Why good memories are less likely to fade By Paula McGrath

Why do we remember some things well, while other memories fade? Researchers suggest it could be that good memories persist longer than bad - helping to keep the human race happy and resilient.

Psychologists say that holding onto our good memories - and leaving the bad ones behind - helps us to deal with unpleasant situations and retain a positive outlook on life.

It was 80 years ago that the idea of negative memories fading faster was first proposed.

Back in the 1930s psychologists collected recollections about life events like people's holidays - marking them as pleasant or unpleasant.

Weeks later an unannounced request came from the researchers to recall their memories.

Of the unpleasant experiences nearly 60% were forgotten - but only 42% of the pleasant memories had faded.

This is something which many of us recognise - after a holiday we might reminisce about the pleasant days out and people we met - but forget about how terrible the flight delays were.

Culled from bbc.co.uk