Epigenetic Theory of Evolution Unifying Mind and Body when Looked at Through the Generations

By David William Jedell Updated October 2, 2025

The Answer to the Great Question : Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Answer: It had to be the egg because there would be no chicken without it. However, there could be an egg without a chicken if two other, and different, bird species mated and the offspring was a new species; a chicken.

Darwin's theory of evolutionary selection holds that variation within species occurs randomly and that the survival or extinction of each organism is determined by that organism's ability to adapt to its environment. He set these theories forth in his book The Origin of Species (1859). Epigenetic Theory of Evolution herein departs from this notion as the exclusive or even primary mechanism of evolution.

Moreover, Jean Baptiste Lamarck (1744-1829) is one of the best-known early evolutionists. According to Lamarck, organisms altered their behavior in response to environmental change. Their changed behavior, in turn, modified their organs, and their offspring inherited those "improved" structures. For example, giraffes developed their elongated necks and front legs by generations of browsing on high tree leaves. The exercise of stretching up to the leaves altered the neck and legs, and their offspring inherited these acquired characteristics. Conversely, according to Darwin's theory, giraffes that happened to have slightly longer necks and limbs would have a better chance of securing food and thus be able to have more offspring -- the "select" who survive. [1]

Carl Jung

The main ideas herein were originally written into a college philosophy paper by this author in 1988 under the title, "Carl Jung's Archetypes and Jean Piaget's Schema; Uniting Body and Mind," using only the relation of Jung and Piaget's theories, as well as logic. At the time, inherited evolutionary changes, rather than solely survival of life's random mutations, were not accepted by scientific consensus. Now, we have minor acceptance and a lot of science to back up the accepted neo-science of epigentetics.

Jean Piaget

Epigenetic Inheritance and Its Role in Evolutionary Biology - DNA methylation and histone modification alters how genes are expressed without altering the underlying DNA sequence.

Darwinian evolution focuses on genetic mutations as the primary driver of evolutionary change; epigenetics examines how environmental factors can influence gene expression without altering the DNA sequence itself, essentially providing another layer of variation that can be acted upon by natural selection, thus complementing Darwin's theory rather than contradicting it; in simple terms, Darwin's theory focuses on changes in the genetic code, while epigenetics explores how the "reading" of that code can be modified by environmental factors.

Someone’s lifetime can change the way their DNA is expressed, and how that change can be passed on to the next generation. This is the process of epigenetics, where the readability, or expression, of genes is modified without changing the DNA code itself. Tiny chemical tags are added to or removed from our DNA in response to changes in the environment in which we are living. [2]

Understanding of epigenetics has evolved significantly over time, moving beyond its initial connection to development and evolution to encompass the idea that epigenetic changes are heritable modifications to gene function that occur without changes in the DNA sequence itself, and these changes can be passed on through cell division. There may be an “epigenetic advantage” to phenotypic switching by epigenetic inheritance, rather than by gene mutation. An epigenetically-inherited trait can arise simultaneously in many individuals, as opposed to a single individual with a gene mutation. Moreover, a transient epigenetically-modified phenotype can be quickly “sunsetted”, with individuals reverting to the original phenotype. Thus, epigenetic phenotype switching is dynamic and temporary and can help bridge periods of environmental stress. Epigenetic inheritance likely contributes to evolution both directly and indirectly. Doubtlessly, the presence of epigenetic markers and the phenotypes they create (which may sort quite separately from the genotype within a population) will influence natural selection and, so, drive the collective genotype of a population. [3]

"Collective Unconscious" (German: kollektives Unbewusstes) refers to the theory that the unconscious mind and shared mental concepts. It was coined by Carl Jung.

