TEDGlobal 2013
Elizabeth Loftus: How reliable is your memory?
Elizabeth Loftus: Fidagarria al da zure oroimena?
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Elizabeth Loftus psikologoak oroimena aztertzen du. Zehazki oroitzapen faltsuak aztertzen ditu. Hau da, jendeak gertatu ez ziren gauzak gogoratzea edo gertatutakoak modu desberdinean gogoratzea. Pentsa dezakezuna baino ohikoagoa da hau, eta Loftusek estatistika eta istorio harrigarri batzuk elkarbanatzen ditu honen inguruan. Baita kontuan hartu beharko liratekeen hainbat aspektu etiko ere.
Elizabeth Loftus - False memories scholar
Memory-manipulation expert Elizabeth Loftus explains how our memories might not be what they seem -- and how implanted memories can have real-life repercussions. Full bio
Memory-manipulation expert Elizabeth Loftus explains how our memories might not be what they seem -- and how implanted memories can have real-life repercussions. Full bio
Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.
00:12
I'd like to tell you about a legal case that I worked on
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Laneko kasu batez hitz egin nahi nuke
00:16
involving a man named Steve Titus.
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Steve Titusei buruzkoa.
00:20
Titus was a restaurant manager.
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Titus jatetxe bateko gerentea zen.
00:23
He was 31 years old, he lived in Seattle, Washington,
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31 urte zituen eta Seattlen bizi zen,
Washingtonen,
Washingtonen,
00:27
he was engaged to Gretchen,
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Gretchenekin konprometituta zegoen,
00:29
about to be married, she was the love of his life.
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ezkontzear zen,
bera zen bere bizitzako maitasuna.
bera zen bere bizitzako maitasuna.
00:32
And one night, the couple went out
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Gau batean, bikotea irten egin zen
00:34
for a romantic restaurant meal.
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jatetxe batean afari erromantiko batera.
00:37
They were on their way home,
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Etxera bidean,
00:39
and they were pulled over by a police officer.
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polizia batek geratu zituen.
00:42
You see, Titus' car sort of resembled
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Titusen autoak beste baten antza zuen
00:45
a car that was driven earlier in the evening
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gau hartan ikusitako beste batena
00:49
by a man who raped a female hitchhiker,
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emakume bat bortxatu zuen gizon batena,
00:52
and Titus kind of resembled that rapist.
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eta Titusek bortxatzailearen antza zuen.
00:56
So the police took a picture of Titus,
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Beraz poliziak argazki bat atera zion,
00:59
they put it in a photo lineup,
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errekonozimendu frogan jarri,
01:01
they later showed it to the victim,
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eta biktimari erakutsi zizkioten argazkiak
01:03
and she pointed to Titus' photo.
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eta biktimak,
Titusen argazkia seinalatu zuen.
Titusen argazkia seinalatu zuen.
01:06
She said, "That one's the closest."
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Eta esan zuen "Hau da antzekoena".
01:09
The police and the prosecution proceeded with a trial,
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Poliziak eta salatzaileak
epaiketa eskatu zuten
epaiketa eskatu zuten
01:13
and when Steve Titus was put on trial for rape,
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eta Steve Titus
bortxaketagatik salatzerakoan,
bortxaketagatik salatzerakoan,
01:16
the rape victim got on the stand
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bortxaketako biktima altsatu
01:19
and said, "I'm absolutely positive that's the man."
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eta esan zuen, "ziur nago bera dela".
01:23
And Titus was convicted.
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Eta Titus kondenatua izan zen.
01:26
He proclaimed his innocence,
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Errugabea zela aldarrikatu zuen,
01:28
his family screamed at the jury,
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bere familiak epaileei oihukatu zien,
01:30
his fiancée collapsed on the floor sobbing,
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emaztegaia negarrez lurrera erori zen,
01:33
and Titus is taken away to jail.
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eta Titus kartzelan sartu zuten.
01:37
So what would you do at this point?
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Zer egingo zenukete une horretan?
01:40
What would you do?
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Zer egingo zenukete?
01:42
Well, Titus lost complete faith in the legal system,
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Titusek konfidantza galdu zuen
sistema juridikoan,
sistema juridikoan,
01:46
and yet he got an idea.
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baina ideia bat izan zuen.
01:48
He called up the local newspaper,
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Herriko egunkariarekin
jarri zen harremanetan,
jarri zen harremanetan,
01:50
he got the interest of an investigative journalist,
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kazetari ikertzaile baten
interesa piztu zuen,
interesa piztu zuen,
01:53
and that journalist actually found the real rapist,
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eta kazetariak,
benetako bortxatzailea aurkitu zuen
benetako bortxatzailea aurkitu zuen
01:58
a man who ultimately confessed to this rape,
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bortxaketa onartu zuen gizon bat,
02:01
a man who was thought to have committed 50 rapes
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inguru hartan 50 bortxaketa egin izana
leporatzen zitzaion gizon bat,
leporatzen zitzaion gizon bat,
02:05
in that area,
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02:06
and when this information was given to the judge,
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eta informazioa epaileari eman zitzaionean
02:09
the judge set Titus free.
