From: Casper Kvan Clausen (Kvan@dis.dk)
Date: Mon Sep 20 1999 - 08:52:40 MDT
[Lurking mode off.]
> A "meme" is to "ideas" (or information, really) what a "gene"
> is to an
> organism. "Memetics" is the notion that information
> reproduces and evolves in a manner analogous to genes.
Ah, not quite. Rather, it is the notion that the manner in which genes
reproduce and evolve form a good paradigm within which to view
information--i.e. memetics is a model rather than a theory.
This is nitpicking, of course, but I have found that many people object
strongly to the notion of ideas being described as (what they understand as)
virus-like; informing them that memetics is merely a model to help clarify
certain attributes of ideas usually calms them down :)
Kvan.
-------Casper Kvan Clausen------ | 'A *person* is smart. People are
---------<kvan@dis.dk>---------- | dumb, panicky, dangerous animals
| and you know it.'
| - "K" in Men in Black.
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