You bite into something you haven’t eaten since childhood, and it unleashes a flood of childhood memories.  That’s the premise of a classic novel, but it happens to us in our daily lives all the time. You hear something, smell something, see something that evokes powerful and emotional memories…some of which are wonderful; others you would have preferred to forget altogether.  The precise mechanics of how human beings create, store and retrieve memories are not well understood, but scientists are working hard to find out exactly how this essential function of the human brain works.

Using sophisticated digital technology, scientists are tracing the neural pathways needed to create memories.  And if we lose our memory, do we lose our identity? Brian Greene explores this topic with author, psychiatrist and neuroscientist Veronica O’Keane, whose fascinating case histories provide unique insight into the memories that make us who we are…their connection to emotion, and the tricks that our memories play on us.