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epaileak Titus aske utzi zuen.
02:12
And really, that's where this case should have ended.
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Eta, zinez hor amaitu behar zen kasua.
02:16
It should have been over.
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Amaitu egin behar zen.
02:17
Titus should have thought of this as a horrible year,
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Titusentzat urte txar bat izan behar zen,
02:20
a year of accusation and trial, but over.
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salaketa eta epaiketa urtea,
baina amaitua.
baina amaitua.
02:24
It didn't end that way.
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Ez zen horrela amaitu.
02:26
Titus was so bitter.
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Titus etsita zegoen.
02:28
He'd lost his job. He couldn't get it back.
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Bere lana galdu zuen.
Ezin zuen berreskuratu
Ezin zuen berreskuratu
02:31
He lost his fiancée.
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Emaztegaia galdu zuen.
02:33
She couldn't put up with his persistent anger.
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Bere etengabeko haserrea jasanezina zen.
02:36
He lost his entire savings,
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Bere aurrezkiak galdu zituen,
02:38
and so he decided to file a lawsuit
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eta salaketa bat jartzea erabaki zuen
02:41
against the police and others whom he felt
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polizia eta beste batzuen aurka
02:43
were responsible for his suffering.
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bere sufrimenduaren
sortzaileen aurka.
sortzaileen aurka.
02:45
And that's when I really started working on this case,
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Eta orduan hasi nintzen
kasu honetan lanean
kasu honetan lanean
02:50
trying to figure out
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zera asmatu nahian,
02:52
how did that victim go from
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nola iritsi zen biktima
02:54
"That one's the closest"
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"hau da antzekoena" esatetik
02:56
to "I'm absolutely positive that's the guy."
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"ziur nago hau dela" esatera.
03:00
Well, Titus was consumed with his civil case.
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Titus indar gabe zegoen kasuagatik.
03:04
He spent every waking moment thinking about it,
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Uneoro hortan pentsatzen zegoen,
03:07
and just days before he was to have his day in court,
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eta epaiketa baino egun batzuk lehenago,
03:11
he woke up in the morning,
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goizean esnatu,
03:13
doubled over in pain,
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minez tolestu,
03:15
and died of a stress-related heart attack.
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eta estresak sortutako
bihotzekoagatik hil zen.
bihotzekoagatik hil zen.
03:18
He was 35 years old.
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35 urte zituen.
03:21
So I was asked to work on Titus' case
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Titusen kasuan lan egiteko eskatu zidaten.
03:26
because I'm a psychological scientist.
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Psikologo zientifikoa naizelako.
03:28
I study memory. I've studied memory for decades.
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Oroimena aztertu dut hamarkadetan zehar.
03:32
And if I meet somebody on an airplane --
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Eta norbait ezagutzen badut hegazkinean
03:35
this happened on the way over to Scotland --
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- Eskoziara bidean gertatu zitzaidan-
03:37
if I meet somebody on an airplane,
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Norbait ezagutzen badut hegazkinean,
03:39
and we ask each other, "What do you do? What do you do?"
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eta elkarri galdetu "zer egiten duzu?"
03:42
and I say "I study memory,"
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eta "oroimena aztertu" badiot,
03:44
they usually want to tell me how they have trouble remembering names,
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izenak gogoratzeko zailtasunez
hitz egingo didate,
hitz egingo didate,
03:47
or they've got a relative who's got Alzheimer's
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edo Alzheimerra duen kide batez,
03:50
or some kind of memory problem,
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edo oroimen arazoren batez,
03:52
but I have to tell them
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baina esan behar diet
03:54
I don't study when people forget.
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ez dudala aztertzen ahazte prozesua.
03:58
I study the opposite: when they remember,
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Aurkakoa ikasten dut: gogoratzea,
04:01
when they remember things that didn't happen
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gertatu ez diren gauzak gogoratzea
04:03
or remember things that were different
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edo gauzak desberdin gogoratzea
04:05
from the way they really were.
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benetan izan zenarekin alderatuz.
04:07
I study false memories.
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Oroimen faltsuak aztertzen ditut.
04:12
Unhappily, Steve Titus is not the only person
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Zoritxarrez, Steve Titus ez da bakarra
04:16
to be convicted based on somebody's false memory.
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oroimen faltsu batengatik
kondenatua izan dena
kondenatua izan dena
04:21
In one project in the United States,
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EEBBetako proiektu batean
04:24
information has been gathered
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informazioa bildu da
04:26
on 300 innocent people,
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300 errugaberen inguruan,
04:30
300 defendants who were convicted of crimes they didn't do.
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egin gabeko delituengatik kondenatutakoak.
04:34
They spent 10, 20, 30 years in prison for these crimes,
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10,20 eta 30 urte pasa zituzten kartzelan,
04:39
and now DNA testing has proven
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eta orain DNA frogek frogatu dute
04:42
that they are actually innocent.
