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113 Comments
- sprint84, on 12/02/2008, -3/+144WTH
Assassin's Creed was right, after all? - radicaldementia, on 12/02/2008, -1/+137This article can sound misleading if you don't know the science behind it. Memories are not actually changing the ACGT code in your DNA, so your actual core genes are not altered. However, there is much more to DNA than just the data itself. A DNA molecule is like a running computer program, there are many proteins bound to specific parts of the molecule to regulate gene expression and there are other things that help maintain its structure, stability, and operation at any given time. One such thing is the methylation of cytosine (The "C" in the code). Methylation, which covalently attaches a methyl molecule to the cytosine, normally helps regulate various activities in gene expression, at any given point in time a select number of C's are methylated.
What the article is suggesting is that outside stimuli (namely synaptic signals) can alter the patterns of methylation on DNA in brain cells and thus are used to record long term memories. This is fascinating because methylation is often thought of as one form of "primitive" memory that help bacteria and other "brainless" organisms adapt and recognize stimuli. If this is indeed how our long term memory works, this could provide a lot of insight into how our brains evolved.
However, realize that in no way can things like passing memories down to children possibly happen. This article suggests that your brain cells use methylation to store memories, but these changes do not propagate to DNA in unrelated cells, including your germ cells. So unless you're somehow impregnating women with your brain, no memories are shared. - DanteDefiance, on 12/03/2008, -1/+34SWEET!
*dives off building*
*dies* - fattehboi, on 12/03/2008, -0/+30*misses haystack*
- username7410, on 12/03/2008, -2/+32Impregnating women with your brain? Something to strive for.
- rhustang, on 12/03/2008, -1/+27wow, not even a blip on my ***** meter. good info, thanks.
- accn112, on 12/03/2008, -3/+27Welcome to the Animus
- fattehboi, on 12/03/2008, -2/+22man this is interesting *****.
probably how nostalgia and song lyrics etc. are remembered
for example:
today I'm driving home from work, and Bon Jovi's It's my life comes on....which I havent heard in years. I knew like every lyric.
/notgay - sites, on 12/03/2008, -0/+161) Smoke weed.
2) Drink Guinness.
3) Rinse & repeat. - lordtyros, on 12/03/2008, -0/+15DUNE
- abajaj2280, on 12/03/2008, -2/+15damn, thank you :)
- se7envii, on 12/03/2008, -1/+13When I read the description of the article the first thing I thought of was Assassin's Creed too xD
- Yeyui, on 12/03/2008, -1/+13From the article, I gather that this in no way allows memories passing to offspring. However, this would allow memories to "survive" death for what I imagine to be a considerable period of time. If only we had a way to interpret the extra-genetic markers directly...
- Thorpe, on 12/03/2008, -0/+10Oh *****. Is there a secure erase option in the works?
- TheMachine1, on 12/03/2008, -1/+10My cells have stored "loser" on their DNA.
- look4alec, on 12/02/2008, -1/+10Only you also have some eagle DNA mixed in there...
- oboshoe, on 12/03/2008, -2/+11So my great grandkids are going to have nightmares about something called "2girls1cup"?
- gungaroo22, on 12/03/2008, -1/+9Dugg for long post with big words.
- kingofthezyx, on 12/03/2008, -0/+6Dude, no, totally. And then you start singing it really loud and get all emotional because you start reflecting on your life since then.
It's now or never
I ain't gonna live forever - MadHarvey, on 12/03/2008, -1/+6*****. Lately, I have only been having sex in my brain... Is there some sort of protection I can use?
I would want any kids running around remembering what I was thinking about at the time of conception... - inactive, on 12/03/2008, -1/+6They explain it in the beginning... not a spoiler...
Also, if you were really excited for it, you would have played it already. - harisund, on 12/03/2008, -0/+4Mine have "digg" on them.
- bagboyrebel, on 12/03/2008, -0/+4That's part of a different theory about genetic memory, where the information is thought to actually be a part of DNA instead of just attached to it.
- ren1999, on 12/03/2008, -0/+4This concept is not new. Planarian flat worms are taught to navigate mazes which leads to more speculation of just where memory is stored. It might be stored all over the body which seems to support the idea that genes can be expressed on and off as a result of external experiences. Possibly you could consume memories, or inherit memories from your ancestors. Neurons make pathways as a result of external experiences and dynamic gene-expression might be the way that it does that physically.
- positron, on 12/03/2008, -0/+3Perhaps this is just an evolutionary variation of that process?
