Some people’s memories rival those of computers — they have a remarkable ability for recall, with lots of storage space for details. “It’s a gift, akin to mathematical or musical ability,” says Marianne Legato, M.D., a professor of clinical medicine at Columbia University and the author of Why Men Never Remember and Women Never Forget (Rodale, $25, www.amazon.com). Most researchers agree that 50 percent of recall capacity is determined by genes, and that this skill fades with age. Intelligence plays a role, too. “Intelligence refers to a person’s capacity to acquire and apply knowledge,” says neuroscientist Zaldy S. Tan. “And good memory is a vital component of intelligence.” People with high IQs tend to store information more efficiently.

But some experts believe total recall can be learned. Take Arthur Bornstein. When faced with possible expulsion from college for poor grades, he developed techniques to remember vast amounts of academic information, and in 1952 he founded his own memory school. Now 80, Bornstein appears on programs like Late Show With David Letterman to exhibit his unique ability to, say, remember the names of 40 to 50 people in an hour or less. His secret: “It’s all technique.”