Forgetting is much more important than most people realize; it's an essential component of how we learn. This article gives a great overview and links to recent research.

Just as interesting -- perhaps more interesting -- is how this can be applied to A.I. Today's systems 'forget' by overwriting with new data, but that is a very simple strategy; it is what I term passive forgetting. We may also actively forget; our brain edits out snippets or entire memories in order for us support our survivability drive. After all, who wants to remember negative things.

I explore this topic in some depth, hopefully in a fun and engaging way, in my trilogy Upside Down.