- diemunkiesdie, on 12/03/2008, -0/+3A little inaccurate. The changes in our memory do not get transferred to the germ cells (read: Sperm or Eggs) so your memories are in no way transferable to your children. This is knows as the "separation of germline and soma". The germline are your sperm or eggs and the soma are all other cells.
- itcoll, on 12/03/2008, -0/+3no one has ever kissed me..boo hoo..
- Klowner, on 12/03/2008, -0/+3all we need is some dang gholas
- SmurfSlut, on 12/03/2008, -1/+4wow you're smart
why cant more be like you - fattehboi, on 12/03/2008, -0/+3exactly....
***** - Frozo, on 12/03/2008, -0/+3Maybe you already did.
- uptwolait, on 12/03/2008, -0/+3Think about condoms.
- positron, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2If we could develop methods of locating, collecting, and reproducing such DNA it might finally be possible to archive our memories or even transfer them to clones. Essentially, we would have achieved immortality and possibly even a new effortless system of knowledge acquisition.
- Suricou, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2Looks like that drug he used might do it.
I can imagine uses for that. Inject a recent rape victim, wipe their recent memory and thus erase the trauma. The downside being that it also means they are unable to provide much testimony in court, only their pre-drug statement would be valid. - BotchaMcCoola, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2Jung was on to something by pure intuition.
- RoboB0b, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2Reported for spam. You seem to be all over copy/pasting comments and putting your link on the bottom.
- Akairenn, on 12/03/2008, -1/+3Since Jung, Herbert and (rofl, noobs) Assassin's Creed have been mentioned...
Xenogears. Screw you guys, I'm going to go find a hot redhead and slay god. - swaneyguy, on 12/03/2008, -3/+5I guess this explains animal instincts are just in our genetic code.
- Oatlord, on 12/03/2008, -1/+3I would imagine that sounds very similar to a truckload of anything else.
- LivelyIvy, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2I knew Aeon Flux was real!
- Oatlord, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2What about instincts, like sheep herding in dogs? What dictates that?
- kooft, on 12/03/2008, -1/+3Same thing...
- diemunkiesdie, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2We do understand, what are you trying to point out? That there is no connection with our memories and transferring these memories to our children? I covered that here: http://digg.com/general_sciences/Memories_may_be_s ...
Also, radicaldementia gave one of the best explanations I have seen for non science people to understand here: http://digg.com/general_sciences/Memories_may_be_s ... - Truth3, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2There has to be something very complex about memories. I've had like two dreams in the past year where someone was in it that I've totally forgotten, and they were vividly in the dream. I remember waking up and thinking, "No fricken way!" It was cool though.
- allocate, on 12/03/2008, -1/+3Assassin's Creed can't be linked to reality. It takes WAY longer to log out of that game than it takes to kill yourself.
- diemunkiesdie, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2Thanks for actually being accurate when you talk about science. You have no idea how much it pains me when other people pretend to know what they are talking about on digg and make wholly inaccurate statements. You on the other hand, *clap* *clap* *clap*!!!!
- ren1999, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2The chem-trail was a possible explanation. So in further controlled experiments, a new but identically laid out maze was used. However, because I can not find this study online, you should doubt it.
It could be possible that memory is mirrored in all our genes and each gene is dynamically signaled to change with each new external experience. Consciousness could reside throughout the body.
There is a concept called cell-signaling which operates on a similar concept. One little homeopathic dose on your tongue could signal every part of your body to do something. - EmoSLWarrior, on 12/03/2008, -1/+3One would think that with the amount of imagined sexual congress performed by the casual denizens of Digg, that impregnating women with one's brain would be quite the norm. No? (Of course I jest, because I love...)
- Memnochxx, on 12/03/2008, -0/+2In 1955, Thompson and James V. McConnell conditioned planarian flatworms by pairing a bright light with an electric shock. After repeating this several times they took away the electric shock, and only exposed them to the bright light. The flatworms would react to the bright light as if they had been shocked. Thompson and McConnell found that if they cut the worm in two, and allowed both worms to regenerate each half would develop the light-shock reaction. In 1962, McConnell repeated the experiment, but instead of cutting the trained flatworms in two he ground them into small pieces and fed them to other flatworms. Incredibly these flatworms learned to associate the bright light with a shock much faster than flatworms who had not been fed trained worms.
Where exactly does a trail of chemicals come in to play with this? - InsanePenguin08, on 12/03/2008, -1/+2Assassin's Creed was right!
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