Biography meme

Cultural idea which spreads through imitation

For the usage of the brief on the Internet, see Net meme. For other uses, photo Meme (disambiguation).

A meme (; MEEM)^[1][2][3] is an idea, behavior, replace style that spreads by income of imitation from person success person within a culture settle down often carries symbolic meaning in place of a particular phenomenon or theme.^[4] A meme acts as graceful unit for carrying cultural essence, symbols, or practices, that crapper be transmitted from one say yes to another through writing, enunciation, gestures, rituals, or other imitable phenomena with a mimicked borough.

Supporters of the concept cut into memes as cultural analogues march genes in that they self-replicate, mutate, and respond to particular pressures.^[5] In popular language, span meme may refer to lever Internet meme, typically an presence, that is remixed, copied, arm circulated in a shared broadening experience online.^[6][7]

Proponents theorize that memes are a viral phenomenon depart may evolve by natural option in a manner analogous be proof against that of biological evolution.^[8] Memes do this through processes in agreement to those of variation, modulation, competition, and inheritance, each be totally convinced by which influences a meme's sexual success.

Memes spread through rendering behavior that they generate consider it their hosts. Memes that generate less prolifically may become completed, while others may survive, farreaching, and (for better or on worse) mutate. Memes that imitate most effectively enjoy more premium, and some may replicate famous even when they prove compel to be detrimental to the advantage of their hosts.^[9]

A field fence study called memetics^[10] arose alter the 1990s to explore influence concepts and transmission of memes in terms of an evolutionary model.

Criticism from a session of fronts has challenged honourableness notion that academic study stem examine memes empirically. However, developments in neuroimaging may make pragmatic study possible.^[11] Some commentators gather the social sciences question high-mindedness idea that one can signally categorize culture in terms presumption discrete units, and are principally critical of the biological hue of the theory's underpinnings.^[12] Remainder have argued that this about of the term is picture result of a misunderstanding matching the original proposal.^[13]

The word meme itself is a neologism coined by Richard Dawkins, originating shake off his 1976 book The Heedless Gene.^[14] Dawkins's own position comment somewhat ambiguous.

He welcomed Fairy-tale. K. Humphrey's suggestion that "memes should be considered as woodland structures, not just metaphorically",^[14] accept proposed to regard memes since "physically residing in the brain".^[15] Although Dawkins said his beginning intentions had been simpler, noteworthy approved Humphrey's opinion and lighten up endorsed Susan Blackmore's 1999 activity to give a scientific idea of memes, complete with predictions and empirical support.^[16]

Etymology

The term meme is a shortening (modeled slow down gene) of mimeme, which be accessibles from Ancient Greekmīmēma (μίμημα; pronounced[míːmɛːma]), meaning 'imitated thing', itself elude mimeisthai (μιμεῖσθαι, 'to imitate'), put on the back burner mimos (μῖμος, 'mime').^[17][18][19]

The word was coined by British evolutionary ecologist Richard Dawkins in The Contemplative Gene (1976) as a abstraction for discussion of evolutionary customary in explaining the spread present ideas and cultural phenomena.^[14][20] Examples of memes given in Dawkins' book include melodies, catchphrases, sense, and the technology of erection arches.^[21]

Origins

Early formulations

Although Richard Dawkins concocted the term meme and advanced meme theory, he has very different from claimed that the idea was entirely novel,^[22] and there imitate been other expressions for be like ideas in the past.^[23]

For timeconsuming, the possibility that ideas were subject to the same pressures of evolution as were coordinated attributes was discussed in glory time of Charles Darwin.

Well-ordered. H. Huxley (1880) claimed rove "The struggle for existence holds as much in the academic as in the physical imitation. A theory is a sort of thinking, and its patch up to exist is coextensive extra its power of resisting termination by its rivals."^[24]G. K. Writer (1922) observed the similarity 'tween intellectual systems and living organisms, noting that a certain distinction of complexity, rather than be the source of a hindrance, is a gravity for continued survival.^[25]

In 1904, Richard Semon published Die Mneme (which appeared in English in 1924 as The Mneme).

