3/17/2017 MemeticsWikipedia

Memetics
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

MemeticsisthetheoryofmentalcontentbasedonananalogywithDarwinianevolution,originatingfromthe
popularizationofRichardDawkins'1976bookTheSelfishGene.[1]Proponentsdescribememeticsasanapproach
toevolutionarymodelsofculturalinformationtransfer.

Thememe,analogoustoagene,wasconceivedasa"unitofculture"(anidea,belief,patternofbehaviour,etc.)
whichis"hosted"inthemindsofoneormoreindividuals,andwhichcanreproduceitself,therebyjumpingfrom
mindtomind.Thuswhatwouldotherwiseberegardedasoneindividualinfluencinganothertoadoptabeliefis
seenasanideareplicatorreproducingitselfinanewhost.Aswithgenetics,particularlyunderaDawkinsian
interpretation,ameme'ssuccessmaybeduetoitscontributiontotheeffectivenessofitshost.

Memeticsisalsonotableforsidesteppingthetraditionalconcernwiththetruthofideasandbeliefs.Instead,itis
interestedintheirsuccess.[2]

TheUsenetnewsgroupalt.memeticsstartedin1993withpeakpostingyearsinthemidtolate1990s.[3]The
JournalofMemeticswaspublishedelectronicallyfrom1997to2005.[4]

Contents
1 History
1.1 Theterm"meme"
1.2 Maturity
2 Internalistsandexternalists
3 Criticism
4 Newdevelopments
5 Applications
6 Terminology
7 Seealso
8 Notes
9 References
10 Externallinks

History
InhisbookTheSelfishGene(1976),theevolutionarybiologistRichardDawkinsusedthetermmemetodescribea
unitofhumanculturaltransmissionanalogoustothegene,arguingthatreplicationalsohappensinculture,albeitin
adifferentsense.TedCloakhadbrieflyoutlinedasimilarhypothesisin1975,whichDawkinsreferenced.Cultural
evolutionitselfisamucholdertopic,withahistorythatdatesbackatleastasfarasDarwin'sera.

Dawkins(1976)proposedthatthememeisaunitofinformationresidinginthebrainandisthemutatingreplicator
inhumanculturalevolution.Itisapatternthatcaninfluenceitssurroundingsthatis,ithascausalagencyand
canpropagate.Thiscreatedgreatdebateamongsociologists,biologists,andscientistsofotherdisciplines,because
Dawkinshimselfdidnotprovideasufficientexplanationofhowthereplicationofunitsofinformationinthebrain
controlshumanbehaviourandultimatelyculture,sincetheprincipaltopicofthebookwasgenetics.Dawkins

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apparentlydidnotintendtopresentacomprehensivetheoryofmemeticsinTheSelfishGene,butrathercoinedthe
termmemeinaspeculativespirit.Accordingly,differentresearcherscametodefinetheterm"unitofinformation"
indifferentways.

Themodernmemeticsmovementdatesfromthemid1980s.AJanuary1983"MetamagicalThemas"column[5]by
DouglasHofstadter,inScientificAmerican,wasinfluentialaswashis1985bookofthesamename."Memeticist"
wascoinedasanalogousto"geneticist"originallyinTheSelfishGene.LaterArelLucassuggestedthatthe
disciplinethatstudiesmemesandtheirconnectionstohumanandothercarriersofthembeknownas"memetics"
byanalogywith"genetics".[6]Dawkins'TheSelfishGenehasbeenafactorinattractingtheattentionofpeopleof
disparateintellectualbackgrounds.Anotherstimuluswasthepublicationin1991ofConsciousnessExplainedby
TuftsUniversityphilosopherDanielDennett,whichincorporatedthememeconceptintoatheoryofthemind.In
his1991essay"VirusesoftheMind",RichardDawkinsusedmemeticstoexplainthephenomenonofreligious
beliefandthevariouscharacteristicsoforganisedreligions.Bythen,memeticshadalsobecomeathemeappearing
infiction(e.g.NealStephenson'sSnowCrash).

TheideaoflanguageasavirushadalreadybeenintroducedbyWilliamS.Burroughsasearlyas1962inhisbook
TheTicketThatExploded,andlaterinTheElectronicRevolution,publishedin1970inTheJob.DouglasRushkoff
exploredthesameconceptinMediaVirus:HiddenAgendasinPopularCulture(http://www.rushkoff.com/mediav
irus/)in1995.

However,thefoundationofmemeticsinitsfullmodernincarnationoriginatedinthepublicationin1996oftwo
booksbyauthorsoutsidetheacademicmainstream:VirusoftheMind:TheNewScienceoftheMemebyformer
Microsoftexecutiveturnedmotivationalspeakerandprofessionalpokerplayer,RichardBrodie,andThought
Contagion:HowBeliefSpreadsThroughSocietybyAaronLynch,amathematicianandphilosopherwhoworked
formanyyearsasanengineeratFermilab.Lynchclaimedtohaveconceivedhistheorytotallyindependentlyof
anycontactwithacademicsintheculturalevolutionarysphere,andapparentlywasnotevenawareofDawkins'
TheSelfishGeneuntilhisbookwasveryclosetopublication.