With the help of clinical examples, the author tries to show how the therapeutic process works in Jung's theory of Unconscious: in the course of transference, the Unconscious generates Images which are coming from the Archetypes of Collective Unconscious. The interpretation of these Images and dreamer's associations trough transference, leads the patient to elaborate Symbols as carriers of a new sense for himself,

Archetype symbols connect the individual to the collective unconscious through visual images and symbolic imagery. They prompt the participants to experience emotional resonances that transcend individual experiences and affect their state of consciousness. [4]

Schema

Jean Piaget's schema theory is a theory of cognitive development that describes how mental structures called schemas organize knowledge and guide behavior. Piaget believed that children develop and modify schemas through interactions with their environment.

Here are some key aspects of Piaget's schema theory:

Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development includes the idea of schemas, which are mental structures that organize knowledge and guide behavior. Schemas are the building blocks of cognitive development and are constantly changing as a person gains new experiences.

Some key ideas about schemas:

Definition

A schema is a mental template or category of knowledge that helps a person understand the world.

Development

Schemas are developed through experience. For example, a child might initially use the word "dog" to refer to the first dog they meet, but over time the word will come to represent all dogs.

Assimilation

This is when a person uses an existing schema to interpret a new situation or object. For example, a child might call a skunk a cat when they first see it.

Accommodation

This is when a person changes or creates a new schema to fit new information. For example, a child might initially include a cat in their schema for "dog", but will eventually adapt their schema to include the differences between dogs and cats. The term "schema" comes from the Greek word for "shape" or "plan".

Psychological Types

Personality Type Explained

According to Carl G. Jung's theory of psychological types [Jung, 1971], people can be characterized by their preference of general attitude:

 Extraverted (E) vs. Introverted (I), their preference of one of the two functions of perception:

 Sensing (S) vs. Intuition (N), and their preference of one of the two functions of judging:

 Thinking (T) vs. Feeling (F)

The three areas of preferences introduced by Jung are dichotomies (i.e. bipolar dimensions where each pole represents a different preference). Jung also proposed that in a person one of the four functions above is dominant – either a function of perception or a function of judging. Isabel Briggs Myers, a researcher and practitioner of Jung’s theory, proposed to see the judging-perceiving relationship as a fourth dichotomy influencing personality type [Briggs Myers, 1980]:

 Judging (J) vs. Perceiving (P)

The first criterion, Extraversion – Introversion, signifies the source and direction of a person’s energy expression. An extravert’s source and direction of energy expression is mainly in the external world, while an introvert has a source of energy mainly in their own internal world.

The second criterion, Sensing – Intuition, represents the method by which someone perceives information. Sensing means that a person mainly believes information he or she receives directly from the external world. Intuition means that a person believes mainly information he or she receives from the internal or imaginative world.

The third criterion, Thinking – Feeling, represents how a person processes information. Thinking means that a person makes a decision mainly through logic. Feeling means that, as a rule, he or she makes a decision based on emotion, i.e. based on what they feel they should do.

The fourth criterion, Judging – Perceiving, reflects how a person implements the information he or she has processed. Judging means that a person organizes all of his life events and, as a rule, sticks to his plans. Perceiving means that he or she is inclined to improvise and explore alternative options. All possible permutations of preferences in the 4 dichotomies above yield 16 different combinations, or personality types, representing which of the two poles in each of the four dichotomies dominates in a person, thus defining 16 different personality types. Each personality type can be assigned a 4 letter acronym of corresponding combination of preferences:

The 16 personality types

ESTJ ISTJ ENTJ INTJ

ESTP ISTP ENTP INTP

ESFJ ISFJ ENFJ INFJ

ESFP ISFP ENFP INFP

For example:

 ISTJ stands for Introverted, Sensing, Thinking, Judging

 ENFP stands for Extraverted, iNtuitive, Feeling, Perceiving. [5]

Epigenetics and Aging

This statement highlights the dynamic nature of epigenetics, where our genetic expression can be modified by environmental factors throughout life, meaning our epigenetic profile at birth is not static and will evolve as we experience different life events, similar to how new information that aligns with existing knowledge ("like a square") can be readily integrated into our understanding through a cognitive process called assimilation.