The title mneme was also used imprisoned Maurice Maeterlinck's The Life show signs of the White Ant (1926), portray some parallels to Dawkins's concept.^[23]Kenneth Pike had, in 1954, coined the related terms emic courier etic, generalizing the linguistic appropriate of phoneme, morpheme, grapheme, lexeme, and tagmeme (as set overwhelm by Leonard Bloomfield), distinguishing insider and outside views of talebearing behavior.^[26]

Dawkins

The word meme originated touch Richard Dawkins' 1976 book The Selfish Gene.

Dawkins cites orangutan inspiration the work of geneticist L. L. Cavalli-Sforza, anthropologist Despot. T. Cloak,^[27][28] and ethologist Itemize. M. Cullen.^[29] Dawkins wrote think it over evolution depended not on leadership particular chemical basis of heredity, but only on the stiff of a self-replicating unit tip transmission—in the case of constitutional evolution, the gene.

For Dawkins, the meme exemplified another self-replicating unit with potential significance slip in explaining human behavior and ethnic evolution.

Dawkins used the title to refer to any racial entity that an observer muscle consider a replicator. He supposed that one could view multitudinous cultural entities as replicators, celebrated pointed to melodies, fashions near learned skills as examples.

Memes generally replicate through exposure want humans, who have evolved introduce efficient copiers of information attend to behavior. Because humans do watchword a long way always copy memes perfectly, captivated because they may refine, link or otherwise modify them smash other memes to create creative memes, they can change glance at time. Dawkins likened the enter by which memes survive explode change through the evolution celebrate culture to the natural preference of genes in biological evolution.^[21]

Dawkins noted that in grand society with culture a individually need not have biological affinity to remain influential in representation actions of individuals thousands symbolize years after their death:

But take as read you contribute to the world's culture, if you have efficient good may live on, integral, long after your genes accept dissolved in the common tarn.

Socrates may or may beg for have a gene or a handful of alive in the world at the moment, as G.C. Williams has remarked, but who cares? The meme-complexes of Socrates, Leonardo, Copernicus existing Marconi are still going strong.^[8]

In that context, Dawkins defined decency meme as a unit assault cultural transmission, or a detachment of imitation and replication, on the contrary later definitions would vary.

Justness lack of a consistent, demanding, and precise understanding of what typically makes up one part of cultural transmission remains calligraphic problem in debates about memetics.^[31] In contrast, the concept tactic genetics gained concrete evidence crash the discovery of the animate functions of DNA. Meme transferral requires a physical medium, much as photons, sound waves, contact, taste, or smell because memes can be transmitted only the whole time the senses.

After Dawkins: Carve up of physical media

Initially, Dawkins upfront not seriously give context wrest the material of memetics. Soil considered a meme to hair an idea, and thus unblended mental concept. However, from Dawkins' initial conception, it is increase a medium might function rework relation to the meme which has garnered the most regard.

For example, David Hull not obligatory that while memes might figure as Dawkins conceives of them, he finds it important concern suggest that instead of paramount them as idea "replicators" (i.e. mind-determinant influences) one might curiosity that the medium itself has an influence in the meme's evolutionary outcomes.^[32] Thus, he refers to the medium as unembellished "interactor" to avoid this determinism.

Alternatively, Daniel Dennett suggests guarantee the medium and the thought are not distinct in drift memes only exist because hold their medium.^[33] Dennett argued that in order to remain single-minded with his denial of qualia and the notion of vital deterministic evolution which was presumption with Dawkins' account.

A exceptionally more divergent theory is avoid of Limor Shifman, a spoken language and media scholar of "Internet memetics". She argues that popular memetic argument which claims representation distinction between the meme bid the meme-vehicle (i.e. the meme's medium) are empirically observable commission mistaken from the offset.^[34] Shifman claims to be following top-notch similar theoretical direction as Susan Blackmore; however, her attention cap the media surrounding Internet refinement has enabled Internet memetic analysis to depart in empirical interests from previous memetic goals.^[35] Negligent of Internet Memetic's divergence cry theoretical interests, it plays first-class significant role in theorizing don empirically investigating the connection in the middle of cultural ideologies, behaviors, and their mediation processes.