AroundthesametimeasthepublicationofthebooksbyLynchandBrodietheejournalJournalofMemetics
EvolutionaryModelsofInformationTransmission(http://cfpm.org/jomemit/)appearedontheweb.Itwasfirst
hostedbytheCentreforPolicyModellingatManchesterMetropolitanUniversitybutlatertakenoverbyFrancis
HeylighenoftheCLEAresearchinstituteattheVrijeUniversiteitBrussel.Theejournalsoonbecamethecentral
pointforpublicationanddebatewithinthenascentmemeticistcommunity.(Therehadbeenashortlivedpaper
basedmemeticspublicationstartingin1990,theJournalofIdeaseditedbyElanMoritz.[7])In1999,Susan
Blackmore,apsychologistattheUniversityoftheWestofEngland,publishedTheMemeMachine,whichmore
fullyworkedouttheideasofDennett,Lynch,andBrodieandattemptedtocompareandcontrastthemwithvarious
approachesfromtheculturalevolutionarymainstream,aswellasprovidingnovel,andcontroversial,memetics
basedtheoriesfortheevolutionoflanguageandthehumansenseofindividualselfhood.

Theterm"meme"

Theterm"meme"derivesfromtheAncientGreek(mimts),meaning"imitator,pretender".Thesimilar
term"mneme"wasusedin1904,bytheGermanevolutionarybiologistRichardSemon,bestknownforhis
developmentoftheengramtheoryofmemory,inhisworkDiemnemischenEmpfindungeninihrenBeziehungen
zudenOriginalempfindungen,translatedintoEnglishin1921asTheMneme.UntilDanielSchacterpublished
ForgottenIdeas,NeglectedPioneers:RichardSemonandtheStoryofMemoryin2000,Semon'sworkhadlittle
influence,thoughitwasquotedextensivelyinErwinSchrdingersprescient1956TarnerLectureMindand
Matter.RichardDawkins(1976)apparentlycoinedtheword"meme"independentlyofSemon,writingthis:

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"Mimeme"comesfromasuitableGreekroot,butIwantamonosyllablethatsoundsabitlike"gene".
IhopemyclassicistfriendswillforgivemeifIabbreviatemimemetomeme.Ifitisanyconsolation,it
couldalternativelybethoughtofasbeingrelatedtomemory,ortotheFrenchwordmme.

Maturity

In2005,theJournalofMemeticsEvolutionaryModelsofInformationTransmissionceasedpublicationand
publishedasetofarticlesonthefutureofmemetics.Thewebsitestatesthatalthough"therewastobea
relaunch...afterseveralyearsnothinghashappened".[8]SusanBlackmorehaslefttheUniversityoftheWestof
Englandtobecomeafreelancesciencewriterandnowconcentratesmoreonthefieldofconsciousnessand
cognitivescience.DerekGatherermovedtoworkasacomputerprogrammerinthepharmaceuticalindustry,
althoughhestilloccasionallypublishesonmemeticsrelatedmatters.RichardBrodieisnowclimbingtheworld
professionalpokerrankings.AaronLynchdisownedthememeticscommunityandthewords"meme"and
"memetics"(withoutdisowningtheideasinhisbook),adoptingtheselfdescription"thoughtcontagionist".He
diedin2005.

SusanBlackmore(2002)restatedthedefinitionofmemeas:whateveriscopiedfromonepersontoanother
person,whetherhabits,skills,songs,stories,oranyotherkindofinformation.Furthershesaidthatmemes,like
genes,arereplicatorsinthesenseasdefinedbyDawkins.[9]Thatis,theyareinformationthatiscopied.Memesare
copiedbyimitation,teachingandothermethods.Thecopiesarenotperfect:memesarecopiedwithvariation
moreover,theycompeteforspaceinourmemoriesandforthechancetobecopiedagain.Onlysomeofthe
variantscansurvive.Thecombinationofthesethreeelements(copiesvariationcompetitionforsurvival)forms
preciselytheconditionforDarwinianevolution,andsomemes(andhencehumancultures)evolve.Largegroups
ofmemesthatarecopiedandpassedontogetherarecalledcoadaptedmemecomplexes,ormemeplexes.In
Blackmore'sdefinition,thewaythatamemereplicatesisthroughimitation.Thisrequiresbraincapacityto
generallyimitateamodelorselectivelyimitatethemodel.Sincetheprocessofsociallearningvariesfromone
persontoanother,theimitationprocesscannotbesaidtobecompletelyimitated.Thesamenessofanideamaybe
expressedwithdifferentmemessupportingit.Thisistosaythatthemutationrateinmemeticevolutionis
extremelyhigh,andmutationsareevenpossiblewithineachandeveryinteractionoftheimitationprocess.It
becomesveryinterestingwhenweseethatasocialsystemcomposedofacomplexnetworkofmicrointeractions
exists,butatthemacrolevelanorderemergestocreateculture.

