Online Class Notes (Vicki)

Vocabulary

make up – create
i.e. I like to make up stories to tell my children.

fabricate – imagine something that’s not real, or not true
i.e. He fabricated this lie so he didn’t have to come to the party.

recount – to tell
i.e. I recounted this story again to the police so they could help me.

autobiography – the lift story of the person him or herself

autobiographical – related to oneself’s life story

biography – the lift story of a person

amnesia – not being able to remember anything

cohesive – complete and connect

hold grudge – holding on to someone’s mistake towards you

What’s the first thing you remember doing? It could be playing with your friends at school, or going to a birthday party and eating amazing cake. Most of us have a treasured early memory of our childhood, but can we really believe those vivid memories? Did those special moments really happen – or did we make them up?

It’s a strange concept to grasp, but according to research, about four out of 10 of us invent our first childhood memory. Rather than having experienced something, we could have fabricated a fake memory from videos or photos we’ve seen. We could have been influenced by a story recounted to us that spurs our minds on to adopt someone else’s memory as our own. What it means is that memories of our younger years, especially before the age of two, may be inaccurate, or entirely false.

But why don’t we have clear memories from that age? Well, our ability to retain memories from before the age of two isn’t great. While at that age we do have short-term memories, according to Catherine Loveday, an expert in autobiographical memory at the University of Westminster, the memories that infants make are not long-lasting. This is possibly due to the rapid creation of brain cells in our early years. Some scientists also believe that as we get older, our childhood memories fade and after the age of seven, we get some kind of ‘childhood amnesia’.

So why do we create fake memories? Some experts believe that there is a clear desire for a sense of self and having a cohesive story of our existence. Creating memories can fill in the gaps – giving us a more complete structure for our early lives. As we get older, we want to have a complete picture of our entire lives.

So, the next time someone says they have a clear memory from when they were one – or even before – just remember that while it could be true, there’s a chance they just invented it at some point in their lives.

Vocabulary

ablution – cleaning

hygiene – cleanliness

odor – bad smell

smell – smell bad

ritual – habit

dermatologist – doctors of skin

deplete – take away

vital – important

regime – routine, habit

pong – bad smell

scrub – cuo

necessity – the thing that’s necessary

brave – do something bravely

keep sth. at bay – keep sth. away

douse – splash

Bath or shower? How do you prefer to keep yourself clean? Whatever your daily ablutions, we know it’s important to have good personal hygiene. Nobody wants to smell, and nobody wants to catch your odour! A shower can bring you certain other benefits, but how often should we wash ourselves under a watery spray?

Although you might think taking a daily shower should be part of your cleaning ritual, there’s no hard and fast rule, although dermatologists agree that as a society, we shower too often. In fact, too much washing can deplete the vital oils in our skin. It can waste water as well. However, if you have a fitness regime that causes you to sweat, a more regular sprinkle of water is recommended to stop you ponging!

How often you shower is, of course, a personal choice. There’s nothing better than a hot, soapy scrub under the shower, and this doesn’t just have to be to clean yourself. Some people enjoy a shower to help them relax, warm up or to soothe any aches and pains. It’s also a good opportunity to wash your hair at the same time. Again, though, experts say we shouldn’t shower too often because, like your skin, your hair contains essential oils that you don’t want to lose through excessive scrubbing.

If the idea of a hot, steaming shower appeals, how about a freezing cold one instead? This might be a necessity if your boiler has broken, but some people choose this option because it has many health benefits, some experts claim. There is increasing evidence that braving an icy shower in the morning could keep illness at bay and may even help your brain stay sharp. A BBC podcast called Just One Thing with Michael Mosley, found the shock of being doused with cold water could have a positive impact on your body and brain.

The thought of a cold shower might not make you jump out of bed in the morning, but whatever the temperature, a splash of water will wake you up and make you feel and smell great!