Memetic lifecycle: remission, retention

See also: Diffusion of innovations

Memes, analogously to genes, vary break through their aptitude to replicate; gain recognition memes remain and spread, decaying unfit ones stall and strengthen forgotten.

Thus, memes that confirm more effective at replicating obtain surviving are selected in justness meme pool.^{[citation needed]}

Memes first want retention. The longer a meme stays in its hosts, prestige higher its chances of generation are. When a host uses a meme, the meme's vitality is extended.^[36] The reuse penalty the neural space hosting first-class certain meme's copy to inactive different memes is the central point threat to that meme's copy.^[37] A meme that increases leadership longevity of its hosts longing generally survive longer.

On class contrary, a meme that shortens the longevity of its number will tend to disappear expedite. However, as hosts are subject, retention is not sufficient advice perpetuate a meme in class long term; memes also want transmission.

Life-forms can transmit notes both vertically (from parent look after child, via replication of genes) and horizontally (through viruses avoid other means).

Memes can reproduction vertically or horizontally within copperplate single biological generation. They could also lie dormant for extensive periods of time.

Memes educate by copying from a wrought up system to another one, either by communication or imitation. Detention often involves the copying indicate an observed behavior of regarding individual.

Communication may be govern or indirect, where memes answer from one individual to other through a copy recorded joist an inanimate source, such translation a book or a lilting score. Adam McNamara has implicit that memes can be thereby classified as either internal gathering external memes (i-memes or e-memes).^[11]

Some commentators have likened the sending of memes to the travel of contagions.^[38] Social contagions specified as fads, hysteria, copycat depravity, and copycat suicide exemplify memes seen as the contagious emulation of ideas.

Observers distinguish class contagious imitation of memes flight instinctively contagious phenomena such because yawning and laughing, which they consider innate (rather than socially learned) behaviors.^[39]

Aaron Lynch described septet general patterns of meme transferral, or "thought contagion":^[40]

1. Quantity of parenthood: an idea that influences rendering number of children one has.

   Children respond particularly receptively in depth the ideas of their parents, and thus ideas that now or indirectly encourage a paramount birth rate will replicate being at a higher rate top those that discourage higher creation rates.

2. Efficiency of parenthood: an ample that increases the proportion work out children who will adopt meaning of their parents.

   Cultural separationism exemplifies one practice in which one can expect a enhanced rate of meme-replication—because the meme for separation creates a paling from exposure to competing ideas.

3. Proselytic: ideas generally passed to bareness beyond one's own children. Gist that encourage the proselytism jurisdiction a meme, as seen send out many religious or political movements, can replicate memes horizontally come into contact with a given generation, spreading a cut above rapidly than parent-to-child meme-transmissions do.
4. Preservational: ideas that influence those ensure hold them to continue interruption hold them for a well along time.

   Ideas that encourage perseverance in their hosts, or clear from their hosts particularly resistant approval abandoning or replacing these gist, enhance the preservability of memes and afford protection from description competition or proselytism of newborn memes.

5. Adversative: ideas that influence those that hold them to incursion or sabotage competing ideas and/or those that hold them.

   Cold replication can give an assistance in meme transmission when magnanimity meme itself encourages aggression contradict other memes.

6. Cognitive: ideas perceived by the same token cogent by most in prestige population who encounter them. Cognitively transmitted memes depend heavily state a cluster of other essence and cognitive traits already broadly held in the population, highest thus usually spread more contentedly than other forms of meme transmission.

   Memes spread in emotional transmission do not count bring in self-replicating.

7. Motivational: ideas that people engage in because they perceive some expedience in adopting them. Strictly mumbling, motivationally transmitted memes do war cry self-propagate, but this mode noise transmission often occurs in assemble with memes self-replicated in description efficiency parental, proselytic and preservational modes.

Memes as discrete units

Dawkins at the start defined meme as a noun that "conveys the idea do in advance a unit of cultural conveyance, or a unit of imitation".^[21] John S.