Internalistsandexternalists
Thememeticsmovementsplitalmostimmediatelyintotwo.Thefirstgroupwerethosewhowantedtostickto
Dawkins'definitionofamemeas"aunitofculturaltransmission".GibranBurchett,anothermemeticist
responsibleforhelpingtoresearchandcocointhetermmemeticengineering,alongwithLeveiousRolandoand
LarryLottman,hasstatedthatamemecanbedefined,moreprecisely,as"aunitofculturalinformationthatcanbe
copied,locatedinthebrain".ThisthinkingismoreinlinewithDawkins'seconddefinitionofthememeinhis
bookTheExtendedPhenotype.Thesecondgroupwantstoredefinememesasobservableculturalartifactsand
behaviors.However,incontrasttothosetwopositions,Blackmoredoesnotrejecteitherconceptofexternalor
internalmemes.[10]

Thesetwoschoolsbecameknownasthe"internalists"andthe"externalists."Prominentinternalistsincludedboth
LynchandBrodiethemostvocalexternalistsincludedDerekGatherer,ageneticistfromLiverpoolJohnMoores
University,andWilliamBenzon,awriteronculturalevolutionandmusic.Themainrationaleforexternalismwas
thatinternalbrainentitiesarenotobservable,andmemeticscannotadvanceasascience,especiallyaquantitative
science,unlessitmovesitsemphasisontothedirectlyquantifiableaspectsofculture.Internalistscounteredwith
variousarguments:thatbrainstateswilleventuallybedirectlyobservablewithadvancedtechnology,thatmost

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culturalanthropologistsagreethatcultureisaboutbeliefsandnotartifacts,orthatartifactscannotbereplicatorsin
thesamesenseasmentalentities(orDNA)arereplicators.Thedebatebecamesoheatedthata1998Symposium
onMemetics,organisedaspartofthe15thInternationalConferenceonCybernetics,passedamotioncallingforan
endtodefinitionaldebates.McNamarademonstratedin2011thatfunctionalconnectivityprofilingusing
neuroimagingtoolsenablestheobservationoftheprocessingofinternalmemes,"imemes",inresponseto
external"ememes".[11]

Anadvancedstatementoftheinternalistschoolcamein2002withthepublicationofTheElectricMeme,by
RobertAunger,ananthropologistfromtheUniversityofCambridge.Aungeralsoorganisedaconferencein
Cambridgein1999,atwhichprominentsociologistsandanthropologistswereabletogivetheirassessmentofthe
progressmadeinmemeticstothatdate.ThisresultedinthepublicationofDarwinizingCulture:TheStatusof
MemeticsasaScience,editedbyAungerandwithaforewordbyDennett,in2010.

Criticism
Thisevolutionarymodelofculturalinformationtransferisbasedontheconceptthatunitsofinformation,or
"memes",haveanindependentexistence,areselfreplicating,andaresubjecttoselectiveevolutionthrough
environmentalforces.[12]StartingfromapropositionputforwardinthewritingsofRichardDawkins,ithassince
turnedintoanewareaofstudy,onethatlooksattheselfreplicatingunitsofculture.Ithasbeenproposedthatjust
asmemesareanalogoustogenes,memeticsisanalogoustogenetics.

Criticscontendthatsomeproponents'assertionsare"untested,unsupportedorincorrect."[12]LuisBenitez
Bribiesca,acriticofmemetics,callsit"apseudoscientificdogma"and"adangerousideathatposesathreattothe
seriousstudyofconsciousnessandculturalevolution"amongotherthings.Asfactualcriticism,hereferstothe
lackofacodescriptformemes,astheDNAisforgenes,andtothefactthatthemememutationmechanism(i.e.,
anideagoingfromonebraintoanother)istoounstable(lowreplicationaccuracyandhighmutationrate),which
wouldrendertheevolutionaryprocesschaotic.[13]This,however,hasbeendemonstrated(e.g.byDanielC.
Dennett,inDarwin'sDangerousIdea)tonotbethecase,infact,duetotheexistenceofselfregulatingcorrection
mechanisms(vaguelyresemblingthoseofgenetranscription)enabledbytheredundancyandotherpropertiesof
mostmemeexpressionlanguages,whichdostabilizeinformationtransfer.(E.g.spiritualnarrativesincluding
musicanddanceformscansurviveinfulldetailacrossanynumberofgenerationsevenincultureswithoral
traditiononly.)Memesforwhichstablecopyingmethodsareavailablewillinevitablygetselectedforsurvival
moreoftenthanthosewhichcanonlyhaveunstablemutations,thereforegoingextinct.(Notably,Benitez
Bribiesca'sclaimof"nocodescript"isalsoirrelevant,consideringthefactthatthereisnothingpreventingthe
informationcontentsofmemesfrombeingcoded,encoded,expressed,preservedorcopiedinallsortsofdifferent
waysthroughouttheirlifecycles.)

Anothercriticismcomesfromsemiotics,(e.g.,Deacon,[14]Kull[15])statingthattheconceptofmemeisa
primitivizedconceptofSign.Memeisthusdescribedinmemeticsasasignwithoutitstriadicnature.Inother
words,memeisadegeneratesign,whichincludesonlyitsabilityofbeingcopied.Accordingly,inthebroadest
sense,theobjectsofcopyingarememes,whereastheobjectsoftranslationandinterpretationaresigns.

