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Solomon Shereshevsky- The Man With The Perfect Memory Who Wished He Could Forget
A Russian journalist was so plagued by his unwavering memory that it severely impacted his everyday life and made him an object of curiosity and study
Some believe that the human brain is capable of holding only so much information and memories. Personally, I know I can barely recall what I had for dinner last night. For one man named Solomon Shereshevsky that was not the case, as researchers found that he had a literally perfect memory and couldn’t forget the slightest detail, even though he came to dearly wish that he could.
The Russian Shereshevsky was born around 1886 and became a journalist. Renowned for his impeccable memory, he also was called “Sh” or “Luria’s S.” He became the focus of a groundbreaking study conducted by psychologist Alexander Luria in 1968, titled The Mind of a Mnemonist: A Little Book About a Vast Memory.
Initially unaware of the power of his prolific memory, Shereshevsky routinely amazed colleagues by recalling the tiniest details and extensive passages verbatim, seemingly pulling them out of thin air. His editor questioned him about why he never seemed to take note. After being informed it was because he didn’t need them, he set…
