The Latin name Homo memor refers to having a good memory. In ancient Rome the epiphet memor was attributed to individuals who were mindful rather than forgetful.

Memory informs us, albeit imperfectly, of what has occurred, “thus far.” The reliability of memory correlates directly with the vividness of the remembered experience and its nearness in time.

Conscious experience generates mountains of chaff. Memory is necessarily selective. Short term memory is essential for even the simplest coherent action through time. Our very personhood and sense of identity depends on it. Without immediate memory we cannot move from one moment to the next, lost and bewildered a meaningless present.