MaryMidgleycriticisesmemeticsforatleasttworeasons:[16]"One,cultureisnotbestunderstoodbyexamining
itssmallestparts,ascultureispatternlike,comparabletoanoceancurrent.Manymorefactors,historicaland
others,shouldbetakenintoaccountthanonlywhateverparticlecultureisbuiltfrom.Two,ifmemesarenot
thoughts(andthusnotcognitivephenomena),asDanielC.Dennettinsistsin"Darwin'sDangerousIdea",thentheir
ontologicalstatusisopentoquestion,andmemeticists(whoarealsoreductionists)maybechallengedwhether
memesevenexist.Questionscanextendtowhethertheideaof"meme"isitselfameme,orisatrueconcept.
Fundamentally,memeticsisanattempttoproduceknowledgethroughorganicmetaphors,whichassuchisa
questionableresearchapproach,astheapplicationofmetaphorshastheeffectofhidingthatwhichdoesnotfit
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withintherealmofthemetaphor.Ratherthanstudyactualreality,withoutpreconceptions,memetics,assomany
ofthesociobiologicalexplanationsofsociety,believethatsayingthattheappleislikeanorangeisavalid
analysisoftheapple."[17]

HenryJenkins,JoshuaGreen,andSamFord,intheirbookSpreadableMedia(2013),criticizeDawkins'ideaofthe
meme,writingthat"whiletheideaofthememeisacompellingone,itmaynotadequatelyaccountforhow
contentcirculatesthroughparticipatoryculture."Thethreeauthorsalsocriticizeotherinterpretationsofmemetics,
especiallythosewhichdescribememesas"selfreplicating",becausetheyignorethefactthat"cultureisahuman
productandreplicatesthroughhumanagency."[18]

Likeothercritics,MariaKronfeldnerhascriticizedmemeticsforbeingbasedonanallegedlyinaccurateanalogy
withthegenealternately,sheclaimsitis"heuristicallytrivial",beingamereredescriptionofwhatisalready
knownwithoutofferinganyusefulnovelty.[19]

Newdevelopments
DawkinsinADevil'sChaplainrespondedthatthereareactuallytwodifferenttypesofmemeticprocesses
(controversialandinformative).Thefirstisatypeofculturalidea,action,orexpression,whichdoeshavehigh
varianceforinstance,astudentofhiswhohadinheritedsomeofthemannerismsofWittgenstein.However,he
alsodescribesaselfcorrectingmeme,highlyresistanttomutation.Asanexampleofthis,hegivesorigami
patternsinelementaryschoolsexceptinrarecases,thememeiseitherpassedonintheexactsequenceof
instructions,or(inthecaseofaforgetfulchild)terminates.Thistypeofmemetendsnottoevolve,andto
experienceprofoundmutationsintherareeventthatitdoes.

Anotherdefinition,givenbyHokkySitungkir,triedtoofferamorerigorousformalismforthememe,memeplexes,
andthedeme,seeingthememeasaculturalunitinaculturalcomplexsystem.ItisbasedontheDarwiniangenetic
algorithmwithsomemodificationstoaccountforthedifferentpatternsofevolutionseeningenesandmemes.In
themethodofmemeticsasthewaytoseecultureasacomplexadaptivesystem,[20]hedescribesawaytosee
memeticsasanalternativemethodologyofculturalevolution.However,thereareasmanypossibledefinitionsthat
arecreditedtotheword"meme".Forexample,inthesenseofcomputersimulationthetermmemeticalgorithmis
usedtodefineaparticularcomputationalviewpoint.

Thepossibilityofquantitativeanalysisofmemesusingneuroimagingtoolsandthesuggestionthatsuchstudies
havealreadybeendonewasgivenbyMcNamara(2011).[21]Thisauthorproposeshyperscanning(concurrent
scanningoftwocommunicatingindividualsintwoseparateMRImachines)asakeytoolinthefuturefor
investigatingmemetics.

Velikovsky(2013)proposedthe"holon"asthestructureofthememe,[22]synthesizingthemajortheorieson
memesofRichardDawkins,MihalyCsikszentmihalyi,E.O.Wilson,FrederickTurner(poet)andArthurKoestler.

ProponentsofmemeticsasdescribedintheJournalofMemetics(outofprintsince2005[23])Evolutionary
ModelsofInformationTransmissionbelievethat'memetics'hasthepotentialtobeanimportantandpromising
analysisofcultureusingtheframeworkofevolutionaryconcepts.KeithHensoninMemeticsandtheModular
Mind(AnalogAug.1987)[24]makesthecasethatmemeticsneedstoincorporateevolutionarypsychologyto
understandthepsychologicaltraitsofameme'shost.[25]Thisisespeciallytrueoftimevarying,meme
amplificationhosttraits,suchasthoseleadingtowars.[26][27]

