Item #: SCP-3848

Object Class: Keter

Special Containment Procedures: Copies of this document are retained in both digital and physical formats at all Foundation sites. Access to this document by Foundation personnel is not to be restricted, regardless of clearance level. In the event of a full ED-K-Class Lethe Scenario1 taking place and affecting more than 80% of the human population, public knowledge of this document and the existence of the Foundation is permitted, and can be approved if more than half of the acting O5 Council and more than half of the acting Ethics Committee vote as such.

Per every Foundation facility, at least one specialist who has undergone full Mk. III Amnesia Resistance Targeted Mnestic Exposure Training2 should have this document memorized.

Two specific ED-K Lethe Events are considered theoretical but likely to occur, and each poses a unique threat to successful containment operations. These scenarios, and their respective containment procedures, are outlined below:

In the event that SCP-3848 induces widespread memory loss of the concept of itself, SCP-3848 is to be reclassified as a Class V Self-Concealing Memetic Construct3 and treated accordingly. Following that, this document is then to be rewritten with the same containment procedures (unless unforeseen changes are necessary), a Description different enough from the original to be recalled without memory issue, and a different Item Number, and then re-posted to IntSCPFN4 listings as soon as possible.

In the event that SCP-3848 affects the knowledge of anything conceptually similar to the Foundation's existence, the knowledge of what is or is not considered anomalous by Foundation standards, and/or the concept of containment, personnel affected are to be transferred out of the area affected into the custody of memetics specialists in unaffected Foundation facilities. The affected persons should then be exposed to memetic symbols or phrases designed to induce recollection of these concepts.5

Description: SCP-3848 is the designation for a collective memory loss phenomenon affecting all residents of any one specific region6 at any given time. Manifestations of SCP-3848's effects are referred to as ED-K Lethe Events, and occur at random with no historical correlation to each other.

An ED-K Lethe Event is characterized by the following parameters:

Knowledge of a concept, object, or entity will be expunged through anomalous means from the memory of the affected humans. This occurs without warning and can only be identified as having occurred by an outside observer who was not exposed to SCP-3848's effects.

Any memories of interactions with things forgotten will still exist, but will have no context in the affected person's frame of reference. Memories of forgotten concepts will be vague and difficult to describe, with affected persons citing that attempting to recall details of occurrences feels counter-intuitive and psychologically uncomfortable.

Loss of memory of a concept is long-lasting7 and self-sustaining; if an affected person is reminded of a concept forgotten, they will forget again as soon as the topic changes, and will undergo the same reintroduction every time they are exposed to the concept. Clinical treatment using targeted mnestics administration can be effective, but has only a 9% success rate in tests thus far. Investigation into controlled anomalous forced memory recollection technology is underway.8

Due to the nature of SCP-3848's effects, it is difficult to ascertain records of the first documented event, if such records exist. The first event available in Foundation records is the case of July 12th, 2003 in ████, Wisconsin, in which 156 Foundation personnel and approximately 60,000 civilians suddenly and anomalously lost all knowledge of the existence of all canine species, including their pets. This occurrence was limited to the region of ████, with all residents inside city limits affected, all personnel at nearby Site-██ affected, and 50% of ████ County affected. Notably, no persons outside of county lines were affected. Details on this case, and others, are available in Addendum I.

It is unknown how many ED-K Lethe Events have occurred without the Foundation's knowledge, what concepts may or may not have been purged from collective human memory, and how long SCP-3848 has been active. It is theorized that at least one major, worldwide series of connected events — referred to in Foundation documentation as an ED-K-Class Lethe Scenario — has already taken place at some point in the recent past. However, details of these events, if they did take place, are not easily accessible due to the inherent self-sustaining nature of the memory loss induced by SCP-3848. ED-K Lethe Events occur approximately thrice a month as of 04/2018, showing a 78% increase in average rate of occurrence since the first detected event in 2003.

Addendum I: Included below is a selection of SCP-3848 example cases.

Date of Occurrence: July 16, 2003

Location Affected: ████ County, Wisconsin, USA

Number of Civilians Affected: Approx. 60,000

Number of Foundation Personnel Affected: 156

Description of Concept Affected: The existence of dogs/canine species; all affected persons lost all knowledge and awareness of the existence of canine species.