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errugabeak direla.
04:45
And when those cases have been analyzed,
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Eta kasu hauek aztertuak izan direnean,
04:47
three quarters of them
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hiru laurdenak
04:49
are due to faulty memory, faulty eyewitness memory.
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oroimen faltsuengatik izan dira.
04:55
Well, why?
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Eta zergatik?
04:56
Like the jurors who convicted those innocent people
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Errugabe hauek kondenatu zituzten
epaimahiak
epaimahiak
05:00
and the jurors who convicted Titus,
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eta Titus kondenatu zuen
epaimahiak bezala,
epaimahiak bezala,
05:02
many people believe that memory
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askok uste dute oroimena
05:04
works like a recording device.
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grabagailu bat bezalakoa dela.
05:06
You just record the information,
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Informazioa gordetzen duena,
05:08
then you call it up and play it back
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gero berreskuratu
eta berrerabiltzeko
eta berrerabiltzeko
05:11
when you want to answer questions or identify images.
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galderak erantzun edo
irudiak identifikatu nahi direnean.
irudiak identifikatu nahi direnean.
05:14
But decades of work in psychology
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Baina psikologian
hamarkadetan egindako lanek
hamarkadetan egindako lanek
05:16
has shown that this just isn't true.
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hau ez dela horrela erakutsi dute.
05:20
Our memories are constructive.
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Gure oroitzapenak eraikitzaileak dira.
05:22
They're reconstructive.
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Berreraikitzaileak.
05:24
Memory works a little bit more like a Wikipedia page:
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Oroimenak Wikipediaren orri baten
antzera lan egiten du:
antzera lan egiten du:
05:27
You can go in there and change it, but so can other people.
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Gauzak aldatu ditzakezu,
baina baita besteek ere.
baina baita besteek ere.
05:32
I first started studying this constructive memory process
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Oroitzapen eraikitzaile hauek
lehen adiz aztertzen
lehen adiz aztertzen
05:37
in the 1970s.
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70.hamarkadan hasi nintzen.
05:40
I did my experiments that involved showing people
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Esperimentuetan jendeari simulatutako
delitu eta istripuak erakusten zitzaizkien
delitu eta istripuak erakusten zitzaizkien
05:44
simulated crimes and accidents
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05:47
and asking them questions about what they remember.
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eta gogoratzen zutenaz galdetzen zitzaien.
05:50
In one study, we showed people a simulated accident
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Behin, simulatutako istripu bat
erakutsi genuen
erakutsi genuen
05:54
and we asked people,
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eta zera galdetu,
05:56
how fast were the cars going when they hit each other?
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ze abiadura zeramaten
autoek talka egitean?
autoek talka egitean?
05:58
And we asked other people,
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Beste batzuei zera galdetu genien
06:00
how fast were the cars going when they smashed into each other?
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ze abiadura zeramaten autoek
elkar jo zutenean?
elkar jo zutenean?
06:04
And if we asked the leading "smashed" question,
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eta galderan "jo" erabili genuenean,
06:07
the witnesses told us the cars were going faster,
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lekukoek autoa
azkarrago zihoala esan zuten,
azkarrago zihoala esan zuten,
06:10
and moreover, that leading "smashed" question
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eta orohar galderan
"jo" hitza erabiltzeak
"jo" hitza erabiltzeak
06:14
caused people to be more likely to tell us
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jendeak probabilitate handiagoz
zera esatea eragin zuen,
zera esatea eragin zuen,
06:17
that they saw broken glass in the accident scene
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istripuaren tokian
kristal apurtuak ikusi zituela
kristal apurtuak ikusi zituela
06:20
when there wasn't any broken glass at all.
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kristal apurturik ez zegoenean.
06:24
In another study, we showed a simulated accident
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Beste batean, simulatutako
istripu bat erakutsi genuen
istripu bat erakutsi genuen
06:27
where a car went through an intersection with a stop sign,
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non kotxe batek "stop"
seinale bat pasatzen zuen
seinale bat pasatzen zuen
06:30
and if we asked a question that insinuated it was a yield sign,
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eta "eman bidea" seinalea zela iradokiz
galdera bat egitean,
galdera bat egitean,
06:35
many witnesses told us they remember seeing a yield sign
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lekuko askok bidegurutzean "eman bidea"
seinalea gogoratzen zutela esaten zuten
seinalea gogoratzen zutela esaten zuten
06:39
at the intersection, not a stop sign.
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eta ez "stop" seinalea.
06:43
And you might be thinking, well, you know,
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Eta pentsa dezakezu, tira, badakizu,
06:45
these are filmed events,
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hauek grabaketak dira,
06:46
they are not particularly stressful.
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eta ez dira bereziki estresagarriak.
06:48
Would the same kind of mistakes be made
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Akats berdinak egingo lirateke
06:51
with a really stressful event?
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benetan estresagarriak diren egoeretan?
