In this final module, we learned about memory and how we construct memory with experiences, technology, and people around us. When recalling memories, we are often not remembering the whole experience, but parts most significant to us. As we remember these memories, they become significant to the time in which we are remembering them in.
Marjorie Prime (2017)
In Marjorie Prime (2017), Marjorie is an elderly woman diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, and her daughter and son-in-law have acquired a program, Prime, that creates holograms of one’s loved ones. This hologram helps patients with Alzheimer’s to try to remind them of memories while holding conversations with individuals they once knew.
Memory is not “true” and “accurate” as we often forget small details and try to seal those small cracks by mistakenly adding other small details that weren’t actually part of the memory to begin with. In the film, Tess and Jon speak about William James and his idea of memory. Stating that it is not a filing cabinet, but that when you remember something, you remember the memory, and the last time you remember it. The actual event is getting harder to remember, and so when cracks are sealed with false details/memories, those are remembered the next time you try to remember that event. We’re also viewing these memories at different times in our lives, making them significant in different ways. Due to the added experience that comes with age, a memory we used to hold fondly as children, we might think of it differently because we have experienced life differently at this point. It does remind me of the film Inside Out, where we talked about how as Riley was growing up, due to certain life experiences, new emotions kept popping up and her core memories were eventually mixed emotions of those joyful memories she held as a child. Remembering those emotions helps our recollection of them.
Seeing each Prime in the final scene of the film speak about themselves, their memories and experiences reminded me of the term autobiographical self. In the film, the Primes are “constructing” themselves by learning about themselves from what they are told. The people and the stories they learn about are helping them build the version of themselves that most closely resembles the actual individuals. The building of ourselves leads to an understanding of those experiences, leading to autobiographical memories. Walter Prime learned from Marjorie and Jon about his life, and became better when it came to acting and expressing himself similar to the actual Walter.
“Measure of a Man” Star Trek: The Next Generation
In the episode, Measure of a Man, Commander Maddox wants to examine Data’s brain in order to make many more like him. His plans, however, are not entirely clear and so Data refused to be examined by him. His refusal makes everyone question if Data is allowed to choose for himself, and if he is sentient enough to choose. During the hearing, Commander Riker is forced to represent Maddox, and argues that Data is a machine with physical strength no human is capable of in an effort to show how different his body is to a human body.
In order to show that Data is sentient, Captain Picard points out how intelligent and aware Data is. In this episode, cognition is extended by Data’s interactions with the world around him, experiences, and other people. Data is able to cherish a book given as a gift from Captain Picard, medals that remind him of special occasions and of his achievements, and a hologram of a significant other that reminds him of special times. Extended Cognition is not just the body and the mind, it is extended out into the world in our usage of technology (phones), culture, and other people as well.
