mnemic theory

mne·mic hy·poth·e·sis

the theory that stimuli or irritants leave definite traces (engrams) on the protoplasm of the animal, and when these stimuli are regularly repeated they induce a habit that persists after the stimuli cease.

Synonym(s): mnemic theory, mnemism, Semon-Hering theory

mnemic theory

A scientifically naïve, long-abandoned proposal that certain types of memory are inscribed in the protoplasm of plant and animal cells in the form of a nebulously defined unit or engram, which could then be transmitted to the parent organism's progeny.