06:54
In a study we published just a few months ago,
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Duela gutxi argitaratutako ikerketa batean
06:57
we have an answer to this question,
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galdera horri erantzun bat ematen diogu,
06:59
because what was unusual about this study
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ikerketa honen bereizgarri bat
07:02
is we arranged for people to have a very stressful experience.
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jendea egoera estresagarrian
jartzea delako.
jartzea delako.
07:07
The subjects in this study
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Bertan, partaideak
07:10
were members of the U.S. military
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EEBBetako militarrak ziren
07:12
who were undergoing a harrowing training exercise
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entrenamendu beldurgarrian zeudenak
07:17
to teach them what it's going to be like for them
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egoera zailetara ohitzen joateko
07:19
if they are ever captured as prisoners of war.
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gerran preso eramaten bazituzten.
07:23
And as part of this training exercise,
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Eta entrenamendu honen zati gisa,
07:26
these soldiers are interrogated in an aggressive,
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soldaduak agresiboki galdekatzen dituzte
07:29
hostile, physically abusive fashion for 30 minutes
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30 minutuz fisikoki erasotuz
07:34
and later on they have to try to identify
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eta gero identifikatzen saiatu behar dira
07:37
the person who conducted that interrogation.
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nork galdekatu zituen.
07:40
And when we feed them suggestive information
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Eta informazio iradokitzailea
eskaintzen diegunean
eskaintzen diegunean
07:44
that insinuates it's a different person,
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pertsona desberdin bat dela iradokiz,
07:47
many of them misidentify their interrogator,
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askok txarto
identifikatzen dute galdetzailea,
identifikatzen dute galdetzailea,
07:51
often identifying someone who doesn't even remotely
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askotan, identifikatutakoak ez du
07:55
resemble the real interrogator.
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benetako galdetzailearen antzik ere.
07:58
And so what these studies are showing
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Ikerketa hauek erakusten dutena zera da,
08:00
is that when you feed people misinformation
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jendeari iradokizunak egiterakoan
08:04
about some experience that they may have had,
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jasan duten esperientzia baten inguruan,
08:07
you can distort or contaminate or change their memory.
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berain oroitzapena aldatu daitekeela.
08:13
Well out there in the real world,
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Benetako munduan,
08:15
misinformation is everywhere.
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informazio eza nonahi dago.
08:18
We get misinformation
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Desinformazioa dago
08:19
not only if we're questioned in a leading way,
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ez bakarrik galdetuak bagara,
08:22
but if we talk to other witnesses
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baita lekukoekin hitz egiterakoan ere
08:25
who might consciously or inadvertently feed us
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nortzuek modu desegokian
eskaini diezaguketen
eskaini diezaguketen
08:28
some erroneous information,
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informazio okerra,
08:30
or if we see media coverage about some event we might have experienced,
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edo bizitako egoera baten berria entzutean
08:35
all of these provide the opportunity
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eta guzti honek oroimenaren kutsaketa
ahalbidetzen du.
ahalbidetzen du.
08:37
for this kind of contamination of our memory.
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08:42
In the 1990s, we began to see
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510312
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1990an, zera ikusten hasi ginen,
08:46
an even more extreme kind of memory problem.
169
514100
4683
oraindik larriagoa den oroimen arazoa.
08:50
Some patients were going into therapy with one problem --
170
518783
3096
Pazienteak arazo batekin
joaten ziren terapiara--
joaten ziren terapiara--
08:53
maybe they had depression, an eating disorder --
171
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2914
agian depresioa, elikadura nahastea--
08:56
and they were coming out of therapy
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2753
eta terapiatik ateratzen zirenean
08:59
with a different problem.
173
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arazo desberdin bat zuten.
09:02
Extreme memories for horrific brutalizations,
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3701
Basakeria beldurgarrien oroimenak,
09:05
sometimes in satanic rituals,
175
533908
1983
batzuetan erritual satanikoenak,
09:07
sometimes involving really bizarre and unusual elements.
176
535891
4697
batzuetan elementu arraroei loturikoak.
09:12
One woman came out of psychotherapy
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Emakume batek psikoterapia amaitzean
09:15
believing that she'd endured years
178
543142
2428
zera sinisten zuen,
urteetan zehar
urteetan zehar
09:17
of ritualistic abuse, where she was forced into a pregnancy
179
545570
3902
eraso zeremonialak jasan izan zituela,
haurdunaldira eraman zutenak
haurdunaldira eraman zutenak
09:21
and that the baby was cut from her belly.
180
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2566
eta haurra bere tripatik moztu zutela.
09:24
But there were no physical scars
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Baina ez zeukan orbain fisikorik
09:26
or any kind of physical evidence
182
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2026
ez inolako froga fisikorik
09:28
that could have supported her story.
183
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2881
bere istorioa ziurtatuko zuenik.
