# What is dejavous? **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [January 20, 2007, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653 "2007-01-20T00:26:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![miamiamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@miamiamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/miamiamia)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/1 "2007-01-20T00:26:08Z")
I read all kinds of stuff on the net about it, most people seem to jump onto the psychic bandwagon. I’m not sure what to believe though it has interested me for quite some time. The only one that makes sense to me is the big bang/collapse theory where it’s just happened so many times that instinct/memory kicks in on some level. Thoughts? ---
**Author:** ![scottkris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@scottkris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scottkris)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/2 "2007-01-20T00:28:48Z")
[QUOTE=miamiamia] Thoughts? [/QUOTE] I’m going to guess this gets moved… ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/3 "2007-01-20T00:33:07Z")
The term is actually déjà vu, the French for “already seen”. ---
**Author:** ![miamiamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@miamiamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/miamiamia)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/4 "2007-01-20T00:33:14Z")
[QUOTE=scottkris] I’m going to guess this gets moved… [/QUOTE] Settle down. Why do people feel the need to be a smart alec on forums? I’m learning my way round the net, forums and so forth, didn’t see a search function to search the forums. No need to carry on, if you don’t have thoughts on the topic why post. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/5 "2007-01-20T00:34:06Z")
The best natural explanation I’ve heard for Deja Vu is that the same stimulus can be processed by the brain through two distinct paths; one of them reaches completion slightly before the other, so that when the second one arrives at its conclusion, there is already an unnervingly similar sensation in place, which may be mistaken for an older memory. ---
**Author:** ![miamiamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@miamiamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/miamiamia)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/6 "2007-01-20T00:35:41Z")
[QUOTE=Cunctator] The term is actually déjà vu, the French for “already seen”. [/QUOTE] Yes I’m aware of the various spelling and am aware of what it means. Though why it happens is what baffles me and was interested in reading other people’s opinions on the whys and so forth as there are so many different theories. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/7 "2007-01-20T00:36:36Z")
The best one I’ve heard is that déjà vu is the brain’s equivilent of the “record” function and it’s “playback” function are both running at the same time, so that you’re making memories and remembering them instantly. The Wikipedia [notes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C3%A9j%C3%A0_vu#Neural_theories) this theory (along with similar theories) is currently untestable. We just can’t get to that level of neuron-fire measurements. As **scottkris** implies, nobody knows for sure, so a factual answer is impossible right now, so this thread will probably end up in IMHO. ---
**Author:** ![miamiamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@miamiamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/miamiamia)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/8 "2007-01-20T00:37:12Z")
[QUOTE=Mangetout] The best natural explanation I’ve heard for Deja Vu is that the same stimulus can be processed by the brain through two distinct paths; one of them reaches completion slightly before the other, so that when the second one arrives at its conclusion, there is already an unnervingly similar sensation in place, which may be mistaken for an older memory. [/QUOTE] Yes I’ve discussed that possibility with friends and agree that could be the case, it sounds quite viable. ---
**Author:** ![miamiamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f05b48/32.png) [@miamiamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/miamiamia)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/9 "2007-01-20T00:38:23Z")
[QUOTE=garygnu] The best one I’ve heard is that déjà vu is the brain’s equivilent of the “record” function and it’s “playback” function are both running at the same time, so that you’re making memories and remembering them instantly. The Wikipedia [notes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D%C3%A9j%C3%A0_vu#Neural_theories) this theory (along with similar theories) is currently untestable. As **scottkris** implies, nobody knows for sure, so a factual answer is impossible right now, so this thread will probably end up in IMHO. [/QUOTE] Well that’s one I haven’t heard before, quite interesting. ---