Key points:

Epigenetics are not fixed:

Unlike our DNA sequence which remains largely constant, our epigenome, which controls how genes are expressed, can change throughout life due to environmental influences like diet, stress, and lifestyle choices.

Developmental stages impact epigenetics:

Early childhood is considered a particularly sensitive period where environmental factors can significantly influence epigenetic changes, potentially impacting development and health later in life.

Assimilation analogy:

Just like when encountering a new shape that resembles a familiar one (like a square), our brain can readily incorporate it into existing knowledge structures through the process of assimilation.

Phyloepigenetics

Epigenetics has provided significant evidence that CpG dinucleotides (CpGs) within genetic material are of particular importance for the annotation and function of the genome and the formation of the phenotype, which is continuously shaped by evolutionary interaction with environmental factors. Based on this, it can be concluded that CpGs follow a distinct rate of evolution, compared to all other nucleotide positions. Epigenetics has, meanwhile, provided significant evidence that CpG dinucleotides (CpGs) within genetic material are of particular importance for the annotation and function of the genome and the formation of the phenotype, which is continuously shaped by evolutionary interaction with environmental factors. Based on this, it can be concluded that CpGs follow a distinct rate of evolution, compared to all other nucleotide positions. CpG dinucleotides play a crucial role in epigenetic regulation, which is significantly influenced by environmental factors and has a direct impact on gene expression, they are likely to evolve at a different rate compared to other nucleotide positions in the genome, meaning their evolution is more tightly coupled to environmental changes and phenotypic adaptations. [6]

Postscript

Epigenetics, Health, and Disease

Epigenetics refers to how your behaviors and environment can cause changes that affect the way your genes work. Unlike genetic changes (mutations), epigenetic changes are reversible and do not change the sequence of DNA bases, but they can change how your body reads a DNA sequence.

Gene expression refers to the process of making proteins using the instructions from genes. A person's DNA includes many genes. Each gene includes instructions for making proteins. Additionally, there are other sections of DNA that are not part of any gene but are important for making sure the genes work properly. These DNA sections provide directions about where in the body the protein is made, when it is made, and how much is made.

While changes to the genes (mutations) can change the protein that is made, epigenetic changes affect gene expression to turn genes "on" and "off." This can mean that genes make proteins in cells and tissues where or when they normally would not, or that genes don't make proteins where and when they normally would. It can also mean that genes make more or less of a protein than they normally would.

There are several ways an environmental factor can cause an epigenetic change to occur. One of the most common ways is by causing changes to DNA methylation. DNA methylation works by adding a chemical (known as a methyl group) to DNA. This chemical can also be removed from the DNA through a process called demethylation. Typically, methylation turns genes off and demethylation turns genes on. Thus, environmental factors can impact the amount of protein a cell makes. Less protein might be made if an environmental factor causes an increase in DNA methylation, and more protein might be made if a factor causes an increase in demethylation. [7]

Conclusion

Clearly, it is submitted that there could not exist Schemata without starting with Archetypes of the Collective Unconcious. Just as clearly, there could not exist the Collective Unconcious without Schemata. Thus, when viewing the entire discussion herein, one cannot help but theorize that repetitive emotional experiences in the life of an individual will cause the body and mind to adapt for the individual's survival chances and that of its progeny and its species. This seems to be the underlying "purpose" of life, in addition to providing "existence" (which itself is instantiated solely as a conscious concept) to the presumably eternal "inanimate" universe through deleloping more intricate consciousness, without which there would be no "existence". Mutations alone, in Darwin's Theory, cannot account for evolutionary changes or mind and body adaptations. Evolution is not solely limited to survival of life's random mutations, but may work together with epigenetics, archetypes, adaptation and accomodation.