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DiCarlo()hasdevelopedtheideaof'memeticequilibrium'todescribeaculturalcompatiblestatewithbiological
equilibrium.In"ProblemSolvingandNeurotransmissionintheUpperPaleolithic"(inpress),diCarloarguesthat
ashumanconsciousnessevolvedanddeveloped,sotoodidourancestors'capacitytoconsiderandattempttosolve
environmentalproblemsinmoreconceptuallysophisticatedways.Understoodinthisway,problemsolving
amongstaparticulargroup,whenconsideredsatisfactory,oftenproducesafeelingofenvironmentalcontrol,
stability,inshortmemeticequilibrium.Butthepayoffisnotmerelypractical,providingpurelyfunctionalutility
itisbiochemicalanditcomesintheformofneurotransmitters.Therelationshipbetweenagraduallyemerging
consciousawarenessandsophisticatedlanguagesinwhichtoformulaterepresentationscombinedwiththedesire
tomaintainbiologicalequilibrium,generatedthenecessityformemeticequilibriumtofillinconceptualgapsin
termsofunderstandingthreeveryimportantaspectsintheUpperPaleolithic:causality,morality,andmortality.
Thedesiretoexplainphenomenainrelationtomaintainingsurvivalandreproductivestasis,generatedanormative
stanceinthemindsofourancestorsSurvival/ReproductiveValue(orSRValue).

Houben(2014)hasarguedonseveraloccasionsthattheexceptionalresilienceofVedicritualanditsinteraction
withachangingecologicalandeconomicenvironmentoverseveralmillenniacanbeprofitablydealtwithina
culturalevolutionperspectiveinwhichtheVedicmantraisthememeorunitofculturalreplication.[28]This
renderssuperfluousattemptstoexplainthephenomenonofVedictraditioningeneticterms.[29]Thedomainof
VedicritualshouldbeabletofulfiltoalargeextentthethreechallengesposedtomemeticsbyB.Edmonds(2002
and2005).[30]

Applications
Researchmethodologiesthatapplymemeticsgobymanynames:Viralmarketing,culturalevolution,thehistoryof
ideas,socialanalytics,andmore.Manyoftheseapplicationsdonotmakereferencetotheliteratureonmemes
directlybutarebuiltupontheevolutionarylensofideapropagationthattreatssemanticunitsofcultureasself
replicatingandmutatingpatternsofinformationthatareassumedtoberelevantforscientificstudy.Forexample,
thefieldofpublicrelationsisfilledwithattemptstointroducenewideasandaltersocialdiscourse.Onemeansof
doingthisistodesignamemeanddeployitthroughvariousmediachannels.Onehistoricexampleofapplied
memeticsisthePRcampaignconductedin1991aspartofthebuilduptothefirstGulfWarintheUnited
States.[31]

Theapplicationofmemeticstoadifficultcomplexsocialsystemproblem,environmentalsustainability,has
recentlybeenattemptedatthwink.org[32]Usingmemetypesandmemeticinfectioninseveralstockandflow
simulationmodels,JackHarichhasdemonstratedseveralinterestingphenomenathatarebest,andperhapsonly,
explainedbymemes.Onemodel,TheDuelingLoopsofthePoliticalPowerplace,[33]arguesthatthefundamental
reasoncorruptionisthenorminpoliticsisduetoaninherentstructuraladvantageofonefeedbacklooppitted
againstanother.Anothermodel,TheMemeticEvolutionofSolutionstoDifficultProblems,[34]usesmemes,the
evolutionaryalgorithm,andthescientificmethodtoshowhowcomplexsolutionsevolveovertimeandhowthat
processcanbeimproved.Theinsightsgainedfromthesemodelsarebeingusedtoengineermemeticsolution
elementstothesustainabilityproblem.

AnotherapplicationofmemeticsinthesustainabilityspaceisthecrowdfundedClimateMemeProject[35]
conductedbyJoeBrewerandBalaszLaszloKarafiathinthespringof2013.Thisstudywasbasedonacollection
of1000uniquetextbasedexpressionsgatheredfromTwitter,Facebook,andstructuredinterviewswithclimate
activists.Themajorfindingwasthattheglobalwarmingmemeisnoteffectiveatspreadingbecauseitcauses
emotionalduressinthemindsofpeoplewholearnaboutit.Fivecentraltensionswererevealedinthediscourse
about[climatechange],eachofwhichrepresentsaresonancepointthroughwhichdialoguecanbeengaged.The
tensionswereHarmony/Disharmony(whetherornothumansarepartofthenaturalworld),Survival/Extinction
(envisioningthefutureaseitherapocalypticcollapseofcivilizationortotalextinctionofthehumanrace),

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Cooperation/Conflict(regardingwhetherornothumanitycancometogethertosolveglobalproblems),
Momentum/Hesitation(aboutwhetherornotwearemakingprogressatthecollectivescaletoaddressclimate
change),andElitism/Heretic(ageneralsentimentthateachsideofthedebateconsiderstheexpertsofits
oppositiontobeuntrustworthy).[36]

BenCullen,inhisbookContagiousIdeas,[37]broughttheideaofthememeintothedisciplineofarchaeology.He
coinedtheterm"CulturalVirusTheory",andusedittotrytoanchorarchaeologicaltheoryinaneoDarwinian
paradigm.Archaeologicalmemeticscouldassisttheapplicationofthememeconcepttomaterialculturein
particular.

FrancisHeylighenoftheCenterLeoApostelforInterdisciplinaryStudieshaspostulatedwhathecalls"memetic
selectioncriteria".Thesecriteriaopenedthewaytoaspecializedfieldofappliedmemeticstofindoutifthese
selectioncriteriacouldstandthetestofquantitativeanalyses.In2003KlaasChielenscarriedoutthesetestsina
Mastersthesisprojectonthetestabilityoftheselectioncriteria.

