Scientists Say Forgetting Things Could Be A Sign Of Higher Intelligence

From a scale of 1 up to 10, how forgetful are you? While this trait is seen as something wrong, scientists claim that being forgetful is healthy, if not a sign of higher intelligence.

While others have good memories, don’t consider yourself dumb for not being one of them. And scientists tell you why.

Forgetting little things could be a sign of higher intelligence.

In school, students who have good memories are seen as intelligent. While this can be true, forgetting the minute details as you mature don’t signify that you’re less intelligent or a bit dumb.

These minor brain lapses should not be a cause for a needless worry.

Paul Frankland and Blake Richards, both researchers from the University of Toronto, discovered that old memories in the brain literally give way to allow space for the new memories to settle, making it harder for us to remember or even completely forget the old impressions.

There is no direct connection between perfect memory and high intelligence.

One study even pointed out that there’s no direct connection between a perfect memory and high intelligence.

It even stated the opposite may be true because it’s more useful and even healthier to remember things on a bigger scale, which could mean to forget the small details in the process.

Richards explains why forgetting is healthy and could be a sign of high intelligence.

In an interview with CNN, Richards stated,

“It’s important that the brain forgets irrelevant details and instead focuses on the things that will help you make decisions in the real world”.

The hippocampus, which is a small mechanism of the brain, stores the memories. It keeps you focused by eliminating unimportant details and allowing you to make intelligent decisions in an efficient manner.

In a way, the old memories are overwritten by the new and important ones. If your brain is crowded, making decisions would be much harder since there are too many variables that you need to consider.

Richards further explained,

“We know that sport increases the number of neurons in the hippocampus… It’s these very details from your life that are not important, and maybe keep you from making good decisions”.

Humans don’t need perfect memory anymore.

Remembering important details might be vital in the survival of our ancestors, but as we move with the advancement in technology, having a detailed memory might not be an absolute need.

It’s much better to understand how things work than to remember small details that aren’t necessary for your day to day existence.

Forgetting small details might be forgivable since it’s easier to look up for them when the need arises.

Whenever you find yourself in a room and forget why you’re there, take it as a sign that your mind is working as it should.

Raise your concerns only when you’re forgetting things more often than usual. Other than that, you’re not dumb but are highly focused.

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