09:31
And when I began looking into these cases,
184
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Eta kasu hauek aztertzen hasi nintzenean,
09:34
I was wondering,
185
562312
1450
nire buruari galdetzen nion,
09:35
where do these bizarre memories come from?
186
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2328
nondik datoz oroitzapen arraro hauek?
09:38
And what I found is that most of these situations
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4387
Eta zera aurkitu nuen, kasu gehienetan
09:42
involved some particular form of psychotherapy.
188
570477
5491
psikoterapia motaren batean
gertatzen zela hori.
gertatzen zela hori.
09:47
And so I asked,
189
575968
1599
Eta beraz, galdetu nuen,
09:49
were some of the things going on in this psychotherapy --
190
577567
3388
psikoterapia honen aspekturen bat--
09:52
like the imagination exercises
191
580955
2884
imajinazio ariketak esaterako
09:55
or dream interpretation,
192
583839
2057
edo ametsen interpretazioa,
09:57
or in some cases hypnosis,
193
585896
2132
edo kasu batzuetan hipnosia,
10:00
or in some cases exposure to false information --
194
588028
3818
edo informazio faltsuaren aurkezpena--
10:03
were these leading these patients
195
591846
2787
ote zen pazienteak bultzatzen zituena
10:06
to develop these very bizarre,
196
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2677
oso arraroak ziren
10:09
unlikely memories?
197
597310
2931
oroitzapenak garatzera.
10:12
And I designed some experiments
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600241
2159
Beraz, esperimentu batzuk diseinatu nituen
10:14
to try to study the processes that were being used
199
602400
5025
prozesu hauek aztertzen saiatzeko
10:19
in this psychotherapy so I could study
200
607425
3073
psikoterapia horietan, aztertu nahian
10:22
the development of these very rich false memories.
201
610498
3551
oroimen faltsuen garapena.
10:26
In one of the first studies we did,
202
614049
2408
Egindako hasierako ikerketa batean,
10:28
we used suggestion,
203
616457
2353
sugestioa erabili genuen,
10:30
a method inspired by the psychotherapy we saw in these cases,
204
618810
4063
kasu horietako psikoterapiako metodo bat,
10:34
we used this kind of suggestion
205
622873
2110
sugestio mota bat erabili genuen
10:36
and planted a false memory
206
624983
1852
eta oroitzapen faltsu bat txertatu
10:38
that when you were a kid, five or six years old,
207
626835
3077
non umea zinenean, 5-6 urte,
10:41
you were lost in a shopping mall.
208
629912
2251
zentro komertzial batean galdu zinen.
10:44
You were frightened. You were crying.
209
632163
2500
Beldurtuta zeunden. Negarrez.
10:46
You were ultimately rescued by an elderly person
210
634663
2514
Azkenean adineko batek salbatu zintuen
10:49
and reunited with the family.
211
637177
1852
eta zure familiarengana eraman.
10:51
And we succeeded in planting this memory
212
639029
2608
Eta oroitzapen hau txertatzea lortu genuen
10:53
in the minds of about a quarter of our subjects.
213
641637
4106
partaideen laurden batean.
10:57
And you might be thinking, well,
214
645743
2005
Eta pentsa dezakezu, tira,
10:59
that's not particularly stressful.
215
647748
2346
hori ez da bereziki estresagarria.
11:02
But we and other investigators have planted
216
650094
3369
Guk eta beste ikertzaile batzuk
oroitzapen faltsuak txertatu ditugu
oroitzapen faltsuak txertatu ditugu
11:05
rich false memories of things that were
217
653463
2758
ezohikoagoak eta estresagarriagoak zirenak.
11:08
much more unusual and much more stressful.
218
656221
2915
11:11
So in a study done in Tennessee,
219
659136
2539
Tennesseen egindako ikerketa batean,
11:13
researchers planted the false memory
220
661675
2416
ikertzaileek oroitzapen faltsu bat
txertatu zuten
txertatu zuten
11:16
that when you were a kid, you nearly drowned
221
664091
2574
non, haurra zinenean ia ito egin zinen
11:18
and had to be rescued by a life guard.
222
666665
2507
eta sorosle batek erreskatatu
behar izan zintuen.
behar izan zintuen.
11:21
And in a study done in Canada,
223
669172
2303
Eta Kanadan egindako ikerketa batean,
11:23
researchers planted the false memory
224
671475
2524
ikertzaileek oroitzapen
faltsua txertatu zuten
faltsua txertatu zuten
11:25
that when you were a kid,
225
673999
1228
non haurra zinenean
11:27
something as awful as being attacked by a vicious animal
226
675227
3730
animalia basati batek erasotzea
bezalako zerbait
bezalako zerbait
11:30
happened to you,
227
678957
1382
gertatu zitzaizun,
11:32
succeeding with about half of their subjects.
228
680339
3422
eta partehartzaile erdiekin
lortu zuten.
lortu zuten.
11:35
And in a study done in Italy,
229
683761
2352
Eta Italian egindako ikerketa batean,
11:38
researchers planted the false memory,
230
686113
2658
ikertzaileek oroitzapen faltsua
txertatu zuten
txertatu zuten
11:40
when you were a kid, you witnessed demonic possession.