Eternal Inanimate Universe

References

[1] Corbis, Evolution PBS, Jean Baptiste Lamarck https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/library/02/3/l_023_01.html#:~:text=According%20to%20Lamarck%2C%20organisms%20altered,inherited%20those%20%22improved%22%20structures

[2] Henriques, Martha, >Can the legacy of trauma be passed down the generations? (26 March 2019) https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20190326-what-is-epigenetics

[3] Burggren, Warren, National Library of Medicine, NIH, PubMed Central, Epigenetic Inheritance and Its Role in Evolutionary Biology: Re-Evaluation and New Perspectives (2016 May 25) https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4929538/

[4] Brasseur, E., The collective unconscious: from image to symbol (1995 Jan-Feb) https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7502672/

[5] Carl G. Jung's Personality Types Explained, https://nja.gov.in/Concluded_Programes_2015-16/P-975_Reading_Material/Session%205%20Personality%20Types.pdf

[6] Santourlidis, Simeon, PubMed Central, Phyloepigenetics (2022 May 15) https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9138650/https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9138650/

[7] CDC Genomics and Your Health, Epigenetics, Health, and Disease (JANUARY 31, 2025) https://www.cdc.gov/genomics-and-health/epigenetics/index.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fgenomics-and-health%2Fabout%2Fepigenetic-impacts-on-health.html

Notes

Burggren, Warren, National Library of Medicine, NIH, PubMed Central, Epigenetic Inheritance and Its Role in Evolutionary Biology: Re-Evaluation and New Perspectives (2016 May 25) https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4929538/

https://www.google.com/search?q=epigenetics+v+darwin+evolution&sca_esv=c278979780704cdd&sxsrf=ADLYWIJXYOv7fDyQRchvS2MqrXmOR_-Fbw%3A1728760234491&ei=qskKZ53MHfqo5NoP84jI4QQ&oq=epigenetics+&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiDGVwaWdlbmV0aWNzICoCCAEyBBAjGCcyBBAjGCcyChAAGIAEGBQYhwIyCBAAGIAEGLEDMgUQABiABDIFEAAYgAQyBRAAGIAEMgUQABiABDIFEAAYgAQyBRAAGIAESJpVUKQKWOUbcAJ4AZABAJgBmQGgAfkBqgEDMS4xuAEByAEA-AEBmAIEoAKRAsICBxAjGLADGCfCAgoQABiwAxjWBBhHwgILEAAYgAQYkQIYigXCAgsQLhiABBiRAhiKBZgDAIgGAZAGCpIHAzIuMqAHsRA&sclient=gws-wiz-serp

https://www.google.com/search?q=NIH+piaget+schema&sca_esv=2572e02829722a4f&ei=t75tZ8CtEYjm5NoP37WdyQM&ved=0ahUKEwiA5eCapcaKAxUIM1kFHd9aJzkQ4dUDCBA&uact=5&oq=NIH+piaget+schema&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiEU5JSCBwaWFnZXQgc2NoZW1hMgUQIRirAkjUH1DWCFjlG3ABeAGQAQCYAVCgAewDqgEBN7gBA8gBAPgBAZgCCKACgQTCAgoQABiwAxjWBBhHwgIGEAAYDRgewgILEAAYgAQYhgMYigXCAggQABiABBiiBMICCBAhGKABGMMEwgIKECEYoAEYwwQYCpgDAIgGAZAGApIHATigB6QU&sclient=gws-wiz-serp

https://www.google.com/search?q=Your+epigenetics+change+throughout+your+life.+Your+epigenetics+at+birth+are+not+the+same+as+your+epigenetics+during+childhood+or+adulthood.+When+new+information+is+similar+to+what+we+know%2C+say+a+square%2C+it+can+enter+the+brain+through+assimilation.&oq=Your+epigenetics+change+throughout+your+life.+Your+epigenetics+at+birth+are+not+the+same+as+your+epigenetics+during+childhood+or+adulthood.+When+new+information+is+similar+to+what+we+know%2C+say+a+square%2C+it+can+enter+the+brain+through+assimilation.&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOdIBBzM4MGowajSoAgCwAgE&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