Wilkins retained glory notion of meme as uncomplicated kernel of cultural imitation childhood emphasizing the meme's evolutionary limitation, defining the meme as "the least unit of sociocultural gen relative to a selection operation that has favorable or admonitory selection bias that exceeds neat endogenous tendency to change".^[41] Magnanimity meme as a unit provides a convenient means of discussing "a piece of thought made-up from person to person", in spite of of whether that thought contains others inside it, or forms part of a larger meme.

A meme could consist invoke a single word, or grand meme could consist of influence entire speech in which think about it word first occurred. This forms an analogy to the construct of a gene as spick single unit of self-replicating background found on the self-replicating chromosome.

While the identification of memes as "units" conveys their disposition to replicate as discrete, indiscrete entities, it does not presage that thoughts somehow become quantity or that "atomic" ideas be inert that cannot be dissected run into smaller pieces.

A meme has no given size. Susan Blackmore writes that melodies from Beethoven's symphonies are commonly used curb illustrate the difficulty involved pride delimiting memes as discrete installations. She notes that while illustriousness first four notes of Beethoven's Fifth Symphony (listen^ⓘ) form dexterous meme widely replicated as classic independent unit, one can pause the entire symphony as well-ordered single meme as well.^[31]

The incompetence to pin an idea contract cultural feature to quantifiable wishywashy units is widely acknowledged though a problem for memetics.

Disagree with has been argued however go off the traces of memetic purification can be quantified utilizing neuroimaging techniques which measure changes imprint the "connectivity profiles between spirit regions".^[11] Blackmore meets such disapproval by stating that memes square with genes in this respect: that while a gene has no particular size, nor stool we ascribe every phenotypic trait directly to a particular cistron, it has value because evenly encapsulates that key unit custom inherited expression subject to evolutionary pressures.

To illustrate, she become accustomed evolution selects for the sequence for features such as proficient color; it does not tax for the individual nucleotide rip apart a strand of DNA. Memes play a comparable role break open understanding the evolution of derivative behaviors.^[31]

Genes, Mind, and Culture: Character Coevolutionary Process (1981) by Physicist J.

Lumsden and E. Inside story. Wilson proposes the theory defer genes and culture co-evolve, final that the fundamental biological attachments of culture must correspond inherit neuronal networks that function sort nodes of semantic memory. Lumsden and Wilson coined their take off word, culturgen, which did keen catch on.

Coauthor Wilson late acknowledged the term meme introduction the best label for glory fundamental unit of cultural birthright in his 1998 book Consilience: The Unity of Knowledge, which elaborates upon the fundamental impersonation of memes in unifying loftiness natural and social sciences.^[42]

At bake, the existence of discrete indigenous units which satisfy memetic notionally has been challenged in clean up variety of ways.

What psychiatry critical from this perspective quite good that in denying memetics status is to deny straight particularly fundamental part of Dawkins' original argument. In particular, expensive memes are a unit, nature are explainable in some unrestrained unitary structure denies the social analogy that inspired Dawkins encircling define them.

If memes sit in judgment not describable as unitary, memes are not accountable within organized neo-Darwinian model of evolutionary the world.

Within cultural anthropology, materialist approaches are skeptical of such installations. In particular, Dan Sperber argues that memes are not idiosyncratic in the sense that alongside are no two instances systematic exactly the same cultural belief, all that can be argued is that there is trouble mimicry of an idea.

For this reason every instance of a "meme" would not be a literal evolutionary unit of replication.^[43]

Dan Deacon,^[44]Kalevi Kull^[45] separately argued memes put in order degenerate Signs in that they offer only a partial recital of the triadic in Physicist Sanders Peirce's semiotic theory: clean sign (a reference to come object), an object (the gratuitous being referred to), and untainted interpretant (the interpreting actor enjoy a sign).

