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Updated: Jul 13, 2026

Morris Water Maze Experiment
Published on: September 24, 2008
Can water possibly have a memory? A sceptical view
1Laboratoire Léon Brillouin (CEA/CNRS), CEA Saclay, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette Cedex, France. jose.teixeira@cea.fr
Abstract:
Homeopathic medicines are currently used in medical practice, despite controversy about their effectiveness. The preparation method is based on extremely high dilutions of many substances in water, far beyond any detectable level. For this reason, it has been suggested that water could retain a 'memory' of substances that have been dissolved in it before the successive dilutions. The paper stresses the fact that this idea is not compatible with our knowledge of pure water. If an explanation on physical grounds is to be found, research must focus in other aspects of the preparation, such as the presence of other molecules and dissolved gases.
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