https://www.google.com/search?q=The+history+of+epigenetics+is+linked+with+the+study+of+evolution+and+development.+But+during+the+past+50+years%2C+the+meaning+of+the+term+%E2%80%9Cepigenetics%E2%80%9D+has+itself+undergone+an+evolution+that+parallels+our+dramatically+increased+knowledge+of+the+molecular+mechanisms+underlying+regulation+of+gene+expression+in+eukaryotes.+Our+present+definitions+of+epigenetics+reflect+our+understanding+that+%3Cb%3Ealthough+the+complement+of+DNA+is+essentially+the+same+in+all+of+an+organism%E2%80%99s+somatic+cells%2C+patterns+of+gene+expression+differ+greatly+among+different+cell+types%2C+and+these+patterns+can+be+clonally+inherited.%3C%2Fb%3E+This+has+led+to+a+working+definition+of+epigenetics+as+%E2%80%9Cthe+study+of+mitotically+and%2For+meiotically+heritable+changes+in+gene+function+that+cannot+be+explained+by+changes+in+DNA+sequence%E2%80%9D+(Riggs+et+al.+1996%3B+Riggs+and+Porter+1996).+More+recently+added+to+this+definition+is+the+constraint+that+initiation+of+the+new+epigenetic+state+should+involve+a+transient+mechanism+separate+from+the+one+required+to+maintain+it&oq=The+history+of+epigenetics+is+linked+with+the+study+of+evolution+and+development.+But+during+the+past+50+years%2C+the+meaning+of+the+term+%E2%80%9Cepigenetics%E2%80%9D+has+itself+undergone+an+evolution+that+parallels+our+dramatically+increased+knowledge+of+the+molecular+mechanisms+underlying+regulation+of+gene+expression+in+eukaryotes.+Our+present+definitions+of+epigenetics+reflect+our+understanding+that+%3Cb%3Ealthough+the+complement+of+DNA+is+essentially+the+same+in+all+of+an+organism%E2%80%99s+somatic+cells%2C+patterns+of+gene+expression+differ+greatly+among+different+cell+types%2C+and+these+patterns+can+be+clonally+inherited.%3C%2Fb%3E+This+has+led+to+a+working+definition+of+epigenetics+as+%E2%80%9Cthe+study+of+mitotically+and%2For+meiotically+heritable+changes+in+gene+function+that+cannot+be+explained+by+changes+in+DNA+sequence%E2%80%9D+(Riggs+et+al.+1996%3B+Riggs+and+Porter+1996).+More+recently+added+to+this+definition+is+the+constraint+that+initiation+of+the+new+epigenetic+state+should+involve+a+transient+mechanism+separate+from+the+one+required+to+maintain+it&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUyBggAEEUYOdIBBzM5NmowajmoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Copyright © 2025 David William Jedell

Email: d.w.jedell@gmail.com

False Memories are a Psychological Reality that Result in Wrongful Convictions

By David William Jedell Updated June 25, 2025

Although our memories seem to be a solid, straightforward sum of who we are, strong evidence suggests that memories are actually quite complex, subject to change, and often unreliable. We reconstruct memories as we age and also as our worldview changes. We falsely recall childhood events, and through effective suggestion, can even create new false memories. We can be tricked into remembering events that never happened, or change the details of things that really did happen. Malleable memory can have especially dire consequences in legal settings; highlighted areas of interest are children as eyewitnesses, sexual abuse, and misidentification. One of the more influential researchers in this area, Elizabeth Loftus of the University of California at Irvine, has been known to work on numerous high-profile legal cases including that of murderer Ted Bundy, the McMartin preschool, Scooter Libby, among many others. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/false-memories

Just because someone tells you something with a lot of confidence and detail and emotion, it doesn't mean it actually happened. You need independent corroboration to know whether you're dealing with an authentic memory, or something that is a product of some other process.”

