Jane Pauley And Sebastian Seung On Why Certain Memories Stick Out In Our Brains

Can you recall your first kiss? Or the first time you drove a car? What about your first school dance?

The brain has a fascinating way of acting like a wax tablet when it comes to recording memories. Warm, emotionally-charged moments have a tendency to stick out in our minds -- and according to neuroscientist Sebastian Seung, there's a reason for that.

Seung told television anchor Jane Pauley that our brains act as a map of connections, which allows certain memories to last beyond their original occurrence.

"Perceptions feel so real in the moment, but the feeling of what's happening is so ephemeral. It's very real at one point and then it just vanishes the next second," Seung said. "But your memories don't feel real when you recall them, they don't feel as real as perceptions; they feel hazy, they feel indistinct, and yet it's the memories that endure for a lifetime."

Check out the video above of Seung and Pauley for more on the persistence of certain memories.

Experience these fascinating conversations LIVE at the Rubin Museum in New York. Visit www.rmanyc.org/programs. The 50th ticket buyer referred from Huffington Post GPS for the Soul receives a free catalogue Worlds of Transformation: Tibetan Art of Wisdom and Compassion.