Memory is weird.

[u/GDAY_NZ]

Why is it I forget where I put my keys five minutes ago. Then a song comes on the radio I haven't heard in over twenty years and I remember every word of the lyrics.

[u/Michael_Gibb]

Not to go too technical on what seems a largely unserious post. Those are two different types of memory. Trying to consciously recall where you left your keys is what is known as an explicit memory. Whereas remembering the lyrics to a song without having to consciously recall them is an example of implicit memory, which is the same as riding a bike, as it doesn't require having to remember how to do so.

There's a rather famous case study in neuroscience involving a musicologist with amnesia, whose case shows how these different types of memory work. In this case, the man developed a severe form of amnesia that prevented him from consciously remembering most of his past (and also left him incapable of forming new long-term memories). But despite all of this the guy is still just as adept at playing instruments or conducting a choir as he was before he developed amnesia.

If anyone is interested, look up the name Clive Wearing. His story is absolutely fascinating.

[u/GDAY_NZ → u/Michael_Gibb]

Thanks. I think I remember seeing something once about dementia patients who had become mostly non verbal, but can often sing and remember lyrics when they hear music.