Scientist compares Roman and Japanese swords with new method

[Tarbicus]

unfortunately in the west people do not adhere to their martial past in a very responsible manner, nor do they seem to remember, or want to remember....

Memory is a highly subjective process. Given that it's centuries ago that these fabled Japanese swords were being made, is it not possible that they are remembered in such a way to make them better than they actually were? If the processes for making them were written down, step-by-step, then okay. But if the process has been handed down through generations, then there can surely be no guarantee that what is known today is an accurate measure of the process of old, and could be simple 'nostalgia' which in the meantime has undergone improvements over time which are simply assumed to be the age old way?