231
688771
5212
non, haurra zinenean
deabrutze bat ikusi zenuen.
deabrutze bat ikusi zenuen.
11:45
I do want to add that it might seem
232
693983
2207
Gehitu nahi dut, eman dezakeela
11:48
like we are traumatizing these experimental subjects
233
696190
3739
partehartzaile esperimentalak
traumatizatzen ditugula
traumatizatzen ditugula
11:51
in the name of science,
234
699929
1600
zientziaren izenean,
11:53
but our studies have gone through thorough evaluation
235
701529
4638
baina gure ikerketak ebaluatuak izan dira
11:58
by research ethics boards
236
706167
1975
etika batzordeengandik
12:00
that have made the decision
237
708142
2342
eta erabaki dute
12:02
that the temporary discomfort that some
238
710484
3073
sortu dezaketen egonezin iragankorra,
12:05
of these subjects might experience in these studies
239
713557
3084
partehartzaile esperimentalek
sufritu dezaketena,
sufritu dezaketena,
12:08
is outweighed by the importance of this problem
240
716641
3900
konpentsatu egiten dela
arazoaren garrantziarekin,
arazoaren garrantziarekin,
12:12
for understanding memory processes
241
720541
3107
oroimen prozesuak ulertzea
12:15
and the abuse of memory that is going on
242
723648
3346
eta munduko leku batzuetan
egiten diren gehiegikeriak aztertzea.
egiten diren gehiegikeriak aztertzea.
12:18
in some places in the world.
243
726994
3293
12:22
Well, to my surprise,
244
730287
3038
Nire harridurarako,
12:25
when I published this work and began to speak out
245
733325
3429
lan hau argitaratu eta hitz egiten hastean
12:28
against this particular brand of psychotherapy,
246
736754
3895
psikoterapia mota horien aurka,
12:32
it created some pretty bad problems for me:
247
740649
3980
arazo batzuk sortu zitzaizkidan:
12:36
hostilities, primarily from the repressed memory therapists,
248
744629
4901
etsaitasunak, batez ere
oroimen erreprimituen terapeutengandik
oroimen erreprimituen terapeutengandik
12:41
who felt under attack,
249
749530
1676
erasotuak sentitu zirenak,
12:43
and by the patients whom they had influenced.
250
751206
3528
eta tratatuak izan ziren pazienteengandik.
12:46
I had sometimes armed guards at speeches
251
754734
2937
Batzuetan zaindariak eraman
behar izan nituen hitzaldietara
behar izan nituen hitzaldietara
12:49
that I was invited to give,
252
757671
1905
non gonbidatua izan nintzen,
12:51
people trying to drum up letter-writing campaigns to get me fired.
253
759576
4217
jendea ni kaleratzeko kanpaina egiten.
12:55
But probably the worst
254
763793
1981
Baina segurutik, okerrena zera izan zen,
12:57
was I suspected that a woman
255
765774
2767
susmoa nuela emakume bat
13:00
was innocent of abuse
256
768541
2424
erasoen errugabea zela,
13:02
that was being claimed by her grown daughter.
257
770965
2836
eta bere alabak salatu egin zuela.
13:05
She accused her mother of sexual abuse
258
773801
3417
Amari eraso sexualak egitea
leporatzen zion
leporatzen zion
13:09
based on a repressed memory.
259
777218
1859
erreprimitutako oroitzapenetan
oinarrituta.
oinarrituta.
13:11
And this accusing daughter had actually allowed her story
260
779077
2883
Eta alaba salatari hark
baimendu egin zuen istorioa
baimendu egin zuen istorioa
13:13
to be filmed and presented in public places.
261
781960
3434
filmatua eta publikoki argitaratua izatea.
13:17
I was suspicious of this story,
262
785394
2509
Zalantzak neuzkan istorioaren inguruan,
13:19
and so I started to investigate,
263
787903
2300
eta ikertzen hasi nintzen,
13:22
and eventually found information that convinced me
264
790203
4483
eta informazioa lortu nuen
konbentzitu ninduena
konbentzitu ninduena
13:26
that this mother was innocent.
265
794686
2289
ama errugabea zela.
13:28
I published an exposé on the case,
266
796975
2961
Kasuaren inguruan argitaratu nuen,
13:31
and a little while later, the accusing daughter
267
799936
3444
eta geroago, alaba salatzaileak
13:35
filed a lawsuit.
268
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1521
auzitara eraman ninduen.
13:36
Even though I'd never mentioned her name,
269
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2355
Bere izena inoiz aipatu ez nuen arren,
13:39
she sued me for defamation and invasion of privacy.
270
807256
4362
difamazio eta pribatutasun
inbasioagatik salatu ninduen.
inbasioagatik salatu ninduen.
