Spontaneous Recovery

Spontaneous recovery is a phenomenon of learning and memory refers to the re-emergence of a previously extinguished conditioned response after a delay.

Was learning about this as I was googling whether re-learning something was faster than learning something you never learned before.

Is it better to relearn or maintain knowledge?

I think the conclusion in the end is that relearning is better, since relearning forces us to prioritize useful knowledge. Relearning can also be argued as a form of spaced repetition, just over much longer times.

The main drawback with relearning is losing the confidence, but this can be easily overcome with the right attitude towards relearning.