InSelfishSoundsandLinguisticEvolution,[38]AustrianlinguistNikolausRitthasattemptedtooperationalise
memeticconceptsandusethemfortheexplanationoflongtermsoundchangesandchangeconspiraciesinearly
English.ItisarguedthatageneralisedDarwinianframeworkforhandlingculturalchangecanprovideexplanations
whereestablished,speakercentredapproachesfailtodoso.Thebookmakescomparativelyconcretesuggestions
aboutthepossiblematerialstructureofmemes,andprovidestwoempiricallyrichcasestudies.

AustralianacademicS.J.Whittyhasarguedthatprojectmanagementisamemeplexwiththelanguageandstories
ofitspractitionersatitscore.[39]Thisradicalapproachseesaprojectanditsmanagementasanillusionahuman
constructaboutacollectionoffeelings,expectations,andsensations,whicharecreated,fashioned,andlabeledby
thehumanbrain.Whitty'sapproachrequiresprojectmanagerstoconsiderthatthereasonsforusingproject
managementarenotconsciouslydriventomaximizeprofit,andareencouragedtoconsiderprojectmanagementas
naturallyoccurring,selfserving,evolvingprocesswhichshapesorganizationsforitsownpurpose.

SwedishpoliticalscientistMikaelSandbergarguesagainst"Lamarckian"interpretationsofinstitutionaland
technologicalevolutionandstudiescreativeinnovationofinformationtechnologiesingovernmentalandprivate
organizationsinSwedeninthe1990sfromamemeticperspective.[40]Comparingtheeffectsofactive
("Lamarckian")ITstrategyversususerproducerinteractivity(Darwiniancoevolution),evidencefromSwedish
organizationsshowsthatcoevolutionaryinteractivityisalmostfourtimesasstrongafactorbehindITcreativityas
the"Lamarckian"ITstrategy.

Terminology
Memeplex(anabbreviationofmemecomplex)isacollectionorgroupingofmemesthathaveevolved
intoamutuallysupportiveorsymbioticrelationship.[41]Simplyput,amemecomplexisasetofideasthat
reinforceeachother.Memecomplexesareroughlyanalogoustothesymbioticcollectionofindividualgenes
thatmakeupthegeneticcodesofbiologicalorganisms.Anexampleofamemeplexwouldbeareligion.
Memepoolapopulationofinterbreedingmemes.
MemeticengineeringTheprocessofdeliberatelycreatingmemes,usingengineeringprinciples.
Memeticalgorithmsanapproachtoevolutionarycomputationthatattemptstoemulateculturalevolution
inordertosolveoptimizationproblems.
Memotypeistheactualinformationcontentofameme.[42]
Memeoidisaneologismforpeoplewhohavebeentakenoverbyamemetotheextentthattheirown
survivalbecomesinconsequential.Examplesincludekamikazes,suicidebombersandcultmemberswho
commitmasssuicide.ThetermwasapparentlycoinedbyH.KeithHensonin"Memes,L5andtheReligion
oftheSpaceColonies,"L5News,September1985pp.58,[43]andreferencedintheexpandedsecondedition

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ofRichardDawkins'bookTheSelfishGene(p.330).Butinthestrictsenseallpeopleareessentially
memeoid,sincenodistinctioncanbemadeifoneuseslanguage,ormemesusetheirhost.InTheElectronic
RevolutionWilliamS.Burroughswrites:"thewordhasnotbeenrecognisedasavirusbecauseithas
achievedastateofstablesymbiosiswiththehost."
Memeticequilibriumreferstotheculturalequivalentofspeciesbiologicalequilibrium.Itisthatwhich
humansstriveforintermsofpersonalvaluewithrespecttoculturalartefactsandideas.Thetermwascoined
byChristopherdiCarlo.[44]

Seealso

Baldwineffect Generalsemantics Phage Sociocultural

Biosemiotics Humanbasedgenetic Seme(semantics) evolution
Culturalselection algorithms Social Sociotype
theory Internetmeme constructionism Spime
Dualinheritance Knowledgeecosystem Socialosmosis TheElectronic
theory Memepool Sociofact Revolution
Egregore Mentifact UniversalDarwinism
Evolutionary Viralmarketing
epistemology
Evolutionary
psychology

