Cryptomnesia

We remember an idea but forget its source, causing it to feel original.

Memory for information and memory for its source can weaken at different rates. The idea may remain familiar even after the circumstances in which it was learned are forgotten.

• A writer unintentionally reproduces a phrase read years earlier.
• A musician creates a melody that resembles one previously heard but no longer consciously remembered.
• A colleague proposes an idea from an earlier meeting while sincerely believing it is new.

• Maintain a source notebook.
• Save links and references while researching.
• Search distinctive wording before publishing.
• Compare new work with recent influences.
• Correct attribution when a forgotten source is found.