Events Transpired: At least 20 civilian dog owners made calls to police and animal control, citing that an unfamiliar creature was present in their home. Local responders agreed that the creatures were unfamiliar, and contacted state authorities, who were unaffected by the SCP-3848 event due to their location outside the area of effect; embedded Foundation agents then informed nearby Site-██ of the occurrences, only to discover that Site-██ had also been affected. It was at this point that SCP-3848 was officially documented as an anomalous phenomenon and preliminary containment procedures were developed. An interview between Specialist Ryland, the only unaffected person in the area9 and an affected agent was conducted, and a transcript of this interview is included below.

Results and Impact: As re-education efforts were shown to repeatedly fail due to the self-sustaining nature of SCP-3848's effects, dogs were relocated to neighboring counties' adoption shelters. Approximately 80 percent of ████ County's population has lived there since the event, and still hold no memory of dogs. The 20 percent who moved to the area after the event occurred are unaffected.

⮟ show interview transcript

⮝ hide interview transcript

On July 16th, 2003, Specialist Ryland of Site-██ conducted an interview with Agent █████, who was affected by July 12th's ED-K Lethe Event. Specialist Ryland was, at the time, Site-██'s only employee who had undergone Mk. III ARTMET training, and thus was able to successfully counter the effects of the event long enough to interview Agent █████ and lead preliminary research efforts on SCP-3848. A transcript of the relevant interview segment follows:

Begin excerpt:

10:02 | Specialist Ryland: As you've been informed, I'm conducting this series of interviews to determine the effects of this memory-affecting event on Site-██'s personnel, including myself. Do you still have in mind the topic we'll be discussing?

10:02 | Agent █████: Yeah, you said dogs, right?

10:02 | Specialist Ryland: That's correct. You have a dog at home, yes?

10:02 | Agent █████: I do?

10:02 | Specialist Ryland: You cited to me before this interview that you own a white Russian wolfhound.

10:02 | Agent █████: A Russian- That does sound familiar. What did you say this Russian thing was?

10:02 | Specialist Ryland: A dog. Canines are a non-anomalous type of animal that humans have domesticated and bred just like we did with cats.

Agent █████ pauses for 10 seconds.

10:03 | Agent █████: Wow. I wonder how I went so long without knowing that. What else did you need to ask?

10:03 | Specialist Ryland: It's imperative you understand that you very recently did know about dogs, but were anomalously induced to forget by the effects of newly-discovered SCP-3848, a memory loss phenomenon. Site-██, and the rest of ████ County, were just affected by an event that caused us to forget canines exist. People outside of our area were not affected. I have had memetic resistance training that allows me to focus on the topic longer than most, but SCP-3848 induces repetitive memory loss and our research has shown that subjects forgotten are invariably forgotten again, even if retaught. Does this make sense to you?

10:03 | Agent █████: Yes. It's not the craziest I've heard. I'll try to wrap my head around it.

10:04 | Specialist Ryland: Alright. Unfortunately, this is the third time that I've given you this briefing. I recommend clearing your head of any and all thoughts or topics except for dogs, SCP-3848, and this conversation. I have some pictures of dogs printed out here on the table for you. Try to explain what your reaction is to seeing these pictures of dogs.

10:04 | Agent █████: I don't like how you keep saying 'dogs'. It doesn't sound like a real word.

10:04 | Specialist Ryland: Noted. Can you please look at these images of dogs?

Agent █████ picks up a photograph of their pet, a white Borzoi.

10:04 | Agent █████: It doesn't look real. Almost like a horse, but too soft. Hard to believe that we've always had these things around.

10:04 | Specialist Ryland: Indeed. That dog is yours, and lives in your townhome offsite.

10:05 | Agent █████: This is mine? I don't know how to take care of it. What do we do about that?

10:05 | Specialist Ryland: Personnel from my department will address that with you later today.

10:05 | Agent █████: Are all of these pictures… dogs?

10:05 | Specialist Ryland: Yes. These are all different breeds of dogs.

Agent █████ picks up a photograph of an American pitbull.

10:05 | Agent █████: Wow, this looks very different from the white one. Probably the most different out of all of the pictures here. And what type of creature is this?

10:05 | Specialist Ryland: This is also a dog.

