Ear-witness reports can be just as unreliable. Thomas Kida reports the
research of two British psychologists who secretly recorded a discussion at
a Cambridge Psychological Society meeting:

"Two weeks later the participants were asked to write down everything they
could remember. It turned out that they omitted about 90 percent of the
specific points discussed, and when something was recalled, nearly half of
the items were substantially incorrect. The individuals transformed
off-the-cuff remarks into full-blown discussions, and remembered hearing
comments that were never actually made." [Refs. given]

T. Kida, *Don't Believe Everything You Think*, Prometheus Books (2006), p.
203.

Allen Esterson
Former lecturer, Science Department
Southwark College, London
http://www.esterson.org

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