1. Memory does not work like a video camera, accurately recording all of the details of witnessed events. Instead, memory (like perception) is a constructive process. We typically remember the gist of an event rather than the exact details.

2. When we construct a memory, errors can occur. We will typically fill in gaps in our memories with what we think we must have experienced not necessarily what we actually did experience. We may also include misinformation we encountered after the event. We will not even be consciously aware that this has happened.

3. We not only distort memories for events that we have witnessed, we may have completely false memories for events that never occurred at all. Such false memories are particularly likely to arise in certain contexts, such as (unintentionally) through the use of certain dubious psychotherapeutic techniques or (intentionally) in psychology experiments.

4. There is no convincing evidence to support the existence of the psychoanalytic concept of repression, despite it being a widely accepted concept.

5. There is currently no way to distinguish, in the absence of independent evidence, whether a particular memory is true or false. Even memories which are detailed and vivid and held with 100 percent conviction can be completely false.” https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/mind-guest-blog/what-experts-wish-you-knew-about-false-memories/

Summaries of 46 Cases in Which Mistaken or Perjured. Eyewitness Testimony Put Innocent Persons on Death Row https://dpic-cdn.org/production/legacy/StudyCWC2001A.pdf

The 10 Worst Failures of Eyewitness Testimony https://www.theinvestigators.co.nz/news/the-10-worst-failures-of-eyewitness-testimony-part-one

Loftus and Palmer (1974) showed different videos of a car collision to different participants. Some saw a video of the car crashing at 20mph, others a video of a collision at 30mph and the rest a video of a crash at 40mph. The participants were then asked the speed of the collision in a survey question. The question was identical for each participant except for the verb mentioned when describing the crash. Some verbs suggested that the crash was a minor collision, others a full-blown crash. The experiment results showed that the verb used to describe the crash had more effect on the speed estimated than the actual speed of the car that the participants witnessed in the video. In a second experiment, participants were shown similar videos of a car and later questioned about what they had witnessed. The question asked the subject whether or not they had seen any broken glass following the collision, and again, the verb describing the collision was altered to suggest varying degrees of severity. Both studies suggest that the framing of questions following an event can affect our recollection of it, even after it has been remembered. Even seemingly slight changes, such as verb alterations in Loftus and Palmer's experiments, can create false memories of events. In fact, Loftus found in a later experiment that even the switching of 'a' and 'the' in a question can influence respondents' recollection of an object. Loftus, Miller and Burns (1978) showed participants a number of slides of a car at a junction. They were later questioned regarding the scene. Some were asked whether they had seen 'a' stop sign, others 'the' stop sign. Lotus et al found that those participants asked about 'the' stop sign were more likely to recollect it than other group. The use of the definite article seems to assure people that an object exists without them needing to question its accuracy.

All of these experiments support Loftus' misinformation effect on our memories - the manipulation of past event recollection by misguidance following it; a case of what the German psychologist Georg Müller (1850-1934) may have identified as retroactive interference of information on our memories (Lechner, Squire and Byrne, 1999). Inventing an entire event. We have learnt from these experiments that our memory cannot necessarily be relied on for the recollection of specific details of an event. But we would know if we had been lead to believe that an entire event had been suggested to us - or would we? This question was answered by one of Elizabeth Loftus' psychology students in an experiment to gain extra credits at university: James Coan (1997) produced four booklets containing recollections of events from childhood and gave each to a family member. The stories in the booklets were true except for the one given to Coan's brother - a description of him being lost in a shopping mall as a child, an older man finding him and him then finding his family again.1 Each family member was asked to read through the booklets and familiarise themselves with their contents, after which they were asked to recall the stories. Coan's brother recalled the story with additional details invented by himself, and was unable to identify his as being the falsified story. This lost in the mall technique of implanting false memories was further tested in a formal experiment with Loftus and Jacqueline Pickrell (Loftus and Pickrell, 1995), and shows how we can even adopt rich false memories that are entirely invented. https://www.psychologistworld.com/memory/false-memories-questioning-eyewitness-testimony