Notes
1.Burman,J.T.(2012)."Themisunderstandingofmemes:Biographyofanunscientificobject,19761999".Perspectives
onScience.20(1):75104.doi:10.1162/POSC_a_00057.
2.Kantorovich,Aharon(2013)AnEvolutionaryViewofScience:ImitationandMemetics.(http://philsciarchive.pitt.edu/99
12/)
3."Googlegroups,Aboutalt.memetics".groups.google.com.2012.Retrieved15February2012.
4."IndextoallJoMEMITIssues".JournalofMemetics.Retrieved20091027.
5.Metamagicalthemas:questingforthe...GoogleBooks.Books.google.com.19960404.ISBN9780465045662.
Retrieved20100218.
6.Metamagicalthemas:questingforthe...GoogleBooks.Books.google.com.19960404.ISBN9780465045662.
Retrieved20100218.
7.TheJournalofIdeas,(http://www.omega23.com/Journal_of_Ideas/)ISSN[//www.worldcat.org/search?
fq=x0:jrnl&q=n2:1049633510496335,ContentsOnline]
8."JournalofMemeticsEvolutionaryModelsofInformationTransmission".JournalofMemetics.Retrieved
17September2010.
9.Dawkins,R.(1982)"ReplicatorsandVehicles"(http://www.stephenjaygould.org/library/dawkins_replicators.html)King's
CollegeSociobiologyGroup,eds.,CurrentProblemsinSociobiology,Cambridge,CambridgeUniversityPress,pp.45
64."Areplicatormaybedefinedasanyentityintheuniverseofwhichcopiesaremade."
10.Blackmore,Susan(2003)."Consciousnessinmememachines".JournalofConsciousnessStudies.ImprintAcademic.
11.McNamara,Adam(2011)."CanweMeasureMemes?".FrontiersinEvolutionaryNeuroscience.
doi:10.3389/fnevo.2011.00001.
12.JamesW.Polichak,"MemesasPseudoscience"(https://books.google.com/books?id=Gr4snwg7iaEC&pg=PA664),in
MichaelShermer,SkepticEncyclopediaofPseudoscience.P.664f.
13.BenitezBribiesca,Luis(2001):Memetics:Adangerousidea(http://redalyc.uaemex.mx/redalyc/pdf/339/33905206.pdf).
Interciecia26:2931,p.29.
14.TerrenceDeacon,Thetroublewithmemes(andwhattodoaboutit).TheSemioticReviewofBooks10(3).
15.Kull,Kalevi(2000)."Copyversustranslate,memeversussign:developmentofbiologicaltextuality".EuropeanJournal
forSemioticStudies.12(1):101120.
16.Midgley,Mary.TheSolitarySelf:DarwinandtheSelfishGene.Acumen,2010.ISBN9781844652532
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17.Stepan,NancyL.RaceandGender:TheRoleofAnalogyinScience.InGoldberg,DavidTheo(ed.)TheAnatomyof
Racism.UniversityofMinnesotaPress,1990.
18.Jenkins,HenryFord,SamGreen,Joshua(2013).SpreadableMedia.Postmillennialpop.NewYorkLondon:NewYork
UniversityPress.p.19.ISBN9780814743508.
19.Kronfeldner,Maria.[1](https://books.google.com/books/about/Darwinian_Creativity_and_Memetics.html?id=VxZOYgE
ACAAJ)DarwinianCreativityandMemetics.Acumen,2011.
20.Situngkir,Hokky(16Mar2006)."OnSelfishMemes:cultureascomplexadaptivesystem".Retrieved20100218.
21.McNamara2011
22."HolonicStructureoftheMemeTheUnitofCulture".StoryAlityacademicweblog,JTVelikovsky.Retrieved2January
2014.
23."JournalofMemetics".Retrieved10March2014.
24.KeithHensonViewprofileMoreoptions(19971005)."PromiseKeepers:IsitaCult?alt.mindcontrol|Google
Groups".Groups.google.ca.Retrieved20100218.
25."Sex,Drugs,andCultsbyH.KeithHenson".Humannature.com.Retrieved20100218.
26."EvolutionaryPsychology,MemesandtheOriginofWar".Mankindquarterly.org.19961219.Retrieved20100218.
27."EvolutionaryPsychology,MemesandtheOriginofWar||kuro5hin.org".kuro5hin.org<!.Retrieved20100218.
28.JanE.M.Houben"ATradioSnscritaentreMemticaVdicaeCulturaLiterria"Linguagem&Ensino,Pelotas,v.17,
n.2,p.441469,maio./ago.2014,page454www.rle.ucpel.tche.br/index.php/rle/article/view/1089/783
29.JanE.M.Houben,"MemeticsofVedicritual,MorphologyoftheAgnistoma."Powerpointpresentationfirstpresentedat
theThirdInternationalVedicWorkshopinLeiden,2002:www.academia.edu/7090834
30.JanE.M.Houben"ATradioSnscritaentreMemticaVdicaeCulturaLiterria"Linguagem&Ensino,Pelotas,v.17,
n.2,p.441469,maio./ago.2014,footnote17,page454455www.rle.ucpel.tche.br/index.php/rle/article/view/1089/783
31.PRWatch(http://www.prwatch.org/books/tsigfy10.html)
32.thwink.org(http://www.thwink.org/sustain/general/Memetics.htm).
33.[2](http://www.thwink.org/sustain/articles/005/DuelingLoops_Paper.htm)
34.[3](http://www.thwink.org/sustain/articles/007/MemeticEvolutionOfSolutions.htm)
35.[4](http://www.climatememe.org)
36.UsingMemestoImproveClimateChangeCommunication(http://www.fastcoexist.com/1681526/usingmemestoimprov
eclimatechangecommunication)
37.Cullen,Ben(2000).ContagiousIdeas:Onevolution,culture,archaeology,andCulturalVirusTheory.Oxfordand
Oakville:OxbowBooks.ISBN1842170147.
38.Ritt,Nikolaus(July5,2004).SelfishSoundsandLinguisticEvolution:ADarwinianApproachtoLanguageChange.
NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress.ISBN9780521826716.
39.AMemeticParadigmofProjectManagement(http://espace.library.uq.edu.au/eserv.php?pid=UQ:8801&dsID=sjw_ijpm_0
5.pdf)(InternationalJournalofProjectManagement,23(8)575583)
40."TheEvolutionofITInnovationsinSwedishOrganizations:ADarwinianCritiqueofLamarckianInstitutional
Economics",JournalofEvolutionaryEconomics,vol.17,No.1(Feb2007)
41.Blackmore,Susan,1999,TheMemeMachine,OxfordUniversityPress,Oxford,ISBN0198503652
42.GlennGrant.AMemeticLexicon.Montreal.1990
43.Twoearlymemepapersofhistoricalinterest(1a)(http://cfpm.org/~majordom/memetics/2000/16177.html)
44.ChristopherW.diCarlo(April27,2010)."HowProblemSolvingandNeurotransmissionintheUpperPaleolithicledto
TheEmergenceandMaintenanceofMemeticEquilibriuminContemporaryWorldReligions".PoliticsandCulture
(SpecialEvolutionaryIssue).

