The Surprising Science of Enjoying Food & Why We Need to Know Why

Mike Carruthers (0:00)

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Today, on Something You Should Know, why some of your most vivid memories may not be accurate, then the reasons you enjoy some food more than others. One reason is texture.

Dan Pashman (1:35)

Think about pretty much every candy bar, right? You have like a chocolatey shell and then you get inside and there's something chewy and maybe there's something gooey and then there's nougat in there, so it's crispy, it's crunchy, it's chewy, it's gooey, all in one bite. That's really great.

Mike Carruthers (1:51)

Also, what makes some statements seem believable even when they're not true? And what makes a great explanation? And why we may not be as good at explaining as we think?

Tania Lombrozo (2:03)

One of the most universal phenomena that sadly probably holds for all of us is that we're susceptible to a phenomenon called the illusion of explanatory depth, that we often overestimate our own explanatory understanding of how things work.

Mike Carruthers (2:17)

All this today on Something You Should Know.

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SPEAKER_4 (3:58)

Something You Should Know. Fascinating Intel. The world's top experts and practical advice you can use in your life. Today, Something You Should Know with Mike Carruthers.

Mike Carruthers (4:12)

You have memories, very vivid memories, etched in your mind that you're sure are accurate that likely are not. How can that be? Well, that's what we're going to start with today. I'm Mike Carruthers, and this is Something You Should Know.

So think about a major event from your past, a shocking news story or an accident or some unforgettable moment in your life. And you may be able to picture exactly where you were and what you were doing. Psychologists call especially vivid memories like these flashbulb memories. But here's the unsettling part. Your confidence in the memory doesn't guarantee that it's accurate. Research shows that even highly vivid memories can change over time, while still feeling completely authentic. New information, even repeatedly imagining something, can alter what we later remember.

Which means that when two people argue that they both remember exactly what happened, they can both be completely sincere and one or both of them can be completely wrong.