10:05 | Agent █████: Oh, right, a dog. And what SCP did you say they are?

10:05 | Specialist Ryland: Dogs are not an SCP object. Your memory of dogs, which are a very well-known and domesticated type of animal all over the planet, is being anomalously influenced by SCP-3848.

10:05 | Agent █████: Oh, right, right. You told me about that one.

10:05 | Specialist Ryland: Yes. Now, could you please describe for the record the thoughts and feelings you are experiencing every time you make an attempt to remember dogs, or think about dogs?

10:05 | Agent █████: Very uncomfortable. I feel like I should be talking about something else.

10:05 | Specialist Ryland: Do you feel there is a reason for this?

Agent █████ is silent for 8 seconds.

10:05 | Agent █████: Not really. It feels like… um… I'm sorry, I'm losing my train of thought here. Can you repeat your q- Wait, no, no, I remember, damn it. These pictures are of dogs. Okay, I've got this. Something doesn't want me to remember dogs. Do you know the concept of dimensions higher than three?

10:06 | Specialist Ryland: We need to make an effort to stay on the topic of dogs, and SCP-3848.

10:06 | Agent █████: Just bear with me. You know when you look at a 3D rendition of a 4D cube, and you sort of get it, but you feel like you're missing some key aspect of actually processing how it exists, and you just can't get yourself to comprehend it, because you have no way of perceiving the space it naturally exists in?

10:06 | Specialist Ryland: I think so, yes.

10:06 | Agent █████: That's what looking at these pictures of dogs makes me think. I get that these easily could have showed up in Earth's evolution — er, I mean, I get that that's why they're real — but they look and feel alien. Thinking about them is like thinking about those other dimensions in space. I get that it's possible, but I don't have the means to comprehend it.

10:06 | Specialist Ryland: Excellent. Thank you.

10:06 | Agent █████: Is that it? Can I go now? I really want to think about something else. All of this memetic shit is giving me a headache. I don't think I'd make it if I were in your department.

10:06 | Specialist Ryland: Yes, that's it. I'll have two of my coworkers meet you at your house tonight to discuss what to do with your dog.

10:07 | Agent █████: Oh wow, I don't think I caught the fact that I have a dog. I wonder what I'm going to do about that.

10:07 | Specialist Ryland: Again, our personnel will assist you with that. For the time being, this interview is concluded. You may return to your shift.

10:07 | Agent █████: Oh, okay, thanks.

End log.

Date of Occurrence: August 12, 2005

Location Affected: Wilmington, North Carolina, USA

Number of Civilians Affected: Approx. 110,000

Number of Foundation Personnel Affected: 13

Description of Concept Affected: The sport of line fishing; commercial/bulk net fishing was not affected, nor was the concept of fish.

Events Transpired: On August 12, customers in a local sporting goods store inquired as to the nature and purpose of the fishing rods up for sale. Store associates cited that the devices were unfamiliar to them as well. Although the process took 48 hours, the abnormality eventually spread by word of mouth to the Wilmington Police Department, and from there to Foundation personnel stationed at Site-42. As Site-42 is not within Wilmington's official city limits, personnel on-site were not affected, but 13 personnel who had been inside city limits for the day were affected.

Results and Impact: Wilmington residents remain familiar with other methods of fishing, but are averse to line fishing. Line fishing is still a professional sport in the coastal area, although participants and organizers are always from areas outside of Wilmington's official city limits. 15 percent of the original affected persons have now moved, with city population swelling in following years, and as a result about half of Wilmington is now familiar with line fishing.

[UNCONFIRMED EVENT REMOVED]

Date of Occurrence: October 23, 2007

Location Affected: Felixstowe, United Kingdom

Number of Civilians Affected: Approx. 23,000

Number of Foundation Personnel Affected: 1

Description of Concept Affected: The existence of boats, but not the concept of buoyant materials.

Events Transpired: Two Foundation operatives were dispatched to Felixstowe for a mission involving an unrelated anomaly. One operative spent the night in Felixstowe with intentions to use a small private motorboat to cross an inlet and rendezvous with their partner at nearby Harwich International Port for extraction. On the morning of October 23, the operative in Felixstowe reported that they could not complete the mission because they knew of no way to cross the body of water without swimming. After some conversation between the two operatives, the unaffected person reported the strange behavior to Foundation supervisors, and the event was investigated accordingly; it was then determined by investigation that the entire parish of Felixstowe was affected.

