and word-for-word instructions from our colleagues,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:36.67,0:12:43.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,we have really exceptional visual and spacial memories.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:43.54,0:12:45.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,If I asked you to recount the first 10 words
Dialogue: 0,0:12:45.29,0:12:49.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the story that I just told you about Simonides,
Dialogue: 0,0:12:49.42,0:12:51.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,chances are you would have a tough time with it.
Dialogue: 0,0:12:51.17,0:12:53.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But I would wager
Dialogue: 0,0:12:53.54,0:12:56.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that if I asked you to recall
Dialogue: 0,0:12:56.33,0:13:00.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who is sitting on top of a talking tan horse
Dialogue: 0,0:13:00.46,0:13:01.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in your foyer right now,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:01.33,0:13:05.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you would be able to see them.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:05.46,0:13:07.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The idea behind the memory palace
Dialogue: 0,0:13:07.96,0:13:12.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is to create this imagined edifice in your mind's eye
Dialogue: 0,0:13:12.38,0:13:13.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and populate it with images
Dialogue: 0,0:13:13.25,0:13:17.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of the things that you want to remember --
Dialogue: 0,0:13:17.08,0:13:19.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the crazier, weirder, more bizarre,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:19.46,0:13:23.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,funnier, raunchier, stinkier the image is,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:23.75,0:13:24.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the more unforgettable it's likely to be.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:24.62,0:13:28.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is advice that goes back 2,000-plus years
Dialogue: 0,0:13:28.58,0:13:32.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to the earliest Latin memory treatises.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:32.58,0:13:33.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,So how does this work?
Dialogue: 0,0:13:33.46,0:13:35.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Let's say that you've been invited
Dialogue: 0,0:13:35.88,0:13:40.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to TED center stage to give a speech
Dialogue: 0,0:13:40.25,0:13:42.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and you want to do it from memory,
Dialogue: 0,0:13:42.00,0:13:46.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and you want to do it the way Cicero would have done it
Dialogue: 0,0:13:46.58,0:13:51.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,if he had been invited to TEDX Rome 2,000 years ago.
Dialogue: 0,0:13:51.75,0:13:54.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What you might do
Dialogue: 0,0:13:54.50,0:14:00.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is picture yourself at the front door of your house.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:00.04,0:14:01.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And you'd come up with some sort
Dialogue: 0,0:14:01.79,0:14:05.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of an absolutely crazy, ridiculous, unforgettable image
Dialogue: 0,0:14:05.21,0:14:08.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to remind you that the first thing you want to talk about
Dialogue: 0,0:14:08.38,0:14:11.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is this totally bizarre contest.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:11.17,0:14:13.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And then you go inside your house,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:13.71,0:14:16.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and you would see an image of Cookie Monster
Dialogue: 0,0:14:16.38,0:14:18.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,on top of Mister Ed.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:18.71,0:14:19.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And that would remind you
Dialogue: 0,0:14:19.58,0:14:23.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that you would want to then introduce your friend Ed Cook.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:23.17,0:14:26.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And then you'd see an image of Brittany Spears
Dialogue: 0,0:14:26.29,0:14:28.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to remind you of this funny anecdote you want to tell.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:28.75,0:14:29.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And you go into your kitchen,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:29.79,0:14:30.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and the fourth topic you were going to talk about
Dialogue: 0,0:14:30.67,0:14:35.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,was this strange journey that you went on for a year,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:35.67,0:14:38.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and you have some friends to help you remember that.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:38.71,0:14:44.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is how Roman orators memorized their speeches --
Dialogue: 0,0:14:44.25,0:14:46.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,not word-for-word, which is just going to screw you up,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:46.88,0:14:48.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but topic-for-topic.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:48.62,0:14:51.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In fact, the phrase topic sentence
Dialogue: 0,0:14:51.92,0:14:56.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that comes from the Greek word topos,
Dialogue: 0,0:14:56.12,0:14:57.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which means place.