Eyewitness testimony, which relies on the accuracy of human memory, has an enormous impact on the outcome of a trial. Aside from smoking pistol, nothing carries as much weight with a jury as the testimony of an actual witness. The memory of witnesses is crucial not only in criminal cases but in civil cases as well--in automobile accident cases, for example, eyewitness testimony carries great weight in determining who is as fault. Implicit in the acceptance of this testimony as solid evidence is the assumption that the human mind is a precise recorder and storer of events. Human beings hold fiercely to the belief that our memories are preserved intact, our thoughts are essentially imperishable, and our impressions are never really forgotten. Sigmund Freud believed that long-term memories lie deep in the unconscious mind, too deep to be disturbed by ongoing events and experiences. Truth and reality, when seen through the filter of our memories, are not objective facts but subjective, interpretive realities. We interpret the past, correcting ourselves, adding bits and pieces, deleting uncomplimentary or disturbing recollections, sweeping, dusting, tidying things up. Thus our representation of the past takes on a living, shifting reality; it is not fixed and immutable, not a place way back there that is preserved in stone, but a living thing that changes shape, expands, shrinks, and expands again, an amoebalike creature with powers to make us laugh, and cry, and clench our fists. Enormous powers--powers even to make us believe in something that never happened. Are we aware of our mind's distortions of our experiences? In most cases, the answer is no. As event sequences unfold memories gradually change, we become convinced that we saw or said or did what we remember. We perceive the blending of fact and fiction that constitutes a memory as completely and utterly truthful. We are innocent victims of our mind's manipulations. The danger of eyewitness testimony is clear: Anyone in the world can be convicted of a crime he or she did not commit, or deprived of an award that is due, based solely on the evidence of a witness who convinces a jury that his memory about what he saw is correct. Why is the eyewitness testimony so powerful and convincing? Because people in general and jurors in particular believe that our memories stamp the facts of experiences on a permanent, non erasable tape, like a computer disk or videotape that is write-protected. For the most part, of course, our memories serve us reasonably well. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/dna/photos/eye/text_06.html

Over time, faulty memories may actually be rewired physically in the brain. Not so long ago, neuroscientists used to think the human brain was 'hard-wired' with fixed circuits of neurons. Now we know better. The brain is actually soft-wired, meaning it is plastic and malleable, undergoing significant changes as we learn and age. https://www.sciencealert.com/profound-brain-changes-of-pregnancy-revealed-in-scientific-first

Researchers estimate that eyewitness error plays a role in half or more of all wrongful felony convictions. https://scholarship.law.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1140&context=scholar [2]

Two eyewitnesses confidently testified before the San Diego Superior Court that Uriah Courtney was the perpetrator of a monstrous crime. These witnesses maintained with certainty that they had seen this very person, that they remembered him accurately and could identify him from a single photograph. They maintained not simply that Courtney’s was the most familiar or likely face among the lineup photos, but that—against all odds—he was the one. Knowing well the consequences for the accused, and discounting any possibility of error, Erika pleaded to the Court for retribution. The evidence incompatible with Courtney, but the DNA instead matched a former convict living not far from the crime scene. Based on this new evidence, Courtney’s conviction was vacated and he was released from prison in 2013, after having served 8 y behind bars. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5544328/

The leading cause of the wrongful convictions was erroneous identification by eyewitnesses, which occurred 79 percent of the time. In a quarter of the cases, such testimony was the only direct evidence against the defendant. https://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/23/us/23bar.html?ref=us&pagewanted=print

Copyright © 2025 David William Jedell Email: d.w.jedell@gmail.com