Results and Impact: Felixstowe residents expressed unease regarding their proximity to water, resulting in a panic that caused most residents to purchase life preservers and other such devices, in preparation for the theoretical possibility that someone could fall into water and have no way of being rescued quickly. Images of passing ships were posted to social media with confusion, and Foundation information suppression specialists were tasked with removing traces of these posts as they occurred, either manually or through use of a keyword-targeting bot.

Date of Occurrence: March 18, 2011

Location Affected: Queens, New York City, New York, USA

Number of Civilians Affected: Approx. 2.3 million

Number of Foundation Personnel Affected: 730

Description of Concept Affected: The existence of the turn signal indicator in passenger vehicles.

Events Transpired: An Offsite Response Driver for Site-██ was observed not using his signal by a passenger from an out-of-state site. The resulting discussion between the two eventually led to investigation by Site-██ and subsequent public analysis of the phenomenon.

Results and Impact: Minimal impact was observed. Traffic patterns for the area saw a 2.8% increase in accidents per year for two years and then returned to normal averages.

Date of Occurrence: December 7, 2015

Location Affected: Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany

Number of Civilians Affected: Approx. 205,000

Number of Foundation Personnel Affected: 0

Description of Concept Affected: The mechanics through which alternating current electricity functions; the use of electricity and electrical devices was not affected, nor was the knowledge that electricity exists.

Events Transpired: All affected persons became incapable of comprehending how wide-scale power distribution works, including employees of power companies and local government. Mainz suffered a three-day power outage due to lack of action by power grid operators; Foundation informants embedded in national government reported on the issue and were eventually able to transfer personnel from out of the area to manage power stations.

Results and Impact: Power grid was successfully restored. Most of Mainz's population remains affected, but power grid operations personnel have been replaced with informed employees and the city now operates normally.

Date of Occurrence: January 3, 2017

Location Affected: ████████ █████, Ontario, Canada

Number of Civilians Affected: [REDACTED]

Number of Foundation Personnel Affected: 0

Description of Concept Affected: The fact that murder is illegal, as well as the fact that it is generally regarded as immoral.

Events Transpired: On the morning of January 3, a ████████ █████ resident killed his neighbor via blunt force impact with a sharpened stone. Onlookers did not report the event to law enforcement. After approximately 72 hours, a traveler from outside city limits entered ████████ █████, witnessed a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police kill a civilian seemingly at random with an audience of several witnesses, and fled the town to inform law enforcement in another area. It was through these channels that the Foundation was eventually alerted to the events that had taken place.

Results and Impact: [DATA EXPUNGED]

Extensive records of all known SCP-3848 events documented by the Foundation are available for persons with Level 4/3848 clearance, and can be requested from the Site-42 Memetics and Cognitohazards Department.

Footnotes

1. A high number of ED-K Lethe Events occurring at a rate that both noticeably and negatively impacts human society and results in public awareness of the SCP-3848 phenomenon. With current predictions, this point will be reached by 2035 at the latest.

2. A regimen of tolerance training sessions originally developed by the Site-42 Memetics and Cognitohazards Department which involves repeated exposure to memory-affecting memetic hazards, followed by administration of memory-targeting mnestics. (Referred to in shorthand as ARTMET.)

3. "anti-meme"

4. the International SCP Foundation Network

5. One such symbol, the three-pointed SCP Foundation logo, is an example of a low-level memetic conceptual induction symbol designed by Foundation personnel, and has been in use for ██ years. However, development of these tools to a degree capable of countering SCP-3848's effects is currently still in experimental stages, with D-class testing pending approval.

6. SCP-3848 events appear to occur within the exact constraints of municipal boundaries, such as being limited to one town inside city limits or one county inside county lines.

7. Certain concepts forgotten appear to be more easily recollected by affected persons, but no case has shown recollection occurring any sooner than 6-24 months after initial expungement.

8. Edited by Mallory Wickerford (Site-42 Research Department) 03/03/27

9. Due to Ryland's effectiveness, his memetic training regimen was then used as the baseline for development of future containment procedures and personnel requirements.