Mar 022010
Scientists have found a new protein (in fruit flies) that is involved in actively erasing memories. If this same protein is found in humans, and if it does the same thing, this could have profound implications. Read the Scientific American article located here and add your thoughts in the comment area below. What are the potential positive and negative implications if this protein controls ‘forgetting’ in humans?
8 Responses to “Want to Erase Your Memory?”
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This is an interesting discovery. I wonder if humans have the protein, Rac. And, if we did, could we turn off or turn up the production of Rac based on if we want to forget or remember something?
One potential positive implication of this protein (if found in humans) could be erasing a traumatic event from someone’s memory. Also, as the article said, we could eliminate a memory if it’s no longer necessary. This would in turn strengthen memory retention because there would be more room for more information without overloading our brains.
Lastly, if we could inhibit the production of Rac, we might be able to slow or stop dementia.
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Ok, this is pretty awesome… We’ve come to a point where in this day and age, even the ability to manipulate our memories is close to our fingertips! However, although it does appear that we may now have a clue as to what protein is responsible for inducing or reducing memory retention, I don’t believe that we are close to being able to pick and choose which memories we remember and which ones we don’t. Unless we possess the ability to isolate the production of Rac protein to specific locales of the brain, I think that the main benefit of this discovery would be to either completely delete large portions of memory, or to strengthen our potential for memory retention. Regardless, this information can only be largely beneficial.
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This Rac protein is really exciting, many people wish they could forget about a bad experience and just delete the memory all together. I wonder if it could be used to treat PTSD? If there was no horrifying event to relive, the people suffering from the disease could maybe be cured.
I can’t help but think of some of the negative uses this protein could have though. If the ability to regulate the protein and delete memories fell into the the wrong hands, these people could wipe out a person’s memory at will. For example, any witnesses to a murder could have their memories erased, and a crucial piece of evidence against the person guilty of the crime is gone. Of course, we don’t even know if the protein is present in humans yet, but if it is found,consequences like these need to be considered when the information is published/shared.
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This reminds me of the movie “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” where two people decide to erase their memories of each other through scientific procedures. Like what Erin and Rachel said, this protein could help erase traumatic memories of an event. I wonder if it could also be applied to helping addicts quit such as erasing the memory of drinking alcohol or the euphoria that comes with taking drugs so that the addict will stop drinking/doing drugs, etc.
In the future, if Rac is found in humans or if there is a process for deleting memories in humans using Rac from another source, what if the wrong memories are deleted? If the deletion involves a process by scientists or doctors, how would they be able to determine which memories the patient wants deleted? A downside to this Rac could be accidentally deleting memories — some of which might not be replaceable.
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This new discovery is quite remarkable. I never thought that a specific protein could control memory decay. Increasing our ability to remember could aid in lifelong learning. Does this protein affect long term memory as well as short term memory?
If Rac is found in humans, a potential positive implication could be a treatment for Alzheimer’s .There is no proof as to what exactly causes Alzheimer’s, so what if it is a result of increased Rac activity? A potential negative implication could be the unethical use of Rac, which may be used to alter memories of others, such as to cover up a crime. This seems pretty farfetched, but who knows what people will do?
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The discovery of Rac is amazing. To think humans have a protein within them that could help erase memories is almost too much to comprehend. Knowing that this protein exists now, people can use it for a variety of uses. As previous classmates have said, it can help out patients with dementia and PTSD if cultivated and used correctly. But, there is also the possibility of people using it in a nonethical way such as in the military to make enemy spies forget critical information they may have learned. Either way, this discovery opens many new possibilities in the world of science today.
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The discovery of the Rac protein is a very intriguing discovery. It is potentially a great discovery yet it could still bring harm into the world. As classmates above have commented if the protein is found in humans and is able to utilize as a weapon there are endless consequences. Just imagine if terrorists were able to weaponize a Rac protein, they would be able to wipe out the memories of anyone they wanted to. However on the contrary there can be many positive uses to the Rac protein such as using it to forget a traumatic event that has occurred in someones life. But with this new discovery brings up a lot of moral and ethical questions such as; should it be available to the common person? Obviously before any of these aforementioned ideas can occur, there needs to be the discovery of it in the human body.
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So that’s how the Men In Black made people forget their memories!
The world is getting more and more science fiction-y each day, I swear. Now all we need is someone to figure out a way to manipulate Rac in individuals without them noticing.
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