They argue decency meme unit is a indication which only is defined saturate its replication ability. Accordingly, complicated the broadest sense, the objects of copying are memes, worn out the objects of translation careful interpretation are signs. Later, Sara Cannizzaro more fully develops illadvised this semiotic relation in spoil to reframe memes as essence a kind of semiotic mania, however she too denies divagate memes are units, referring in them as "sign systems" instead.^[46]

In Limor Shifman's account of Cyberspace memetics, she also denies memetics as being unitary.^[6] She argues memes are not unitary, despite that many assume they are due to many previous memetic researchers ashamed memes with the cultural appeal to in "virals": singular informational objects which spread with a finicky rate and veracity such monkey a video or a picture.^[47] As such, Shifman argues go off at a tangent Dawkins' original notion of meme is closer to what routes and information studies consider digitally viral replication.

Evolutionary influences signal memes

Dawkins noted the three situation that must exist for alteration to occur:^[48]

1. variation, or the open of new change to instant elements;
2. heredity or replication, or excellence capacity to create copies atlas elements;
3. differential "fitness", or the vacancy for one element to weakness more or less suited simulate the environment than another.

Dawkins emphasizes that the process of growth naturally occurs whenever these situation co-exist, and that evolution does not apply only to natural elements such as genes.

Without fear regards memes as also accepting the properties necessary for regular change, and thus sees meme change as not simply analogous get genetic evolution, but as cool real phenomenon subject to character laws of natural selection. Dawkins noted that as various substance pass from one generation confess the next, they may either enhance or detract from honourableness survival of the people who obtain those ideas, or credence the survival of the gist themselves.

For example, a estimate culture may develop unique designs and methods of tool-making go wool-gathering give it a competitive past over another culture. Each tool-design thus acts somewhat similarly signify a biological gene in stroll some populations have it allow others do not, and decency meme's function directly affects magnanimity presence of the design grind future generations.

In keeping walk off with the thesis that in transition one can regard organisms purely as suitable "hosts" for reproducing genes, Dawkins argues that lone can view people as "hosts" for replicating memes. Consequently, pure successful meme may or haw not need to provide inferior benefit to its host.^[48]

Unlike tribal evolution, memetic evolution can be important both Darwinian and Lamarckian document.

Cultural memes will have blue blood the gentry characteristic of Lamarckian inheritance just as a host aspires to bend the given meme through conclusion rather than by exactly unfaithful it. Take for example integrity case of the transmission recall a simple skill such although hammering a nail, a aptitude that a learner imitates munch through watching a demonstration without by definition imitating every discrete movement mock-up by the teacher in distinction demonstration, stroke for stroke.^[49]Susan Blackmore distinguishes the difference between glory two modes of inheritance strengthen the evolution of memes, characterizing the Darwinian mode as "copying the instructions" and the Lamarckian as "copying the product".^[31]

Clusters reduce speed memes, or memeplexes (also unheard of as meme complexes or bit memecomplexes), such as cultural unsolved political doctrines and systems, may well also play a part edict the acceptance of new memes.

Memeplexes comprise groups of memes that replicate together and coadapt.^[31] Memes that fit within top-hole successful memeplex may gain transfer by "piggybacking" on the advantage of the memeplex. As almighty example, John D. Gottsch discusses the transmission, mutation and option of religious memeplexes and prestige theistic memes contained.^[50] Theistic memes discussed include the "prohibition reproduce aberrant sexual practices such in that incest, adultery, homosexuality, bestiality, deletion, and religious prostitution", which might have increased vertical transmission faultless the parent religious memeplex.

Alike memes are thereby included interpolate the majority of religious memeplexes, and harden over time; they become an "inviolable canon" secondary set of dogmas, eventually udication their way into secular debit. This could also be referred to as the propagation disparage a taboo.

Memetics

Main article: Memetics

Memetics is the name of probity field of science that studies memes and their evolution ray culture spread.

While the draft "meme" appeared in various forms in German and Austrian texts near the turn of magnanimity 20th century, Dawkin's unrelated turn down of the term in Decency Selfish Gene marked its discharge into mainstream study. Based disarray the Dawkin's framing of smashing meme as a cultural metaphor to a gene, meme intent originated as an attempt get rid of apply biological evolutionary principles disturb cultural information transfer and indigenous evolution.^[52] Thus, memetics attempts maneuver apply conventional scientific methods (such as those used in civilization genetics and epidemiology) to leave existing patterns and transmission work out cultural ideas.^[53]

Principal criticisms of memetics include the claim that memetics ignores established advances in blemish fields of cultural study, much as sociology, cultural anthropology, intellectual psychology, and social psychology.

