Embedded Files
By Samara Kolakkal
Have you ever felt like you believed an event occurred when it did not? Probably had a moment of déjà vu? In such a scenario, you are experiencing something known as the Mandela effect.
The Mandela effect, as we know it, refers to a situation in which a large mass of people believe that an event occurred when it did not.
The term was introduced by paranormal researcher Fiona Broome in 2019. It was discovered when the researcher, along with a large group of people at a conference (2010), believed that Nelson Mandela had died during his time in prison in the 1980s. However, much in contrast to what they believed, the president was alive at the time of the conference and was released from prison in 1990.
As a matter of fact, the unfortunate passing of Nelson Mandela took place in 2013. Fiona Broome described this phenomenon as a case of false memory.
There are many theorists who provide different explanations for the same.
Quantum theory enthusiasts believe that the Mandela effect is evidence of the presence of a multiverse containing parallel universes.
These enthusiasts say that the theory presents "residue" of an erased timeline in which an event occurred. We, as a part of an alternate timeline, only see this residue of the event.
A popular theory, supporting the claim of quantum theory believers, suggests that the European Research Centre (CERN) created a splinter in time and space while attempting to start the Large Hadron Collider in 2008. Alas, there seems to be absolutely no evidence to support this claim.
Some people believe that we are a part of a timeline that is never stagnant in space and time. There are multiple endless universes that run parallel to ours, and the timeline that we are part of constantly shifts across them.
Psychology, on the other hand, provides an entirely different explanation. This effect can be compared to what we all know as déjà vu.
The concept of déjà vu is said to be an example of the human capacity for confabulation. According to the International Journal of Neurology and Neuropathy, confabulation refers to the "creation of false memories in the absence of intentions of deception." In simple layman’s terms, confabulation is the spreading of false information regardless of true intentions. A person who passes on a piece of false information genuinely believes that this information is the truth.
The Mandela effect is something that is being studied to this day, yet it is something that we have all experienced at some point in our lives. With new explanations being introduced every day, from pure human nature to the multiverse, it is a mystery waiting to be solved.
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse