Déjà vu

Y do we have déjà vu?

Although I find this feeling strangely pleasant, I've always wondered the reason for it to happen. Several theories have been formulated to explain it, with some being more plausible than others. The fact is that nobody can say what a déjà vu truly is.

Some argue it may be a recollection of a past experience that is remarkably similar to the present experience that triggers the déjà vu sensation. Although it has some logic, I tend to feel that my "memory" of the event is precisely identical to what I'm experiencing at the time of the déjà vu, and not just similar. Also, I can sometimes say when that past experience has occurred - does this mean that my brain is making stuff up to fill the gaps created by the déjà vu?

Another, but less plausible explanation, refers to a delay between what is perceived by both eyes, thereby creating the recollection effect. I say this is less plausible because my déjà vu are often triggered by what I hear and feel, and not only what I see. Also, I don't like the idea of having a lazy eye :)

My favourite explanation, that I came up with some years ago and got amazingly disappointed when I found out that it wasn't original (right about when I discovered I wasn't alone in the world...), although it is definitely the least realistic of them all, is that during a déjà vu we perceive something that is happening as something that already happened, because in fact it has already happened (confused?). And at this point I can't quite choose the explanation to why it has happened before:

- hypothesis 1: it already happened to us, but in previous lifetimes; why? because we (we, the universe and all that it contains) are stuck in an endless loop, and everything happens exactly the same way over and over again. And sometimes along the way we recall past experiences while we are experiencing them (again!). This loop is explained by the limited expansion and subsequent contraction of the universe, leading to an infinite number of Big Bangs and Big Crunches. Of course, this implies that the universe is not expanding indefinitely, which has yet to be proved - just a minor detail...

- hypothesis 2: it already happened to us, but in a parallel universe; imagine that an infinite number of universes exist, in which we made different choices somewhere along our lives; still, sometimes we experience the same exact situation in both universes, although not necessarily at the same time. This creates an overlap between the different realities, thereby leading to the déjà vu sensation.

Science fiction always gives the best answers to life's most important questions, doesn't it?