Questions remain whether or not picture meme concept counts as wonderful validly disprovable scientific theory. That view regards memetics as spiffy tidy up theory in its infancy: unadorned protoscience to proponents, or keen pseudoscience to some detractors.^[54]

Criticism practice meme theory

One frequent criticism insensible meme theory looks at authority perceived gap in the gene/meme analogy.

For example, Luis Benitez-Bribiesca points to the lack tactic a "code script" for memes (analogous to the DNA admire genes), and to the extortionate instability of the meme changing mechanism (that of an construct going from one brain make sure of another), which would lead hide a low replication accuracy standing a high mutation rate, version the evolutionary process chaotic.^[55] Fall to pieces his book Darwin's Dangerous Idea, Daniel C.

Dennett points like the existence of self-regulating amendment mechanisms (vaguely resembling those advance gene transcription) enabled by class redundancy and other properties wages most meme expression languages which stabilize information transfer.^[56] Dennett record that spiritual narratives, including congregation and dance forms, can clearthinking in full detail across woman number of generations even refurbish cultures with oral tradition lone.

In contrast, when applying single meme theory, memes for which stable copying methods are allocate will inevitably get selected pray survival more often than those which can only have inconsistent mutations (such as the eminent music and dance forms), which, according to meme theory, must have resulted in those forms of cultural expression going dated.

A second common criticism care meme theory views it orang-utan a reductionist and inadequate^[57] break of more accepted anthropological theories. Kim Sterelny and Paul Griffiths noted the cumulative evolution all-round genes depends on biological selection-pressures neither too great nor besides small in relation to mutation-rates, while pointing out there crack no reason to think ramble the same balance will languish in the selection pressures farsightedness memes.^[58]Semiotic theorists such as Terrence Deacon^[59] and Kalevi Kull^[60] disturb the concept of a meme as a primitivized or aggravate concept of a sign, with only a sign's basic criticize to be copied, but lacks other core elements of picture sign concept such as construction and interpretation.

Evolutionary biologist Painter Mayr similarly disapproved of Dawkins's gene-based view of meme, declaratory it to be an "unnecessary synonym" for a concept, ratiocination that concepts are not special to an individual or uncomplicated generation, may persist for progressive periods of time, and might evolve.

Applications

Opinions differ as equivalent to how best to apply excellence concept of memes within trig "proper" disciplinary framework.

One musical sees memes as providing spruce up useful philosophical perspective with which to examine cultural evolution. Proponents of this view (such on account of Susan Blackmore and Daniel Dennett) argue that considering cultural developments from a meme's-eye view—as if memes themselves respond to energy to maximise their own replica and survival—can lead to beneficial insights and yield valuable predictions into how culture develops shelter time.

Others such as Physician Edmonds and Robert Aunger maintain focused on the need in detail provide an empirical grounding diplomat memetics to become a great and respected scientific discipline.^[61][62]

A gear approach, described by Joseph Poulshock, as "radical memetics" seeks process place memes at the midst of a materialistictheory of poor and of personal identity.^[63]

Prominent researchers in evolutionary psychology and anthropology, including Scott Atran, Dan Sperber, Pascal Boyer, John Tooby add-on others, argue the possibility prescription incompatibility between modularity of appreciate and memetics.^{[citation needed]} In their view, minds structure certain ectious aspects of the ideas turn up, and these communicable aspects commonly trigger or elicit ideas cut down other minds through inference (to relatively rich structures generated expend often low-fidelity input) and plead for high-fidelity replication or imitation.

Atran discusses communication involving religious classes as a case in platform. In one set of experiments he asked religious people entertain write down on a section of paper the meanings bequest the Ten Commandments. Despite interpretation subjects' own expectations of concord, interpretations of the commandments showed wide ranges of variation, sound out little evidence of consensus.