Dialogue: 0,0:14:57.88,0:15:00.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,That's a vestige
Dialogue: 0,0:15:00.46,0:15:02.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,of when people used to think about oratory and rhetoric
Dialogue: 0,0:15:02.21,0:15:04.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in these sorts of spacial terms.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:04.71,0:15:05.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The phrase "in the first place,"
Dialogue: 0,0:15:05.58,0:15:06.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that's like in the first place of your memory palace.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:06.46,0:15:11.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I thought this was just fascinating,
Dialogue: 0,0:15:11.42,0:15:12.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and I got really into it.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:12.29,0:15:15.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I went to a few more of these memory contests.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:15.54,0:15:16.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I had this notion that I might write something longer
Dialogue: 0,0:15:16.42,0:15:21.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about this subculture of competitive memorizers.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:21.46,0:15:23.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But there was a problem.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:23.21,0:15:26.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The problem was that a memory contest
Dialogue: 0,0:15:26.42,0:15:30.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is a pathologically boring event.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:30.50,0:15:32.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Laughter)
Dialogue: 0,0:15:32.58,0:15:36.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Truly, it is like a bunch of people sitting around taking the SAT's.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:36.62,0:15:39.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I mean, the most dramatic it gets
Dialogue: 0,0:15:39.04,0:15:42.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,is when somebody starts massaging their temples.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:42.08,0:15:42.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I'm a journalist, I need something to write about.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:42.96,0:15:47.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I know that there's this incredible stuff happening in these people's minds,
Dialogue: 0,0:15:47.08,0:15:47.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but I don't have access to it.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:47.96,0:15:52.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I realized, if I was going to tell this story,
Dialogue: 0,0:15:52.92,0:15:54.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I needed to walk in their shoes a little bit.
Dialogue: 0,0:15:54.67,0:15:58.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And so I started trying to spend 15 or 20 minutes
Dialogue: 0,0:15:58.83,0:16:02.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,every morning before I sat down with my New York Times
Dialogue: 0,0:16:02.08,0:16:02.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,just trying to remember something.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:02.96,0:16:03.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Maybe it was a poem.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:03.83,0:16:07.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Maybe it was names from an old yearbook
Dialogue: 0,0:16:07.96,0:16:08.83,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that I bought at a flea market.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:08.83,0:16:14.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I found that this was shockingly fun.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:14.67,0:16:17.08,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I never would have expected that.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:17.08,0:16:19.71,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It was fun because this is actually not about training your memory.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:19.71,0:16:23.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,What you're doing is you're trying to get better and better and better
Dialogue: 0,0:16:23.79,0:16:24.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,at creating, at dreaming up,
Dialogue: 0,0:16:24.67,0:16:28.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,these utterly ludicrous, raunchy, hilarious
Dialogue: 0,0:16:28.79,0:16:32.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and hopefully unforgettable images in your mind's eye.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:32.92,0:16:33.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I got pretty into it.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:33.79,0:16:39.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is me wearing my standard competitive memorizers training kit.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:39.54,0:16:44.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It's a pair of earmuffs
Dialogue: 0,0:16:44.00,0:16:46.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and a set of safety goggles that have been masked over
Dialogue: 0,0:16:46.92,0:16:48.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,except for two small pinholes,
Dialogue: 0,0:16:48.67,0:16:54.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because distraction is the competitive memorizers greatest enemy.
Dialogue: 0,0:16:54.50,0:17:01.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I ended up coming back to that same contest that I had covered a year earlier.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:01.38,0:17:02.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I had this notion that I might enter it,
Dialogue: 0,0:17:02.25,0:17:05.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,sort of as an experiment in participatory journalism.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:05.88,0:17:10.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,It'd make, I thought, maybe a nice epilogue to all my research.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:10.04,0:17:15.04,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Problem was the experiment went haywire.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:15.04,0:17:15.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I won the contest,
Dialogue: 0,0:17:15.92,0:17:17.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which really wasn't supposed to happen.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:17.67,0:17:26.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)
Dialogue: 0,0:17:26.21,0:17:27.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Now it is nice
Dialogue: 0,0:17:27.67,0:17:29.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to be able to memorize speeches
Dialogue: 0,0:17:29.42,0:17:33.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and phone numbers and shopping lists,
Dialogue: 0,0:17:33.54,0:17:36.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but it's actually kind of beside the point.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:36.33,0:17:37.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,These are just tricks.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:37.21,0:17:41.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They are tricks that work
Dialogue: 0,0:17:41.33,0:17:42.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,because they're based on some pretty basic principles
Dialogue: 0,0:17:42.21,0:17:46.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about how our brains work.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:46.29,0:17:47.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And you don't have to be building memory palaces
Dialogue: 0,0:17:47.17,0:17:52.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,or memorizing packs of playing cards
Dialogue: 0,0:17:52.25,0:17:53.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to benefit from a little bit of insight
Dialogue: 0,0:17:53.12,0:17:56.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,about how your mind works.
