（。。。。無責(zé)任翻譯，不想細(xì)查啥錯誤，但有指出錯誤的且重要到影響作者觀點(diǎn)的話，我改。特別重要的是也許你看到滴觀點(diǎn)既不是作者的觀點(diǎn)，更不可能是我的觀點(diǎn)，而是我錯誤翻譯滴緣故哦XD，好吧，我作鬼也想不到我的第一篇譯作竟會是這方面的囧rz）
文中某些括號是作意思上的補(bǔ)充�？傊�，戴上你的安全頭盔吧:D
有些詞兒我覺得有必要留心下，方便用作關(guān)鍵詞來google，所以沒譯在其中，而是放到這里：
eidetic image 心象
eidetic imagery 心象記憶
photographic memory 照相記憶（我理解是心象記憶中的一種，心象記憶不僅僅是對圖象的記憶，包括對聲音，聽覺，嗅覺等的記憶）
visual imagery 視覺印象
afterimages 殘留影象
Is there such a thing as a photographic memory? And if so, can it be learned?
Inthe scientific literature, the term eidetic imagery comes closest towhat is popularly called photographic memory. The most common way toidentify eidetikers (as people with eidetic imagery are often called)is by the Picture Elicitation Method. In it, an unfamiliar picture isplaced on an easel and a person carefully scans the entire scene. After30 seconds have elapsed, the picture is removed from view, and theperson is asked to continue to look at the easel and to report anythingthat they can observe. People possessing eidetic imagery willconfidently claim to still "see" the picture. In addition, they canscan it and examine different parts of it just as if the picture werestill physically present. Consequently, one of the hallmarks of eideticimagery is that eidetikers use the present tense when answeringquestions about the missing picture, and they can report inextraordinary detail what it contained.
在科學(xué)文獻(xiàn)中，術(shù)語“eideticimagery”的含義跟俗稱的“photographicmemory”很接近。確認(rèn)（一個人是不是）“eidetiker（對那些有eideticimagery能力的人的稱呼）”最通常的方法叫“Picture ElicitationMethod”。通過這種方法，在畫架上放置一幅陌生的圖畫，讓一人仔細(xì)地掃視整幅畫。30秒后，將圖移出那人視線，然后讓那人接著邊看那畫架邊描述任何他們（剛在那幅圖里）能觀察到的細(xì)節(jié)。擁有“eideticimagery”能力的人將自信滿滿地聲稱仍然可以“看見”那幅圖。此外，他們可以掃視它而后細(xì)查那圖上不同的部分，就好像那幅圖實(shí)際上還在面前一樣。因此，“eideticimagery”的一個典型的特點(diǎn)是，當(dāng)eidetiker們在現(xiàn)場被問及與那幅消失圖畫有關(guān)的問題時，他們可以超量回答出那圖所包含的細(xì)節(jié)。
Eideticimages differ from other forms of visual imagery in several importantways. First, an eidetic image is not simply a long afterimage, sinceafterimages move around when you move your eyes and are usually adifferent color than the original image. (For example, a flash cameracan produce afterimages: the flash is bright white, but the afterimageis a black dot, and the dot moves around every time you move youreyes.) In contrast, a true eidetic image doesn‘t move as you move youreyes, and it is in the same color as the original picture. Second, acommon visual image that we can all create from memory (such as animage of a bedroom) does not have the characteristics of most eideticimages, which almost always fade away involuntarily and part by part.Also, it is not possible to control which parts of an eidetic imagefade and which remain visible. Unlike common visual images created frommemory, most eidetic images last between about half a minute to severalminutes only, and it is possible to voluntarily destroy an eideticimage forever by the simple act of blinking intentionally. Furthermore,once gone from view, rarely can an eidetic image ever be retrieved.
