[TrainedMonkey]

Memory is associative. I know this because someone told me a long time ago and then I've seen many studies which has shown that. I am sure some confirmation bias was at play. I specifically recall two types of studies. First one is that giving a hint of any specific part of memory aids in recalling of a whole memory. People have used this to construct memorization techniques, such as memory palace. Second one is that memory created during an emotional state is easier to remember when emotional state is recreated.

Additionally I have not seen any studies which disprove memory associativity claim, although I am sure there are some and I just have not looked hard enough.