Re: Saving the ethnosphere

From: Dace (edace@earthlink.net)
Date: Tue Apr 30 2002 - 07:40:21 BST

  • Next message: Vincent Campbell: "Red, tooth and claw (was media and violence)" 

    Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id HAA16256 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Tue, 30 Apr 2002 07:45:01 +0100
Message-ID: <001e01c1f011$e8849d80$1086b2d1@teddace>
From: "Dace" <edace@earthlink.net>
To: <memetics@mmu.ac.uk>
Subject: Re: Saving the ethnosphere
Date: Mon, 29 Apr 2002 23:40:21 -0700
Content-Type: multipart/alternative; boundary="----=_NextPart_000_001B_01C1EFD7.3ABDAA00"
X-Priority: 3
X-MSMail-Priority: Normal
X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4133.2400
X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.50.4133.2400
Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk
Precedence: bulk
Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk

    
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable

    > The less languages around the less potential confusion will be brought
    > about by people trying to communicate as the probability increases that
    > they speak the same language.

    The tyranny of utilitarianism.

    > Extinction of redundant languages is a natural process in an environment
    > with progressive global communication.

    This is rationalization, pure and simple. Cultures are annihilated by guns, disease, and dollars.

    > Trying to intervene in this natural process, in the sense of trying to preserve
    > superfluous languages, to me seems to be as artificial as genetic
    > engineering is to biological evolution.

    How about superfluous species? Who says life itself isn't superfluous? Perhaps humans and our natural languages will one day be rendered obsolete by computers and their algorithmic tongues.

    Btw, bacteria have been sharing genes for billions of years. Humbling, isn't it?

    > A difference between the two being that, unlike the latter, the former lacks
    > possible benefit other than one of sentimental and/or historic value.

    > Phil.

    Carve out our memory, and there's nothing left but mechanism.

    Ted

    ===============================================================
    This was distributed via the memetics list associated with the
    Journal of Memetics - Evolutionary Models of Information Transmission
    For information about the journal and the list (e.g. unsubscribing)
    see: http://www.cpm.mmu.ac.uk/jom-emit

    This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Tue Apr 30 2002 - 07:56:34 BST