How Do Memories Work? | Explain This! Podcast

Explain This! is a podcast from The Brink that helps you make sense of the world. From how memories work to the way language evolves and everything in between, we ask Boston University researchers to break down topics-big and small-and tell us how their work is shaping the future.
In our debut episode, The Brink’s science writer Jessica Colarossi sits down with Steve Ramirez (CAS’10), a BU College of Arts & Sciences assistant professor of psychological and brain sciences, to discuss his lab’s research on how the brain records and stores memories. Ramirez’s team relies on a biological technique called optogenetics that lets them view memories as physical phenomena in the brain-a process known as engram mapping. We asked Ramirez about where memories are stored, the differences (and similarities) between human and nonhuman memories, and how memory-manipulating technology could be used to alleviate symptoms of PTSD in a clinical setting.
Video Chapters:
0:00 Introducing the Explain This! podcast
0:33 Steve Ramirez researching how memory is stored in the brain, and memory manipulation
1:31 Where are memories stored in the brain?
2:18 How are memories formed? What happens in your brain when you make a memory?
3:21 Studying memory in mice. How do you study memories in humans?
5:58 What are engrams?
8:08 False memories: You can't recall the same memory twice.
10:08 Using memory manipulation to treat mental health disorders; Artificially activating positive memories
12:13 Preventing the misuse of memory manipulation
14:06 When will memory stimulation technology be available for use on humans?
16:13 How are computer memory and human memory similar?
17:35 Do all animals and living organisms have memory?
20:36 Outro

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