A study published in September suggests there is a surprising way to get people to avoid unhealthy foods: change their memories. Scientist Elizabeth Loftus of the University of California at Irvine asked volunteers to answer some questions on their personalities and fend experiences. “One week later,” Loftus says, “We told those people we’d fed their answers into our smart computer and it came up with an account of their early childhood experiences. ” Some accounts included one key additional detail:“You got sick after eating strawberry ice-cream.” The researchers then changed this detail into a manufactured memory through leading questions—Who were you with? How did you feel? By the end of the study, up to 41% of those given a false memory believed strawberry ice-cream once made them sick, and many said they’d avoid eating it.
9月发表的一项研究表明，有一种令人惊讶的方法可以让人们避免不健康的食物：改变他们的记忆。加州大学欧文分校的科学家伊丽莎白·洛夫图斯要求志愿者回答一些关于他们个性和经历的问题。“一周后，”洛夫图斯说，“我们告诉这些人，我们已经把他们的答案输入了我们的智能电脑，电脑会给出他们童年早期经历的描述。”一些报道还包括一个关键的额外细节：“你吃了草莓冰淇淋后生病了。”然后，研究人员将这个细节通过引导问题变成人造记忆——你和谁在一起？你感觉怎么样？到研究结束时，在被给予错误记忆的人中，高达41%的人认为草莓冰淇淋曾经让他们生病，许多人说他们会避免吃草莓冰淇淋。
When Loftus published her findings, she started getting calls from people begging her to make them remember hating chocolate or French fries. Unfortunately, it’s not that easy. False memories appear to work only for foods you don’t eat on a regular basis. But most important, it is likely that false memories can be implanted only in people who are unaware of the mental control. And lying to a patient is immoral, even if a doctor believes it’s for the patient’s benefit.
当洛夫图斯公布她的研究结果时，她开始接到人们的电话，请求她让他们记住讨厌巧克力或薯条。不幸的是，这并不容易。错误记忆似乎只适用于你不经常吃的食物。但最重要的是，虚假记忆只能灌输给那些没有意识到精神控制的人。对病人撒谎是不道德的，即使医生认为这是为了病人的利益。
Loftus says there’s nothing to stop parents from trying it with their overweight children. “I say，wake up—parents have been lying about Father Christmas for years, and nobody seems to mind. If they can prevent diseases caused by fatness and all the other problems that come with that，you might think that’s a more moral lie. Decide that for yourself.”
洛夫图斯说，没有什么可以阻止父母对超重的孩子进行这种尝试。“我想说，唤醒多年来一直对圣诞老人撒谎的父母，似乎没人介意。但如果他们能预防肥胖引起的疾病以及随之而来的所有其他问题，你可能会认为这是一个更道德的谎言。你自己决定吧。”