“eideticimage”在幾個重要方面上不同于“visual imagery”。第一、一個“eidetic image”并非是個“longafterimage”那樣簡單，因?yàn)?ldquo;afterimage”會在你移動自己的眼球時移動，并且通常會是相較原象不同的顏色。（例如，一臺閃光照相機(jī)能引起殘像：那個閃光是亮白的，但殘象會是個黑點(diǎn)，并且隨著你移動自己的眼球，那個點(diǎn)會跟著移動。）與此相反，一個真實(shí)的“eideticimage”不會隨著你的眼球移動而移動，而且它的顏色跟原象是一樣的。第二、一個常見的大家都能從記憶中產(chǎn)生的“visualimagery”（如（心目中）一間臥室的印象）并不具有大多數(shù)“eideticimage”所具有的典型特征，它們幾乎總是一個接一個地非我們所愿地逐漸消失。同樣，并不可能控制一個“eideticimage”的某部份淡化和保持清晰可見。跟通常的由記憶產(chǎn)生的“visual image”不同，大多數(shù)“eideticimage”只能持續(xù)半分鐘到幾分鐘之間的時間，并且，通過一個簡單的有意眨眼動作，是有可能隨意且永久地破壞一個“eideticimage”的。此外，一旦從“視野”里消失，“eidetic image”總是能夠罕見地被恢復(fù)。
Youmight expect that an individual who claims to still see a picture afterit has been removed would be able to have a perfect memory of theoriginal picture. After all, a perfect memory is what is usuallyimplied by the commonly used phrase "photographic memory." As it turnsout, however, the accuracy of many eidetic images is far from perfect.In fact, besides often being sketchy on some details, it is not unusualfor eidetikers to alter visual details and even to invent some thatwere never in the original. This suggests that eidetic images arecertainly not photographic in nature but instead are reconstructed frommemory and can be influenced like other memories (both visual andnonvisual) by cognitive biases and expectations.
你可能料想，那些圖畫被移出視線之后，聲明仍能看到它的人能對圖象有完美的記憶力。畢竟，完美的記憶通常意味著“photographicmemory”。然而，事實(shí)證明，許多“eideticimage”的精確度遠(yuǎn)不夠完美。事實(shí)上，除了常常對一些細(xì)節(jié)忽略外，更改視覺細(xì)節(jié)，甚至捏造些原象并不具有的細(xì)節(jié)，這些對eidetiker們來說并不少見。這暗示著“eideticimage”在本質(zhì)上定然不是photographic，而是被從記憶中重建起來，并且跟其它的記憶（所有視覺與非視覺方面的）一樣，受認(rèn)知上的偏見和期待的影響。
The vast majority of the people who have beenidentified as possessing eidetic imagery are children. The prevalenceestimates of the ability among preadolescents range from about 2percent to 10 percent. And it is an equal-opportunityphenomenon--there‘s no gender difference in who is likely to be aneidetiker. Although it is certainly controversial, some researchersalso believe that eidetic imagery occurs more frequently in certainpopulations of the mentally retarded (specifically, in individualswhose retardation most likely stems from biological, rather thanenvironmental, causes) and also among geriatric populations. With a fewnotable exceptions, however, most research has shown that virtually noadults seem to possess the ability to form eidetic images.
絕大多數(shù)被鑒定為擁有“eideticimagery”的人是小孩。對青春期前的并具有這個能力的個體的概率估計(jì)是2%-10%。并且，這是個機(jī)會均等的現(xiàn)象--在那些很可能是eidetiker的人當(dāng)中沒有性別上的差異�？v使必然地會有爭議性，一些研究者還是相信：“eideticimagery”更頻繁地存在于某些智障（特別指，那些障礙多半由生物自身，而非環(huán)境導(dǎo)致的）群體之中，并且也存在于老年群體之中。然而,有一些明顯的例外,大多數(shù)研究調(diào)查表明，事實(shí)上沒有成年人看起來好像有能力去形成“eidetic image”。
Whyshould this be so? No one really knows, although part of the answer maybe related to a rather obscure fact about the development of suchimages. Research has shown that if a person verbalizes during the timehe or she is scanning the original picture, this interferes witheidetic image formation. This utterance could be something as seeminglyinnocuous as covertly saying "Saint Bernard" upon seeing a large dogduring the initial scanning process. So perhaps part of the reason whyit is so rare to find older eidetikers is that adults are much morelikely than children to try to both verbally and visually encode thepicture into memory. If this is true, then it means that adults aremore likely to disrupt the formation of eidetic images and are thusmuch less likely to be identified as having eidetic imagery, even ifthey really do possess the ability.
