We all have moments when our memory fails us. It gets to Monday morning and we can’t tell a coworker where we were Friday night, or we’re at a pub trivia night and for whatever reason we struggle pathetically to remember the name of the lead singer from the Cure. However, for better or for worse, remembering stuff isn’t a problem for those with highly superior autobiographical memory (HSAM).

HSAM—or hyperthymesia, as it’s also known—is characterized by the ability to remember almost every day of your life after the age of ten or 11 years old, down to the most minute detail. When given any past date, people with HSAM can usually recall things like what color dress they were wearing, or even what the weather was like. It’s unknown whether people are born with HSAM or develop the ability in their early years. So far, 61 people in the world have been identified as having HSAM, including 56 in America and five in the UK….Read more

http://news.uci.edu/press-releases/james-mcgaugh-receives-grawemeyer-award-for-psychology