on innate talent

Some interesting conclusions regarding memory and talent from A Star Is Made:

This success, coupled with later research showing that memory itself is not genetically determined, led Ericsson to conclude that the act of memorizing is more of a cognitive exercise than an intuitive one. In other words, whatever innate differences two people may exhibit in their abilities to memorize, those differences are swamped by how well each person "encodes" the information. And the best way to learn how to encode information meaningfully, Ericsson determined, was a process known as deliberate practice.

Ericsson's research suggests a third cliché as well: when it comes to choosing a life path, you should do what you love — because if you don't love it, you are unlikely to work hard enough to get very good. Most people naturally don't like to do things they aren't "good" at. So they often give up, telling themselves they simply don't possess the talent for math or skiing or the violin. But what they really lack is the desire to be good and to undertake the deliberate practice that would make them better.

I'll buy the second bit of information, since I've experienced it. I went from enjoying engineering and doing well in my classes, to being horribly bored by it, which led to a decrease in performance (or maybe it was the realization that I'm not actually gifted in the field that lead to loss of interest?). But I'm skeptical of the memory findings: I'm not sure I could ever improve my memory...