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Eidetic stuff?


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Hello,

I apologize in advance (I'm not good at forums!), I have been scouring the internet looking for information on eidetic memory (more commonly known as photographic memory).

I know many people don't speak about it or speculate (as I will begin to do!), and don't like to discuss it, though it is something I am obsessed with, so please respond if you have ANY information!! It will excite me like you couldn't believe to find more information!! I spend my life on this and my friends help me along the way! So without further ado.. I apologize for my bad organization skills, grammar, and for coming here and annoying everyone!! ^_^

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I will share what my group has gathered information wise (we are just students who are curious), though I am the one out here looking for answers.

I believe the impossible to be the possible, and only by believing the possible to be impossible does it become so. Which is why I'm here for help! My math is SO bad (I'm very bad at math so here we go!)

I know that eidetic memory (or eidetikers as they like to be called?) are rare and tend to be aged 12 or under (before the mind becomes more abstract in nature). I also know that it's not as rare as hyperthymesia (also known as autobibliographical memory, of which 24 have come forward that we have found). Furthermore, we think it's roughly a 1/1.5 million chance for the mutation to occur (but not sure if it's the Left/Logic or Right/Imagination that triggers it, curious!). At the time of the math conducted, 7.467billion lived that would equate to 6.7567567-e10% of the population, or closer to 4400 people (I don't know heh).

I am also curious, do we know; or have information on whether it's an image or a completely different reality of a sorts? Stop me if you've heard this one before: An interactive fully realistic environment featuring full use of all senses!? Like I said, I am curious about information on it!

When I first approached the group looking for eidetikers or information on them, I started at the beginning, or the progenitor, which appears to be natural occurrence.. though I would prefer to say the process of studying and trying to understand it began with Elizabeth.

Elizabeth is a bit of a mystery, all we found were bits of information. In some reports, the findings are muddled and thrown in chaos as claims are made she was in a relationship with her researcher. Other reports seem to dog on her for being a her, whereas others seem to attack her ability to only be able to recall and reproduce a book (and usually the same book, which is still a feat!). The only other eidetikers they found apparently seem to be mnemonists, savants, or extraordinary memory type folks. A short (and rather sketchy) list can be found online via a search.

Furthermore, a little girl apparently could hold images for extended periods of time or indefinitely as long as she constantly focused on it (I wonder if you can just do that naturally or just remember it like a bookmark!). Though, she is the only one of her kind to do that (I also don't agree with these statements, similar to 50% of Americans Hate Snow according to a recent survey! What these statements don't tell you is they only asked the one girl, only checked her, not a large population or a group of similarly gifted individuals, just the one, similar to the survey only interviewing 1000 people and basing the interests of half the population off of half a 1000 population (which you realistically can't!), though has its' purposes), I believe there are more (as well as answers!), which is why I have quite a few questions!!

I love knowledge and creation or the creation of knowledge.

In my entire life I seek knowledge, and these questions still elude me!

Q: How many adults would you say are eidetikers?

Q: Why don't they come forward so we can study them? Why do they HIDE!!?

Q: Is it a curse? Is it a gift? Why? (In response to a hyperthymesia interview question)

Q: Can they do everything they do here but there (that'd be cool!)!

Q: Does it affect both sides of the brain or just the left/right?

Q: Do more synapses go off? I don't understand personally!

Q: Is it genetic (can an eidetiker mate and pass it on for a guarenteed chance if nurtured)?

Q: Does it take practice or is it a one and done deal, look, blam done!?

Q: Are the images/imaginations/Interactive Environments in real time, vivid, lucid dream like environment or still and boring?

Q: Can all the senses really be used? (Such as recreating memories, experiencing new worlds and realities or riding on the back of dragons and fighting in mythical battles in real time, as a childs imagination example of course!)

Q: Are you born with it or does it mutate?

Q: If it mutates, what causes it?

Q: Is it similar to Asperger's Syndrome?

Q: Does it occur more frequently in zones or cultures/environments with higher technology, lower technology?

Q: What is the main application and use for an eidetiker?

Q: Are they a new species slowly developing (Thesis paper!!), or are they homosapien with a slight neurological mutation (which we would then just call a disability or a mental illness since it's not the same as the Norm, as with everything else, right?)?

Q: If 2 Eidetikers mate, is it guaranteed for an eidetic child? (Yes, I asked it like that, posterity right?)

Q: Is it an out-of-body experience for them when they go into their eidetic memories?

Q: Has anyone met an actual eidetiker?

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Please! I know my questions may seem absurd! They are real and I'm curious, I spent a lot of time typing this up (and I'd love to go back to everyone with more information because I love information and they love hearing the information!!)

Thanks!!

 

I'm not a scientist.. I'm a student in Canada, trying to make my way and curiosity got the better of me! I'm 32 years old, been looking for information on eidetic memory for as long as I can remember, heh.

There isn't much out there from the 71 scholarly articles I found (excluding duplicate material), and I try to avoid non scholarly as much as possible.

 

Please, once more thank you very very much if you have ANY information! Even speculation is Ok for our group!

 

Ok I'm gonna go now, I will check back a little bit here and then, though I don't think I'll really get responses (or views!), I wont stop, I'll just have to look deeper for more information!!

Have a great week everyone ^_^

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  • 3 months later...

Hi Reyu. I'll try and give as detailed answers as possible but be warned in some places my knowledge will be insufficient.

Unfortunately most of your questions cannot be answered because, from a scientific point of view, those with eidetic memories simply do not exist. You make reference to Elizabeth, but her results are largely held to be highly inaccurate. You've clearly done your research and you're right; the circumstances surrounding Elizabeth are suspicious and dubious and have not been repeated, which is the hallmark of a scientific experiment. The reason there are so few, I would guess, is because they simply do not exist, at least not in the form that you would expect to find them. I understand that to someone as intrigued with the concept as yourself, this may come as a bit of a disappointment but the fact is that an eidetic memory means to be able to examine an image independantly after it has been removed and this has never really been conclusively observed. HOWEVER. I can still encourage and foster your obsession with knowledge and its accumulation (that obsession in itself is a gift that will last a lifetime). There is a huge community of the mnemonists that you mention in your post, all of whom could be easily seen to have memory capacities that could only be regarded as inhuman. In fact, I would guess that many of them have abilities that extend far beyond what natural born eidetikers would be capable of. They do this through the mind palace. (the memorisation branch of this technique is called the method of loci and works by binding spatial memory to desirable visual information). In using this they can form incredibly long term memories very quickly, some capable of memorising hundreds of digits per minute. It can be adapted to memorise anything, from entire books to dates and events. Whatsmore, this technique is highly documented and very reliable. Even more thrilling, anyone can learn this. It is not even particularly difficult, and the more you use it the stronger it becomes. 

This can even be tied together with other visualisation techniques, to reportedly (though these feats are less well documented), abolish pain, perform rapid mental calculations of huge numbers and change mood and emotional state.

So even though eidetic memory may not exist in whatever state you were hoping to find it, if you start with this technique, I promise it will give you enough to work with for a lifetime. In terms of further reading, Moonwalking with Einstein by Joshua Foer is a great start. Message if you have further questions. 

Regards,

Jacob

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