All Episodes

June 16, 2022 65 mins
TODAY'S GUEST

 

Dr. Amy Milton is an Associate Professor in Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Cambridge and the Ferreras-Willetts Fellow in Neuroscience at Downing College Cambridge. Her research focuses on understanding how memories persist and become updated in the brain, with the aim of using this knowledge to develop new forms of treatment for mental health disorders based on maladaptive emotional memories. She's trying to understand the conditions under which emotional memories become unstable, particularly those contributing to post traumatic stress disorder and drug addiction.

 

We talked in the middle of April 2022. When I heard about Amy's research and watched her TED Talk about editing memories, I thought this was something out of Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. It's not often that you encounter treatment with such transformative results and such promise, and at the same time, such scary potential. Despite her very technical subject, Amy was easy to talk to and I appreciated the care she took in explaining her research and its implications to a general audience. 

 

EPISODE SUMMARY

 

In this conversation we talk about:

  • How from a very early age, she was fascinated with the gap between what people intended to do and what they ended up doing, growing up with parents who were smokers.
  • Editing memories, and how new information can be incorporated and the memories themselves disrupted.
  • Studying addiction and the connection between addiction and memory, and how disrupting certain memories can prevent relapse.
  • Different types of memories — implicit memories and explicit memories, episodic memories, emotional memories, habits.
  • What does the smell of baking bread have to do with memory's role in addiction?
  • What can we do to fight addiction?
  • The role of memories in phobias and PTSD.
  • Exposure therapy and how it can get better with memory modification.
  • The use of psychedelics in therapy and in addiction, and how understanding the memory component of that can help us understand, potentially, psychedelics better. 
  • Virtual reality exposure.
  • And the ethical considerations of modifying someone's memory, whether it be through overuse, abuse, or a tyranny where individual rights are not a consideration.

 

This is one of a dozen or so weekly conversations we already have lined up for you with thinkers, designers, makers, authors, entrepreneurs, and investors who are working to change our world for the better. So follow this podcast on your favorite podcast app, or head over to remakepod.org to subscribe.

 

And now, let's jump right in with Dr. Amy Milton.

 

TIMESTAMP CHAPTERS

 

[4:54] Life in the Present

[6:29] Early Childhood Lessons

[9:06] A Path to Studying Memory

[11:33] Taxonomy of Memory

[17:10] The Difference Between a Habit and a Non-Habit

[20:09] Being Mindful of Habits

[23:46] Living with an Understanding of Memory

[26:55] Maladaptive Memories

[32:55] Extinction Learning and PTSD

.css-j9qmi7{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:row;-ms-flex-direction:row;flex-direction:row;font-weight:700;margin-bottom:1rem;margin-top:2.8rem;width:100%;-webkit-box-pack:start;-ms-flex-pack:start;-webkit-justify-content:start;justify-content:start;padding-left:5rem;}@media only screen and (max-width: 599px){.css-j9qmi7{padding-left:0;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;}}.css-j9qmi7 svg{fill:#27292D;}.css-j9qmi7 .eagfbvw0{-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;color:#27292D;}

Mark as Played

Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

Crime Junkie

Crime Junkie

Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.

24/7 News: The Latest

24/7 News: The Latest

The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.

Stuff You Should Know

Stuff You Should Know

If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.