The Homer Simpson Effect: Forgetting to Remember

  The Homer Simpson effect defines a fascinating neurological phenomenon: the brain needs to ‘make room’ to learn. This mechanism implies, in certain cases, having to eliminate part of the previous learning. The process, discovered in 2015, was already described in an iconic and fun way in the famous series, The Simpsons, created by Matt Groening and first aired in 1989. It was in an episode in which Homer explained to Marge: “Remember when I took that home winemaking course and I forgot how to drive? …Every time I learn something new, it pushes some old stuff out of my brain”….