Bcm101 Week 8 Memes

BCM101 Week 8 Memes (15-20mins) Slide – Memes: A genetic analogy In his book the Selfish Gene (1976), Richard Dawkins suggest that the analogy of genetic evolution might be one way of thinking about cultural evolution. He wasn't the first to propose this idea, others like Sir Karl Popper had previously compared the success of scientific progress to the process of natural selection in genetic evolution. Stephenson Snow Crash 1992 Slide and Quote The notion of the viral ideas was also part of post cyberpunk culture in Neal Stephenson's 1992 novel Snow Crash which characterised the notion of the franchise or chainstore as an information virus. DNA Slide and Quote (Dawkins, 1976, p.189) Replication of the DNA molecule is the prevailing mechanism for the transference of biological information on our planet, argues Dawkins, but perhaps their are other, different kinds of evolution that also rely on replication. Cultural transmission, the spread of culture via its replication, is analogous to genetric transmission, says Dawkins, because it can give rise to a form of evolution. Extending this idea, Dawkins proposed a new noun, the 'meme', to create the idea of a unit of cultural transmission: effectively a unit of imitation. From the Greek word 'mimema' for imitation, and close to the French world for memory, Dawkins uses the term meme to refer to any cultural entity that an observer might consider a replicator (see the very intersting wikipedia article on self-replication for more on the basics of the concept). Meme: a unit of cultural transmission Memes are replicators, and therefore the biological analogy suggest that they propagate themselves, like genes in the gene pool, by moving from one brain to the next, via a broad process of imitation: tunes, ideas, catch-phrases, fashions, ways of making or doing things, all examples of meme. Example: History of Internet memes http://www.dipity.com/tatercakes/Internet_Memes/embed_tl?skin A really potent meme, according to Dawkins' theory is able to occupy the brain and use it as a means of selfpropagation: just like a virus is able to enter into the genetic structure of the bodies' cells and replicate. Further examples of memes: Sleeveface (http://www.sleeveface.com/) Handwriting meme (http://blog.logtar.com/2008/01/27/handwriting-meme-redux/) Characteristics of Memes While all memes are different, Dawkins suggest they have some general qualities in common: Longevity, Fecundity and Fidelity (copying), a list to which I add Imitation (replication) to suggest that these are the memes primary characteristics. Imitation: Imitation is how a meme replicates: some memes are more successful than others, which again is analoguous to the process of natural selection. Dawkins, working from the biological model, suggest that memes may actually be self-replicating through specific formations and structures of the human brain, actual patterns of neurological wiring-up that reconsititute themselves in one brain after another. Longevity: Longevity varies wildly, some memes, like some genes, achieve brilliant short-term success in spreading rapidly, but do not last long in the meme pool. Others, such as the religious laws, may continue to propagate themselves for thousands of years, usually because of the great potential permanence of written records. Fecundity: If the meme is an idea, or a unit of knowledge, its spread will depend on how acceptable it is to the population of individuals exposed to it: the measure of the fecundity of a scientific theory for example, might mean examining the number of times it is referred to in successive years in scientific journals. If the meme is a theme song, like MASH or the Muppets, its spread through the meme pool may be gauged by the number of people heard whistling it in the streets or who remember it years after it has been generated. (If it is a style of women's shoe, the population memeticist may use sales statistics from shoe shops, which is useful for advertsing and other effects-based research)

Fidelity: It turns out that memes, unlike genes, are not high-fidelity replicators, but they are according to the theory good at self-perpetuation even in their changed states. For example we could examine the university – with its course, faculties, traditions, regulations and policys as a co-adapted set of mutually-assisting memes. Often the memes are being passed on in altered form as with different referencing styles, or different expectations of behaviour, and other institutional practices. These are unconsciously passed on from one person to another, and often changed subtly even dramatically in the replication and transmission process. According to Dawking memes are highly competitive, and attempt to dominate the the attention of a human brain, it must do so at the expense of `rival' memes: memes compete across all mediums, radio, television, newspapers, the web, even shelf space in stores and libraries. Problems with the analogy? Henry Jenkins (Jenkins, 2008), in his blog and a forthcoming research publication (whitepaper), takes issue with the biological metaphor and the self-replication analogy of genes at the centre of viral video and the idea of the meme. He argues that the underlying concept of infection – that a meme is some kind of powerful germ or virus, that irrationally travels and transmits unconsciously and without intent, seeking only to replicate is the opposite of how culture operates. Culture, argues Jenkins, relies on people's decisions to pass on media content. Unlike genetics, cutlures are not self-replication, but an assertion of human will and agency, cultures are not simply something that happens to our bodies, it is something that we collectively generate through our conscious and sometimes unconscious contributions (Jenkins, 2009). For Jenkins viral video and the meme concept, still relies on a broadcast paradigm, which reinforces the notion that the power rests with traditional media producers, which predetermines its effect and value. Jenkins also takes issue with the idea of the meme's Funcundity, but Dawkins does admit that memes are not perfect replicators – unlike genes, Dawkins argued transcription errors are a desirable component of a meme's strength. Unlike the replication of genes, meme transmission is subject to continuous mutation, and also to blending. Spreadable Media Jenkins proposes another theory: one that he calls Spreadable Media, and I like this idea because it sounds tasty. Spreadable Media rejects the virus metaphor, the meme and similar ideas and instead emphasises the individual agency involved in the process of spreading media. The theory of spreadable media incorporates the idea of the gift economy in considering the difference between economic value and social worth. The OBAMA HOPE campaing post is a good example, of spreadable media where Shepard Fairey’s widely imitated Hope campaign poster for Barack Obama, has involved the remixing of original and appropriopriate content (Farley's possible copyright infringement and its subsequent reinfringment) and redistribution. The act of making a post like this, however simple, has to be spread actively by others, the process may appear automatic but it does not occur without the intention, and desire of the users invovled. References Dawkins Richard 1976, The Selfish Gene, (1989) edition, Oxford University Press, London. Jenkins, Henry, 2009, 'If It Doesn't Spread, It's Dead (Part One): Media Viruses and Memes' Confessions of an AcaFan, February 11, 2009, available: http://www.henryjenkins.org/2009/02/if_it_doesnt_spread_its_dead_p.html (last accessed April 29, 2009)