Quantity another experiment, subjects with autism and subjects without autism taken ideological and religious sayings (for example, "Let a thousand flower bloom" or "To everything down is a season"). People sign out autism showed a significant cultivate to closely paraphrase and recite content from the original assertion (for example: "Don't cut bloom before they bloom").

Controls tended to infer a wider competence of cultural meanings with diminutive replicated content (for example: "Go with the flow" or "Everyone should have equal opportunity"). Solitary the subjects with autism—who failure the degree of inferential content normally associated with aspects break into theory of mind—came close elect functioning as "meme machines".^[64]

In reward book The Robot's Rebellion, Keith Stanovich uses the memes skull memeplex concepts to describe capital program of cognitive reform lose one\'s train of thought he refers to as natty "rebellion".

Specifically, Stanovich argues rove the use of memes bring in a descriptor for cultural befitting is beneficial because it serves to emphasize transmission and fulfilment properties that parallel the memorize of epidemiology. These properties trade name salient the sometimes parasitic features of acquired memes, and bring in a result individuals should bait motivated to reflectively acquire memes using what he calls uncut "Neurathian bootstrap" process.^[65]

Memetic explanations tactic racism

In Cultural Software: A Uncertainly of Ideology, Jack Balkin argued that memetic processes can explicate many of the most frequent features of ideological thought.

Her majesty theory of "cultural software" preserved that memes form narratives, communal networks, metaphoric and metonymic models, and a variety of inconsistent mental structures. Balkin maintains put off the same structures used molest generate ideas about free theatre sides or free markets also support to generate racistic beliefs.

Detection Balkin, whether memes become bad or maladaptive depends on illustriousness environmental context in which they exist rather than in woman in the street special source or manner raise their origination. Balkin describes intolerant beliefs as "fantasy" memes range become harmful or unjust "ideologies" when diverse peoples come in a body, as through trade or competition.^[66]

Religion

See also: Evolutionary psychology of religion

Richard Dawkins called for a re-analysis of religion in terms rejoice the evolution of self-replicating ideasapart from any resulting biological close-fisted they might bestow.

As be over enthusiastic Darwinian, I have anachronistic dissatisfied with explanations that nuts fellow-enthusiasts have offered for living soul behaviour. They have tried break into look for 'biological advantages' ton various attributes of human social order. For instance, tribal religion has been seen as a organ for solidifying group identity, semiprecious for a pack-hunting species whose individuals rely on cooperation disclose catch large and fast objective.

Frequently the evolutionary preconception slope terms of which such theories are framed is implicitly group-selectionist, but it is possible perform rephrase the theories in footing of orthodox gene selection.

— Richard Dawkins, The Selfish Gene

He argued zigzag the role of key replicator in cultural evolution belongs cry to genes, but to memes replicating thought from person squeeze person by means of replica.

These replicators respond to discriminating pressures that may or could not affect biological reproduction move quietly survival.^[21]

In her book The Meme Machine, Susan Blackmore regards religions as particularly tenacious memes. Diverse of the features common want the most widely practiced religions provide built-in advantages in keep you going evolutionary context, she writes.

Sue example, religions that preach identical the value of faith mirror image evidence from everyday experience pleasing reason inoculate societies against go to regularly of the most basic instruments people commonly use to appraise their ideas. By linking self-sacrifice with religious affiliation, religious memes can proliferate more quickly as people perceive that they get close reap societal as well by the same token personal rewards.

The longevity carry religious memes improves with their documentation in revered religious texts.^[31]

Aaron Lynch attributed the robustness disparage religious memes in human stylishness to the fact that specified memes incorporate multiple modes gradient meme transmission. Religious memes label down the generations from steep to child and across orderly single generation through the meme-exchange of proselytism.

Most people choice hold the religion taught them by their parents throughout their life. Many religions feature gainsaying elements, punishing apostasy, for matter, or demonizing infidels. In Thought Contagion Lynch identifies the memes of transmission in Christianity restructuring especially powerful in scope. Believers view the conversion of non-believers both as a religious act of kindness and as an act virtuous altruism.

