memory

Can Memories Be Passed Down Through DNA?

Q: Could memories and feelings be passed from generation to generation in DNA?  I grew up in Alabama. The first time I came West I was 21 years old and I knew I was coming “home.” Yet I had never been in this area.  The first time I heard Native American chanting and music, it was already in my soul.  I do have a great great great grandmother that was Cherokee Indian. Not much known about her and I was not raised with this knowledge. Could this be similar to “déjà vu,” that feeling you’ve “been there before” whe you know you could not have? – Jill, Golden, Colorado

How Does Memory Work

Q: My wife and I disagree about memory. She says memories are stored just as they are stored in a computer, meaning that information is placed in some physical form and later retrieved. I say that memory is too slippery for that. If we store memories like a computer, why are memories so unreliable? But if they’re not stored like a computer, where do memories go and how do we retrieve them? Help us settle this once and for all! – James & Kathy, Topeka