[Think]

I have problem(acute one) of remembering names of people I am introduced to, though I can remember their faces very distinctly. Apart from this, when learning something new I tend to remember the logic/theory behind it and am able to apply it. Once understood, I don't feel the need to study the same thing again. But in exams I have to reproduce the dreaded text book stuff(due to the bad education system). And am very good with numbers can remember numbers very easily(ex: phone numbers, account numbers, constants etc)

I have seen people who have awesome memory (dunno how many times do they repeat the study though).




Any here with such a thing for memory? any what are your thoughts on this?

[catalyst]

I too have trouble remembering names, although I can usually get it fairly close, but I excel at recalling faces. I also have trouble in remembering things I only hear, but things I read or actually do I can remember very well. I took a test that proved that in school. It showed I was a visual/kinetic learner rather than an audio learner.

[Theaetetus]

I'm a visual person, and I don't usually remember a name unless I make an intention of it or see it on a nametag. I have a tendency to recall tons of miscellaneous information though, such as people's phone numbers, computer passwords from years ago, relatives, pets, hometowns, behaviors, clothing, favorite drinks and foods, schools, goals, and times and locations of various activities. I have no idea why I remember this stuff.

Oh, yeah... Faces are a breeze.

[bethdeth]

I remember faces easy...I can probably tell you what their preference in clothes are and what they drink, smoke, their mannerisms, and what they said in context to a problem and what their life issues are....their names?....I have difficulty with my own it seems. I remember knowledge and history based data and concepts...but I lose my purse on a regular basis....I can remember long winded procedural steps to taking apart and putting back in place mechanical and IT based ideas......now where the fuck are my keys?

[Think]

I have a tendency to recall tons of miscellaneous information though, such as people's phone numbers, computer passwords from years ago, relatives, pets, hometowns, behaviors, clothing, favorite drinks and foods, schools, goals, and times and locations of various activities. I have no idea why I remember this stuff.

The same is the case with me.. all these miscellaneous information i remember. One more is, How a conversation went(like what was his/her replies to the question asked, or what questions did he/she ask etc). That too disctinctly. But not the name! lol

I remember knowledge and history based data and concepts...but I lose my purse on a regular basis....I can remember long winded procedural steps to taking apart and putting back in place mechanical and IT based ideas......now where the fuck are my keys?

"knowledge and history based data and concepts" yep this is exactly the same with me. Keys are always a headache. I never remember where have I placed them.. and about loosing things, I have lost a very elegant pen, a helmet, and an Ipod Touch :( in the last 2 months.

[Monkey Fritz]

Absolutely!! I remember random bits of information like crazy, but a name? no way. I've become quite adept at avoiding names altogether, whether I remember them or not, to prevent people from realizing that I don't remember their name. I find it strange when comparing the things I do remember to the things I don't.

Numbers I am terrible with, I was learning multiplication and division in kindergarten (private school where my mother was the teacher) and Spanish in first grade, then we moved and I had to go to public school where they dropped me down back to kindergarten because I was too young and told me that I shouldn't know the things I did. So I went from three digit multiplication back to 2+3 and learning my abc's. As it took three years in the public school system to get back up to the level of learning I had been at, it resulted in an absolute hatred of math and language because of the pointless repetition. I eventually got over the hatred of language because I love to read, but my brain has it out for numbers, I have a hard time remembering five digits without repeating it in my head several dozen times.

Give me a keyboard, however, I can type the number once and my procedural memory will kick in and I'll remember it for days. Take my keyboard away and I can't spell for crap either. My associative memory is better than episodic too, start talking about ancient Egyptian or Greek mythology and its amazing what I'll remember, but I won't remember anything about it unless someone or something triggers the memory. The worst is details, a particular person I work with is convinced everything that comes out of my mouth is complete and utter exaggeration because I will either get some small detail wrong or when questioned not remember the details she is asking about. It's really annoying because in each instance she is right, my memory was laking, but the details are usually in my mind so unimportant I don't even care to look them up just to prove my point.

So yes, on one hand I will remember things without even knowing where I learned them from, but at the worst possible times my memory completely abandons me.

[Theaetetus]

Well, since we're talking more about memory, I'll say this:
Information is indexed by my intuition, and used by it primarily. It puts something away, makes a few connections, and then pops it back out when I need it, much like the Google search index. Hence, I won't pull up things that don't include a keyword, like 'What did you learn today?,' but I will completely know the answer to 'What is [x subject learned today?]How do you apply it? Procedural memory works incredibly well on passwords for me as well.

I had a bit of a problem in 1st grade. I couldn't remember how to spell simple words like 'hello' or 'yes,' but I could spell extrapolate and hippopotamus. I have no idea how this happened.

[PseudoSenator]

Undoubtedly. With humility, I must say my memory kicks ass. If I see some random actor in a commercial one day, I would still be able to recognize that actor weeks later if I saw him in a TV show or heard him doing a voice over.

I'm constantly saying "Hey isn't that the (noun) from (place)?". Also, I'm taking introductory college-level courses at my high school and we are taking comprehensive review exams as of late. For example, I didn't study a whiff for my Political Science test which covered material from the entire course, and I still aced the exam. Great memory is so glorious and so helpful.

Due to my good memory, I can excel at trivia given the huge amount of stuff I have retained. That said, I sometimes feel like my encoding is merely that, and that I put data in but don't analyze it on a conceptual level or think about it. To go back to the Political Science course, give me a multiple choice test and I'll do very well. Ask me the question point-blank and I won't be as ready. Recognition at times, but not retrieval.

Directions and street names are impossible.

[wealldie]

their names?....I have difficulty with my own it seems.

Last week, someone asked with what inflection I pronounced my name. I told them I'd never thought about it. I couldn't commit to an inflection, and didn't care... so I just told them to choose their favourite.

[Morn]

I have problem(acute one) of remembering names of people I am introduced to, though I can remember their faces very distinctly. Apart from this, when learning something new I tend to remember the logic/theory behind it and am able to apply it. Once understood, I don't feel the need to study the same thing again. But in exams I have to reproduce the dreaded text book stuff(due to the bad education system). And am very good with numbers can remember numbers very easily(ex: phone numbers, account numbers, constants etc)

I have the exact the same problem.