13:43
And I went through nearly five years
271
811618
2723
Eta 5 urtean zehar
13:46
of dealing with this messy, unpleasant litigation,
272
814341
6552
auzi desatseginetan ibili nintzen,
13:52
but finally, finally, it was over and I could really
273
820893
3674
baina azkenean amaitu zen, eta
13:56
get back to my work.
274
824567
2424
lanera itzuli ahal izan nuen.
13:58
In the process, however, I became part
275
826991
2485
Hala ere, bidean, parte izan nintzen
14:01
of a disturbing trend in America
276
829476
2654
EEBBetako joera kezkagarri batena
14:04
where scientists are being sued
277
832130
2107
non zientzialariak salatuak diren
14:06
for simply speaking out on matters of great public controversy.
278
834237
4599
eztabaida publikoetan parte hartzeagatik.
14:10
When I got back to my work, I asked this question:
279
838836
3358
Lanera itzuli nintzenean, galdetu nuen:
14:14
if I plant a false memory in your mind,
280
842194
2398
oroitzapen faltsu bat txertatuz gero,
14:16
does it have repercussions?
281
844592
1844
ondorioak izango al ditu?
14:18
Does it affect your later thoughts,
282
846436
1959
Zure geroko pentsamenduetan
eragingo al du?
eragingo al du?
14:20
your later behaviors?
283
848395
2101
eta zure geroko jokabideetan?
Lehen ikerketan oroitzapen bat
txertatu genuen
txertatu genuen
14:22
Our first study planted a false memory
284
850496
2027
14:24
that you got sick as a child eating certain foods:
285
852523
3326
non haurra zinenean elikagai batek
gaixotu zintuen:
gaixotu zintuen:
14:27
hard-boiled eggs, dill pickles, strawberry ice cream.
286
855849
2999
arrautza egosiak, pepinoak,
marrubizko izozkia.
marrubizko izozkia.
14:30
And we found that once we planted this false memory,
287
858848
3190
Aurkitu genuen,
behin oroitzapena txertatuta
behin oroitzapena txertatuta
14:34
people didn't want to eat the foods as much
288
862038
2451
jendeak ez zuela hori hainbeste jan nahi
14:36
at an outdoor picnic.
289
864489
2260
kanpoko piknik batean.
14:38
The false memories aren't necessarily bad or unpleasant.
290
866749
3873
Oroitzapen faltsuak ez dute
desatseginak izan beharrik.
desatseginak izan beharrik.
14:42
If we planted a warm, fuzzy memory
291
870622
2358
Oroitzapen atsegin bat txertatuz gero
14:44
involving a healthy food like asparagus,
292
872980
3021
zainzuria bezalako elikagai
osasuntsu baten inguruan
osasuntsu baten inguruan
14:48
we could get people to want to eat asparagus more.
293
876001
3475
jendeak zainzuri gehiago
jatea lortuko genuke.
jatea lortuko genuke.
14:51
And so what these studies are showing
294
879476
2374
Ikerketa hauek erakusten dutena da
14:53
is that you can plant false memories
295
881850
2115
oroitzapen faltsuak txertatu daitezkeela
14:55
and they have repercussions
296
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1413
eta ondorio izan ditzaketela
14:57
that affect behavior long after the memories take hold.
297
885378
5085
jokabidean, epe luzera.
15:02
Well, along with this ability
298
890463
2424
Gaitasun honekin batera
15:04
to plant memories and control behavior
299
892887
2923
oroitzapenak txertatzea eta
jokabidea kontrolatzea,
jokabidea kontrolatzea,
15:07
obviously come some important ethical issues,
300
895810
4181
kontu etiko garrantzitsuak daude,
15:11
like, when should we use this mind technology?
301
899991
3059
esaterako, noiz erabili behar dira
teknika hauek?
teknika hauek?
15:15
And should we ever ban its use?
302
903050
3680
edo, debekatu egin behar dira?
15:18
Therapists can't ethically plant false memories
303
906730
2783
Terapeutek ezin dute etikoki
oroitzapenik txertatu
oroitzapenik txertatu
15:21
in the mind of their patients
304
909513
1587
pazienteen gogamenean
15:23
even if it would help the patient,
305
911100
2564
laguntzeko bada ere,
15:25
but there's nothing to stop a parent
306
913664
1622
baina ezerk ez dio
guraso bati galerazten
guraso bati galerazten
15:27
from trying this out on their overweight or obese teenager.
307
915286
4449
haur obesoekin egiten saiatzeko.
15:31
And when I suggested this publicly,
308
919735
2605
Eta hau publikoki iradoki nuenean,
15:34
it created an outcry again.
309
922340
3346
kexak sortu ziren berriz.
15:37
"There she goes. She's advocating that parents lie to their children."
