Whether it's from an awful breakup or a traumatic life event,some memories can haunt us for our entire lives.But,what if there was a way that you could completely forget these all together? Can science erase your bad memories? Memory is an incredibly complex process.While scientists used to believe it was like a filing cabinet and particular memories were stored in different sections of the brain,we now know this is incorrect.
无论是被发卡还是其他伤心往事，某些记忆总是忘不掉。不过 如果有能让你彻底忘记这一切的方法呢?“记忆橡皮擦”能否成真?记忆是一项极为复杂的过程。先前 科学家把它视作为档案柜特定记忆储存在大脑的特定部位，我们知道这并不正确。
In fact,each memory is a brain wide process.If you end up remembering this video,it's because the cells in your brain are being triggered and fired,building new connections and links and literally rewiring the circuitry of your mind.And this change is partially facilitated by proteins in the brain.So what if the proteins aren't available?
实际上 每一项记忆都和整个大脑相关，而你记住这视频，则是因为脑内细胞被触发并激活，建立新的连接并重构脑内神经回路，脑内的蛋白质也对此赶到一定促进作用。那么 如果没有这些蛋白质呢?
Simply put,memories can't be made.Seriously,scientists have tested this by giving animals drugs that prevent these proteins from forming.As a result the animals have no recollection of the things that took place shortly after the drug was taken.From this research,scientists actually found a way to target long term memories for deletion.You see,every single time you remember a memory,your brain is once again firing and rewiring.
简单说 你就记不了东西了。科学家做过实验 他们给动物服用药物来抑制这类蛋白质的合成，结果 动物们在刚服药之后什么都记不起来。通过这项研究 科学家找到了可以删除长期记忆的方式。你看 每次想起某些事时，大脑就会重新激活细胞 构建回路。
In fact,each time you reflect on a memory,you are literally physically changing that memory in your mind.And each time that memory is altered a little,reflecting your current thoughts.Remembering is an act of creation and imagining.meaning the more you reflect on old memories,the less accurate they become.And scientists have actually quantified this change.
其实 你每次回忆起某件事时，都在改变着大脑内的记忆。这段 记忆每次也会因你当前想法而产生细微变化。记忆是创造和想象的一种行为，也就是说 回忆得越多 记忆就越不准确。科学家也曾将此量化。
After 9/11,hundreds of people were asked about their memories of the dreadful day.A year later,37%of the details had changed.By 2004,nearly 50% of the details had changed or gone missing.And because memories are formed and rebuilt every time,if you administer the protein inhibiting drug while recalling a memory,the memory can be effectively removed.To test this,scientists took lab rats and played a sound for them,shortly followed by an electric shock.After doing this multiple times,the rats quickly learned that if they heard the sound,a shock was soon to follow.
911事件后 数百人被问起这段惨痛事件的记忆，一年后 其37%的细节出现变化，到了2004年 近乎一半的细节已被遗忘或改变。由于记忆每次都会被重塑，如果你在回忆时吃下抵制蛋白质的药物，这段记忆就能被消除。科学家曾让小白鼠听一种声音 此后对其电击，几次之后 小白鼠很快明白听到声音后很快会有电击。
As a result,they would stress up and freeze every time they heard it.Months later,these rats would still respond to the noise;however,if they administered the drug first,the rats would lose the memory of the sound,and simply continue on.They had lost their memory of that specific noise.To be sure the drug wasn't just causing large scale brain damage,scientists repeated these experiments with multiple tones this time.
结果 每次听到声音后 他们都会紧张麻木。几个月后 老鼠仍会对此声音做出反应;不过 如果让老鼠先吃药，它们就会忘记那段声音 继续活动。它们对特定声音的记忆已经消失了。为了确定这种药物没在脑内开地图炮，这次 科学家用多种声音重复了这项实验。
Both sounds would warn for a shock,and eventually the mice would fear both.But if they administered the drug and played only one of the sounds,the mice would only forget that one tone,while still remaining fearful of the other.Over time scientists have discovered specific drugs to target particular proteins ccross different parts of the brain.
两种声音都意味着电击 老鼠会对二者都产生畏惧。如果在为老鼠给药后播放一种声音，老鼠就会忘记这种声音 但仍害怕另一种，目前 科学家已对大脑内不同区域内特定蛋白质研发出特制药物。
So,if you experience a terrible emotion with a memory,then targeting a protein in the emotional regions of the brain can help to remove that connection alone.Which could be an amazing tool,especially for patients suffering from something like Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.But while these drugs are in the very early stages,the question remains:if you were given a "forgetting pill"would you be willing to take it?
那么 如果你经历了某些不堪回首的事 搞定大脑情感区域内的一个蛋白质就能让你把记忆抛之脑后。这可是相当不错的哇，尤其对创作后精神紧张性精神障碍(PTSD)等疾病患者，尽管药物尚在早期研发阶段 有个问题还没解决：给你一瓶“忘忧水”你真的会喝吗?
