> I'd truly like to know how Von Neumann remembered everything. I've been hearing claims of von Neumann's perfect memory for a long time on HN, but I've been u

> I'd truly like to know how Von Neumann remembered everything. I've been hearing claims of von Neumann's perfect memory for a long time on HN, but I've been unable to find primary sources to back them except for a single quotation by Herman Goldstine. Could the claim of "perfect memory" have been an exaggeration? Surely von Neumann had an exceptional memory, but truly remembering everything is extremely rare (some say impossible). If he did, I imagine that the psychologists at Princeton or the IAS would have caught wind of the mathematician with a perfect memory and wouldn't have missed a chance to examine him; all the more so since "true photographic memory has never been demonstrated to exist" [1]. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eidetic_memory https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eidetic_memory