The human memory is phenomenally strong. It also has a habit of getting things badly wrong. According to Jonathan Hancock, our memory expert, faulty 1  can be extremely revealing (揭露真相的).

Just last week, for example, my wife and I were 2 how we'd chosen our youngest son's name. I had a 3 memory of us writing out a list of possible names, but stopping after just a few because we'd 4 one we both loved.

My wife disagreed. In her memory, we'd had a much 5 list, and gone back and chosen one from the middle of the 6 . But we found that we'd actually done something completely different to 7 Nate's name.

Memory mistakes happen on a larger scale, too. The "Mandela Effect" is when lots of people have confident recollections (回忆) that turn out to be 8 . It was named by researchers who were discussing their strong memories of Nelson Mandela's death in prison — when he actually lived for 23 years after his 9 .

There are plenty of other 10 of this phenomenon. If you're sure that you remember seeing the Monopoly Man wearing a spyglass, for instance, or hearing a wicked queen say "Mirror, mirror on the wall," you've 11 it yourself, but her real meaning "Magic mirror on the wall".

So what's 12 on? Well, for starters, memory often works by association and similar 13 can overlap (部分重叠) in our brains. We're also good at "filling in the blanks" with details that are 14 but untrue. What's more, whenever we run through a memory, we make it stronger, 15 any bits that were wrong.

But there's plenty of good news here, too.

Everyone misremembers. We shouldn't be too hard on ourselves when we 16 mistakes. The mental associations that sometimes lead to errors can also 17 us to find information which is difficult to locate. If you're 18 with someone's name, please try thinking of things you associate with them.

Discussing your memories is great mental exercise. It 19  strengths and weaknesses, and lets you learn tips from others. Besides, remembering is a creative 20 , during which we are also likely to make mistakes. It was certainly true for my wife and me.