310
925686
4033
"Hor doa. Gurasoek haurrei
gezurrak esatea bultzatzen"
gezurrak esatea bultzatzen"
15:41
Hello, Santa Claus. (Laughter)
311
929719
2245
Kaixo, Santa Claus. (Barreak)
15:43
I mean, another way to think about this is,
312
931964
9497
Hau ikusteko eduki dezakegun
beste modu bat zera da,
beste modu bat zera da,
15:53
which would you rather have,
313
941461
2033
zer nahiago duzu, haur obesoa,
diabetesarekin, biziraupen laburra,
diabetesarekin, biziraupen laburra,
15:55
a kid with obesity, diabetes, shortened lifespan,
314
943494
3029
15:58
all the things that go with it,
315
946523
1532
honek guztiak dakarrena,
16:00
or a kid with one little extra bit of false memory?
316
948055
3016
ala oroitzapen faltsu
txiki bat duen haurra?
txiki bat duen haurra?
16:03
I know what I would choose for a kid of mine.
317
951071
3391
Badakit zer aukeratuko nukeen
nire haurrarentzat.
nire haurrarentzat.
16:06
But maybe my work has made me different from most people.
318
954462
3977
Beharbada nire lanak gehiengotik
desberdindu egin nau.
desberdindu egin nau.
16:10
Most people cherish their memories,
319
958439
2079
Gehienek oroitzapenak maite dituzte,
16:12
know that they represent their identity,
320
960518
2154
euren identitatea errepresentatzen dute,
16:14
who they are, where they came from.
321
962672
2025
nortzuk diren, nondik datozen.
16:16
And I appreciate that. I feel that way too.
322
964697
2858
Eta hori baloratzen dut.
Nik ere horrela sentitzen dut.
Nik ere horrela sentitzen dut.
16:19
But I know from my work
323
967555
2205
Baina nire lanagatik dakit
16:21
how much fiction is already in there.
324
969760
4481
zenbat fikzio dagoen horietan.
16:26
If I've learned anything from these decades
325
974241
2732
Hamarkada hauetan zerbait ikasi badut
16:28
of working on these problems, it's this:
326
976973
2410
arazo horiekin lanean, zera da:
16:31
just because somebody tells you something
327
979383
2211
norbaitek zerbait esateak soilik
16:33
and they say it with confidence,
328
981594
1575
eta konfidantzarekin esateak,
16:35
just because they say it with lots of detail,
329
983169
2680
zehaztasun osoz kontatu arren,
16:37
just because they express emotion when they say it,
330
985849
2759
kontatzerakoan emozioak adierazi arren,
16:40
it doesn't mean that it really happened.
331
988608
3202
ez du esan nahi gertatu zenik.
16:43
We can't reliably distinguish true memories from false memories.
332
991810
3865
Ezin dira oroitzapen faltsua eta
benetakoa guztiz bereiztu
benetakoa guztiz bereiztu
16:47
We need independent corroboration.
333
995675
3548
Baieztapen independienteak behar ditugu.
16:51
Such a discovery has made me more tolerant
334
999223
3090
Aurkikuntza hauek toleranteagoa egin naute
16:54
of the everyday memory mistakes
335
1002313
2139
lagun eta familiakoek egindako
ohiko oroimen akatsekiko.
ohiko oroimen akatsekiko.
16:56
that my friends and family members make.
336
1004452
2914
16:59
Such a discovery might have saved Steve Titus,
337
1007366
4534
Aurkikuntza hauek Steve Titus
salba zezaketen
salba zezaketen
17:03
the man whose whole future was snatched away
338
1011900
3576
bere etorkizuna kendu zioten gizona
17:07
by a false memory.
339
1015476
2238
oroitzapen faltsu bategatik.
17:09
But meanwhile, we should all keep in mind,
340
1017714
2816
Bitartean jakin beharko genuke,
17:12
we'd do well to,
341
1020530
1636
ondo egingo genuke,
17:14
that memory, like liberty,
342
1022166
3871
oroimena, askatasuna bezala,
17:18
is a fragile thing.
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gauza hauskorra dela.
17:21
Thank you. Thank you.
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Eskerrik asko. Eskerrik asko.
17:24
Thank you. (Applause)
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Eskerrik asko. (Txaloak)
17:27
Thanks very much. (Applause)
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Mila esker. (Txaloak)
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Elizabeth Loftus - False memories scholarMemory-manipulation expert Elizabeth Loftus explains how our memories might not be what they seem -- and how implanted memories can have real-life repercussions.
Why you should listen
Elizabeth Loftus altered the course of legal history by revealing that memory is not only unreliable, but also mutable. Since the 1970s, Loftus has created an impressive body of scholarly work and has appeared as an expert witness in hundreds of courtrooms, bolstering the cases of defendants facing criminal charges based on eyewitness testimony, and debunking “recovered memory” theories popular at the time, as in her book The Myth of Repressed Memory: False Memories and Allegations of Sexual Abuse (with Katherine Ketcham).
Since then, Loftus has dedicated herself to discovering how false memories can affect our daily lives, leading her to surprising therapeutic applications for memory modification -- including controlling obesity by implanting patients with preferences for healthy foods.
Elizabeth Loftus | Speaker | TED.com