Dialogue: 0,0:17:56.29,0:17:57.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We often talk about people with great memories
Dialogue: 0,0:17:57.17,0:18:01.29,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,as though it were some sort of an innate gift,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:01.29,0:18:02.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,but that is not the case.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:02.17,0:18:05.46,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Great memories are learned.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:05.46,0:18:08.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,At the most basic level, we remember when we pay attention.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:08.54,0:18:13.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We remember when we are deeply engaged.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:13.33,0:18:14.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,We remember when we are able
Dialogue: 0,0:18:14.21,0:18:17.62,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to take a piece of information and experience
Dialogue: 0,0:18:17.62,0:18:18.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,and figure out why it is meaningful to us,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:18.50,0:18:19.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,why it is significant, why it's colorful,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:19.38,0:18:24.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when we're able to transform it in some way
Dialogue: 0,0:18:24.38,0:18:26.79,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that it makes sense
Dialogue: 0,0:18:26.79,0:18:28.54,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,in the light of all of the other things floating around in our minds,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:28.54,0:18:33.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,when we're able to transform Bakers into bakers.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:33.42,0:18:35.17,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,The memory palace, these memory techniques,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:35.17,0:18:38.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,they're just shortcuts.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:38.38,0:18:40.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,In fact, they're not even really shortcuts.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:40.12,0:18:43.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They work because they make you work.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:43.96,0:18:48.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,They force a kind of depth of processing,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:48.38,0:18:49.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,a kind of mindfulness,
Dialogue: 0,0:18:49.25,0:18:53.42,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that most of us don't normally walk around exercising.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:53.42,0:18:53.92,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But there actually are no shortcuts.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:53.92,0:18:59.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,This is how stuff is made memorable.
Dialogue: 0,0:18:59.25,0:19:03.21,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,And I think if there's one thing that I want to leave you with
Dialogue: 0,0:19:03.21,0:19:04.96,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,it's what E.P.,
Dialogue: 0,0:19:04.96,0:19:10.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,the amnesic who couldn't even remember that he had a memory problem,
Dialogue: 0,0:19:10.12,0:19:11.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,left me with,
Dialogue: 0,0:19:11.00,0:19:13.38,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,which is the notion
Dialogue: 0,0:19:13.38,0:19:18.75,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that our lives are the sum of our memories.
Dialogue: 0,0:19:18.75,0:19:24.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,How much are we willing to lose
Dialogue: 0,0:19:24.58,0:19:26.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,from our already short lives
Dialogue: 0,0:19:26.25,0:19:32.33,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by losing ourselves in our blackberries, our iPhones,
Dialogue: 0,0:19:32.33,0:19:37.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by not paying attention to the human being across from us
Dialogue: 0,0:19:37.50,0:19:40.58,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who is talking with us,
Dialogue: 0,0:19:40.58,0:19:41.50,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,by being so lazy that we're not willing
Dialogue: 0,0:19:41.50,0:19:45.67,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,to process deeply?
Dialogue: 0,0:19:45.67,0:19:48.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,I learned firsthand
Dialogue: 0,0:19:48.25,0:19:50.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,that there are incredible memory capacities
Dialogue: 0,0:19:50.00,0:19:53.25,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,latent in all of us.
Dialogue: 0,0:19:53.25,0:19:55.00,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,But if you want to live a memorable life
Dialogue: 0,0:19:55.00,0:19:59.12,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,you have to be the kind of person
Dialogue: 0,0:19:59.12,0:20:00.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,who remembers to remember.
Dialogue: 0,0:20:00.88,0:20:03.88,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,Thank you.
Dialogue: 0,0:20:03.88,0:20:06.47,Default,,0000,0000,0000,,(Applause)