**Author:** ![Shagnasty](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9dc877/32.png) [@Shagnasty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shagnasty)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/10 "2007-01-20T00:39:43Z")
Guests can’t search and I don’t think anyone was actually making fun of you. This board just has an undercurrent of snarkiness but we are moderated well and we all generally know the lines. Stick around and you will see. There has actually been some real scientific work on this issue. Nothing is definitive but it looks like some Déjà vu experiences are an artifact of the way the brain function (or malfunction). The link I am giving you is very high level but there are some interesting links at the bottom. “Déjà vu has been firmly associated with temporal-lobe epilepsy. Reportedly, déjà vu can occur just prior to a temporal-lobe epileptic attack. People suffering an epileptic seizure of this kind can experience déjà vu during the actual seizure activity or in the moments between convulsions.” > **[What Is Déjà Vu?](https://science.howstuffworks.com/science-vs-myth/extrasensory-perceptions/question657.htm)** > > Déjà vu is used to describe the feeling that you experienced a situation before. What causes this phenomenon? It’s not a glitch in the matrix, but most of our knowledge on the subject is still theoretical. ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/11 "2007-01-20T00:44:08Z")
[QUOTE=miamiamia] Yes I’m aware of the various spelling… [/QUOTE] You mean, the right one, and all the others? ---
**Author:** ![Sevastopol](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cdc98d/32.png) [@Sevastopol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sevastopol)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/12 "2007-01-20T01:00:42Z")
_Deja vous_, French for sock-puppet. ---
**Author:** ![iano](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@iano](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iano)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 1:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/13 "2007-01-20T01:06:35Z")
Does anyone else experience déjà vu as feeling that you have already remembered that you have already experienced this scene? In other words, it’s once-recursive. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 1:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/14 "2007-01-20T01:10:59Z")
I’ve heard the same theory that garygnu mentioned. The idea is that sometimes external stimuli get processed through the part of your brain that normally handles recall. So in effect you’re “remembering” something as you are experiencing it. ---
**Author:** ![MrSquishy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b9e5f3/32.png) [@MrSquishy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrSquishy)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/15 "2007-01-20T01:23:21Z")
[QUOTE=iano] Does anyone else experience déjà vu as feeling that you have already remembered that you have already experienced this scene? In other words, it’s once-recursive. [/QUOTE] Yes, I’ve definitely had (double?) déjà vu before, where I’m thinking “this is happening again?!”. But it’s not always that way. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 1:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/16 "2007-01-20T01:23:27Z")
It’s an adjective used to describe people who frequently dejaviate. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/17 "2007-01-20T01:30:15Z")
[QUOTE=iano] Does anyone else experience déjà vu as feeling that you have already remembered that you have already experienced this scene? In other words, it’s once-recursive. [/QUOTE] Haven’t I already answered that? ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/18 "2007-01-20T01:32:24Z")
[QUOTE=iano] Does anyone else experience déjà vu as feeling that you have already remembered that you have already experienced this scene? In other words, it’s once-recursive. [/QUOTE] Yes I can distinctly remember one incident, my family thought I was goin crazybacuse I thought I knew everything that was going to be said. Hard to describe. ---
**Author:** ![scottkris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@scottkris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scottkris)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/19 "2007-01-20T02:34:15Z")
[QUOTE=miamiamia] Settle down. Why do people feel the need to be a smart alec on forums? I’m learning my way round the net, forums and so forth, didn’t see a search function to search the forums. No need to carry on, if you don’t have thoughts on the topic why post. [/QUOTE] Why post…'cause I can. Seriously, I forgot guests cannot search. I really think that since this is “paranormal” it should be in GD or IMHO or MPSIMS… As others after me have said, this forum can get a bit “snarky” and (I believe but of course may be wrong) that the “paranormal” or “religious” doesn’t really belong in GD. And this is from a Christian…but that is a whole new can-o-worms. ---
**Author:** ![scottkris](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/94ad74/32.png) [@scottkris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scottkris)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2007, 2:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653/20 "2007-01-20T02:41:53Z")
[QUOTE=scottkris] doesn’t really belong in GD. {QUOTE] I meant “GQ”. I missed the 5 minute limit. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-is-dejavous/388653.md?page=2)