Alex.Rudnicky@CMU-CS-A.ARPA (07/07/84)
Hypnosis does not enhance memory for past events. There is no proof
that it does. There never was. In all likelyhood there never will be.
You may find documentation for this assertion in the work of several
investigators (in particular, Martin Orne). For a review of the
literature try:
M. C. Smith Hypnotic memory enhancement of witnesses: Does it work?
Psychological Bulletin, 1983, 94(3), 387-407.
I quote from the abstract:
"In contrast to the myriad of anecdotal reports extolling the
virtues of hypnosis for this purpose [witness memory],
controlled laboratory studies have consistently failed to
demonstrate any hypnotic memory improvement."
Electrical stimulation of the brain was studied by Wilder Penfield, 30
to 40 years ago at the Montreal Neurological Institute. Penfield did
experiments with stimulation in the course of operations for epilepsy.
His work is described in most textbooks. You might enjoy reading
some of the protocols he collected in his book "The excitable cortex
in conscious man" (1958). In summarizing his findings, Penfield uses
the words "illusions" and "hallucinations" to describe his patients'
recollections.
Now I have a question:
It may be fun to speculate about the super-normal and the para-normal,
but what does it have to do with AI?