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The Mandela Effect False Memories "The Mandela effect" many are certain remembering something a particular way, but it turns out are incorrect. The name of the theory comes from many people feeling certain they could remember Nelson Mandela dying while he was still in prison in the ’80s whose actual death was on Dec. 5, 2013, despite some claiming to remember seeing clips of his funeral on TV. These false memories have them thinking their memory sucks, but some wonder if they’ve gone to a parallel universe, or if time travelers have gone to the past and slightly affected our present, or if they’re simply losing their minds, what’s most interesting is that so many share the same false memories. Incorrect Recall The Mandela Effect, examples are attributable to “schema driven errors”. Schemas are organised “packets” of knowledge that direct memory. In this way, schemas facilitate understanding of material, but can produce distortion. Frederic Bartlett cites 1932 book Remembering read the Canadian Indian folktale “War of the Ghosts” to participants; listeners omitted unfamiliar details transformed information to make it more understandable. He called “effort after meaning” and occurs in real world situations too; research has previously shown person recall the contents of a psychologist’s office they remember the consistent items such as bookshelves, and omit the inconsistent items – like a picnic basket.