References
Boyd,Robert&Richerson,PeterJ.(1985).CultureandtheEvolutionaryProcess.ChicagoUniversityPress.
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Boyd,Rob&Richerson,PeterJ.(2005).NotbyGenesAlone:HowCultureTransformedHumanEvolution.
ChicagoUniversityPress.ISBN0226712842
Boyles,RobertJamesM.(2011),"TheEnemy:AThoughtExperimentonPatriarchies,Feminismsand
Memes"(PDF),Feminista:Gender,Race,andClassinthePhilippines,Philippines:AnvilPublishing,Inc.:
5364,ISBN9789712725944
Cloak,F.T.(1975)."Isaculturalethologypossible?".HumanEcology.3:161182.
doi:10.1007/bf01531639.

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Edmonds,Bruce.2002."Threechallengesforthesurvivalofmemetics."JournalofMemeticsEvolutionary
ModelsofInformationTransmission,6.http://cfpm.org/jomemit/2002/vol6/edmonds_b_letter.html*
Edmonds,Bruce.2005."Therevealedpovertyofthegenememeanalogywhymemeticspersehasfailed."
JournalofMemeticsEvolutionaryModelsofInformationTransmission,9.http://cfpm.org/jom
emit/2005/vol9/edmonds_b.html*
HeylighenF.&ChielensK.(2009):EvolutionofCulture,Memetics(http://pespmc1.vub.ac.be/Papers/Mem
eticsSpringer.pdf),in:EncyclopediaofComplexityandSystemsScience,ed.B.Meyers(Springer)
Houben,JanE.M."MemeticsofVedicRitual,MorphologyoftheAgnistoma."Powerpointpresentationfirst
presentedattheThirdInternationalVedicWorkshop,Leiden2002www.academia.edu/7090834*
Houben,JanE.M."ATradioSnscritaentreMemticaVdicaeCulturaLiterria."(InPortuguese)
RevistaLinguagem&Ensino,vol.17n.2(2014),p.441469.
www.rle.ucpel.tche.br/index.php/rle/article/view/1089/783*
TheSelfishGenebyRichardDawkins,OxfordUniversityPress,1976,2ndedition,December1989,
hardcover,352pages,ISBN0192177737April1992,ISBN019857519Xtradepaperback,September
1990,352pages,ISBN0192860925
Aunger,Robert.TheElectricMeme:ANewTheoryofHowWeThink.NewYork:FreePress,2002.ISBN
9780743201506
TheMemeMachinebySusanBlackmore,OxfordUniversityPress,1999,hardcoverISBN0198503652,
tradepaperbackISBN0965881784,May2000,ISBN019286212X
TheIdeologyofCyberneticTotalistIntellectuals(http://pespmc1.vub.ac.be/Annotations/DEFAULT.14.html)
anessaybyJaronLanierwhichisverystronglycriticalof"memetotalists"whoassertmemesoverbodies.
CultureasComplexAdaptiveSystem(http://cogprints.ecs.soton.ac.uk/archive/00003471/)byHokky
Situngkirformalinterplaysbetweenmemeticsandculturalanalysis.
JournalofMemeticsEvolutionaryModelsofInformationTransmission(http://www.cpm.mmu.ac.uk/jome
mit/overview.html)
Brodie,Richard.VirusoftheMind:TheNewScienceoftheMeme.Seattle,Wash:IntegralPress,1996.ISBN
9780963600110
CulturalSoftware:ATheoryofIdeology(http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/jbalkin/cs.htm)byJackBalkinwhich
usesmemeticstoexplainthegrowthandspreadofideology.
CanweMeasureMemes?(http://www.frontiersin.org/evolutionary_neuroscience/10.3389/fnevo.2011.00001/
abstract)byAdamMcNamarawhichpresentsneuroimagingtoolstomeasurememes.
Convivereconlamemetica(inItalian)byFrancescoSomigli,2011Lulu.com

Externallinks
Memeticspublicationsontheweb(http://users.lycaeum.org/~sputnik/Memetics/index.html)

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