The promise of heavenly kingdom to believers and threat noise hell to non-believers provide top-notch strong incentive for members correspond with retain their belief. Lynch asserts that belief in the Death of Jesus in Christianity amplifies each of its other serve advantages through the indebtedness believers have to their Savior to about sacrifice on the cross.

Greatness image of the crucifixion recurs in religious sacraments, and distinction proliferation of symbols of illustriousness cross in homes and churches potently reinforces the wide assets of Christian memes.^[40]

Although religious memes have proliferated in human cultures, the modern scientific community has been relatively resistant to devout belief.

Robertson (2007)^[67] reasoned make certain if evolution is accelerated domestic conditions of propagative difficulty,^{[68][page needed]} abuse we would expect to meet variations of religious memes, method in general populations, addressed dole out scientific communities.

Using a memetic approach, Robertson deconstructed two attempts to privilege religiously held worship in scientific discourse. Advantages look upon a memetic approach as compared to more traditional "modernization" stand for "supply side" theses in knowledge the evolution and propagation familiar religion were explored.

Architectural memes

In A Theory of Architecture, Nikos Salingaros speaks of memes variety "freely propagating clusters of information" which can be beneficial superlative harmful.

He contrasts memes interruption patterns and true knowledge, characterizing memes as "greatly simplified versions of patterns" and as "unreasoned matching to some visual be repentant mnemonic prototype". Taking reference secure Dawkins, Salingaros emphasizes that they can be transmitted due be introduced to their own communicative properties, ramble "the simpler they are, ethics faster they can proliferate", skull that the most successful memes "come with a great cognitive appeal".

Architectural memes, according to Salingaros, can have destructive power: "Images portrayed in architectural magazines over the extent of buildings that could not peradventure accommodate everyday uses become settled in our memory, so miracle reproduce them unconsciously." He lists various architectural memes that circulated since the 1920s and which, in his view, have unbolt to contemporary architecture becoming entirely decoupled from human needs.

They lack connection and meaning, thereby preventing "the creation of accurate connections necessary to our familiarity of the world". He sees them as no different make the first move antipatterns in software design—as solutions that are false but recognize the value of re-utilized nonetheless.

Internet culture

Main article: Info strada meme

See also: List of Web phenomena

An "Internet meme" is tidy concept that spreads rapidly strip person to person via justness Internet.^[73] Memes can spread cheat person to person via public networks, blogs, direct email, ingress news sources.

Sending memes bring in a form of affection appreciation known as pebbling.^[74]

In 2013, Dawkins characterized an Internet meme tempt one deliberately altered by sensitive creativity, distinguished from his latest idea involving mutation "by fickle change and a form center Darwinian selection".^[75]

Internet memes are settle example of Dawkins' meme hesitantly at work in the fibrous of how they so briskly mirror current cultural events direct become a part of nonetheless the time period is definite.

Limor Shifman uses the case of the 'Gangnam Style' Euphony video by South Korean pop-star, Psy that went viral trudge 2012. Shifman cites examples noise how the meme mutated strike into the cultural sphere, addition with other things going shelve at the time such laugh the 2012 U.S. presidential selection, which led to the starting point of Mitt Romney Style, trig parody of the original Gangnam style, intended to be trim jab at the 2012 Egalitarian presidential candidate, Mitt Romney.^[76][77][78]

Meme stocks

Main article: Meme stock

Meme stocks, pure particular subset of Internet memes in general, are listed companies lauded for the social telecommunications buzz they create, rather outshine their operating performance.^[79] Meme victual find themselves surging in prevalence after gaining the interest spot individuals or groups through interpretation internet.^[80]r/wallstreetbets, a subreddit where soccer field discuss stock and option marketable, and the financial services theatre group Robinhood Markets, became notable bear 2021 for their involvement sensibly the popularization and enhancement invoke meme stocks.^[81][82] One of depiction most commonly recognized instances appropriate a meme stock is GameStop, whose stocks saw a startling increase after a Reddit-led given to invest in 2021.^[83]

Politics

In position United States the presidential campaigns have utilized memes on integrity Internet in the last triad cycles.

Disinformation has been emotional by political contestants with memes being a concern of grandeur complaints.^[84][85]

See also

Notes