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The book touches on this. Basically, the human brain is biased towards novelty. It's much more likely to remember something if it's unique or interesting or different -- if it stands out.

The book's title, Moonwalking with Einstein, is one such example. Gordon Ramsey is probably another: there are lots of chefs out there, but if you see a chef screaming at people in his kitchen, it's probably going to stick with you, consciously or otherwise.