MCA: Building a Conceptual Ecology of the Engram

Memory is an important cognitive ability. Its significance is often made most apparent by its disruptions—from everyday misremembering to post-traumatic stress disorder and to the onset of Alzheimer’s. Explaining, treating, and possibly ameliorating these memory malfunctions requires an understanding of how the brain retains memories in the first place. Finding the engram—the neural mechanism of memory retention—has been a guiding project for neuroscience since its earliest days. But while it has long been assumed that there was an engram, only recently with the development of new tools and technologies have specific engrams been identified and activated. These exciting discoveries raise questions as to how the engram as a concept should be updated, expanded, or revised to accommodate them. A more detailed framework for the engram concept can help both scientists and the broader public understand the significance of recent discoveries and how they can be used to make further progress in treating memory disorders. This project in the philosophy of neuroscience employs methods from biology and the history and philosophy of science that have been used to understand the gene concept (i.e., the changes it’s undergone from Mendel’s peas, to DNA, to genomics) to build a comparable framework of understanding for the engram: how neuroscientists working at different times, with different tools, research questions, and populations think about this basic unit of memory. The project includes updated trainings in opto-genetics and other new intervention technologies, alongside close collaboration with leading engram neuroscientists, to ensure the framework is well-grounded and representative. By offering context for recent discoveries in the neuroscience of memory, this project demonstrates the importance of the intersection between neuroscience and philosophy for understanding features of the mind and cognition and for promoting science literacy and engagement with the broader public. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.