The Good, the Bad, An Ugly Memory for a Neural Network

No man has a good enough memory to be a successful liar. — Abraham Lincoln

Memory is more indelible than ink. — Anita Loos

Memorize bad, generalization good. This is considered as a dogma of artificial intelligence. But why? What is wrong with memorization?

Intuitively a student who memorizes the whole book might still fail a test if the exercises are different from those in the book. If memorizing does not mean learning, sometimes a little memory can also be beneficial. For example, there is no point in learning complex rules to learn a list of names of historical figures. You have to know how to find the right balance. Something similar is happening with neural networks. This article discusses the complex love/hate relationship between neural networks and memory.

Artificial intelligence is transforming our world, shaping how we live and work. Understanding how it works and its implications has never been more crucial. If…