為何如此？盡管部分答案可能跟一個相當(dāng)模糊的關(guān)于“eideticimage”開發(fā)的事實(shí)有關(guān)，但是并沒有人真的知道。研究調(diào)查表明，如果一個人在瀏覽原始圖象的過程中用語言來認(rèn)知它，那么這將干擾“eideticimage”的形成。例如：在最初的瀏覽過程中，當(dāng)看到一條巨型犬時，（你的左腦在）暗地里說“圣伯納德犬”（于是，干擾了“eideticimage”的形成）。所以，關(guān)于為何尋得更年長的eidetiker們會是如此罕見的部分原因，或許是因?yàn)槌扇吮刃『⒏赡軙䥽L試從字面上和視覺上將圖象編碼到記憶中。如果這個原因成立，那么它意味著成人更可能自己中斷了“eideticimagery”的形成。因此，成人被鑒定為擁有“eidetic imagery”能力，這種可能性微乎其微，即便他們真的擁有這種能力。
Canyou acquire eidetic imagery through learning? Personally, I doubt it.To my knowledge, however, there have been no attempts to try to teachthe ability to anyone. Although it is clear that eidetic imageryexists, psychologists still do not know why it occurs, what brainmechanisms may be responsible, or why it is found in such a smallproportion of the population. It certainly is a fascinating phenomenon.
你能通過學(xué)習(xí)來獲得“eideticimagery”嗎？就個人而言，我對此表示懷疑。然而，據(jù)我所知，還沒有人試圖（做過實(shí)驗(yàn)）去嘗試將這種能力教給任何人。盡管“eideticimagery”的存在很顯然，但心理學(xué)家們?nèi)匀徊恢浪l(fā)生的緣由，（它是）什么大腦機(jī)制產(chǎn)生的，或者為何它在這么小比例的人口中被發(fā)現(xiàn)。這無疑是個引人入勝的現(xiàn)象。
以下是跟在文章后的回應(yīng)中的一條：
Clipped at 08:31 AM on 11/29/08
Wow... I have always been able to see pages that I focus on long after - like years after. I can remember study pages from grade school, and I'm 31 years old. I can remember my friend's dad's credit card number that I memorized by staring at it when I was 12. I only got a 3.9 GPA, but didn't only use my memory - I was in a liberal arts college, so I had to write a ton of papers for my first degree. Memory doesn't help too much on that front.
I also remember what page quotes are on, and whether the quote is on the top, middle or bottom of the page. I also thought this was completely normal, and that everyone could do it until maybe 1 year ago, when my roommate started telling me that what I was doing was unusual.
I'm not sure it's directly related to the eidetic memory, but can you guys read and understand technical material that you have not studied or been taught?
I also use something like the same pattern of visualization to help me with understanding theoretical systems. I am able to hold complex and large theories in my 'mind's eye', and can manipulate them to identify flaws in assumptions, logical connections, etc. Do you find that you can generate these kind of 'conceptual images' as well?
Anyway, it's very cool to hear from other people who have this memory ability. As I said, I only recently realized that there was anything unusual about my memory, and Googled "eidetic" this morning before finding this article.
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文章來自：http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=is-there-such-a-thing-as
作者介紹：Alan Searleman, a professor of psychology at St. Lawrence University and co-author of the college textbook Memory from a Broader Perspective, explains.
本文來自：逍遙右腦記憶 http://portlandfoamroofing.com/younao/1323.html
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