April 10th, 2004
Amnesia
A popular subject on the big screen and television (especially the daytime variety) is a form of memory loss known as amnesia. Stedman’s Medical Dictionary defines amnesia as “a disturbance in the memory of information stored in long-term memory, in contrast to short-term memory, manifested by total or partial inability to recall past experiences.” Amnesia is a condition in which someone can’t recall stored memories, like their mom’s maiden name or what happened last Christmas, but they may recall the knock-knock joke their little brother told them a few seconds ago. This is actually an example of retrograde amnesia.