RE: Jabbering !

From: Bruce Jones (BruceJ@nwths.com)
Date: Thu Jun 01 2000 - 21:51:51 BST

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    From: Bruce  Jones <BruceJ@nwths.com>
    To: "'memetics@mmu.ac.uk'" <memetics@mmu.ac.uk>
    Subject: RE: Jabbering !
    Date: Thu, 1 Jun 2000 15:51:51 -0500 
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    > -----Original Message-----
    > From: Kenneth Van Oost [SMTP:Kenneth.Van.Oost@village.uunet.be]
    > Subject: Re: Jabbering !
    >
    > " language can be described as some kind of collective invention "
    > instead, what do we get !?
    >
    > In one or more places, one or more individuals managed to get an idea
    > of identifying a particular action or piece of rock or a location by a
    > particular sequence of sounds, repeated substantially unchanged over time
    > and
    > recognized as a communication symbol by others.
            [BJ]
            My take on the development of language: Bear with me here this is
    my opinion and mine alone .... I think!

            All animals have a language of sorts; elephants "rumble", lions
    roar, caterpillars "rasp", "lower" primates chatter, birds chirp and
    screech. Each sound or combination of sounds or in combination with
    gestures has a particular meaning within the "culture" and survival
    capabilities of the organism.

            Man, as a "higher" primate, some where waaaaaay back in the pre-dawn
    times, began to develop a larger and more complex vocalization apparatus.
    How many Millions of years or how many variations during that developmental
    time is anybody's guess. As these vocalizations began to take hold within
    isolated groups the "language" of that group took shape. More socialization
    and mixing of different groups and language developed rapidly.

            HOWEVER, the memes were already there. All the vocalization did was
    set the pattern of those memes into the language of the culture(s). A
    multitude of experiments with various mixtures, under different conditions,
    of what is believed to have been primordial soup and one with plain water
    has shown that the essential building blocks of life --- and the genes that
    make up that life -- can and do start to organize into the amino acids of
    protein and genetic material. These molecules , however, took a long time
    to get organized ...... these were and are the memes of cellular genetics
    ....... memes came first!

    > >From such a situation the development of language can be envisaged !
    >
    > Language is then in itself a set of memes which formed a complex system
    > and is so also the vehicle, tool and reflection of all other aspects of
    > the activity of human beings. Strange though, that a set of memes along
    > the path of evolution were in
    > such a manner favourised so that they not only change along various kinds
    > of pressures but also change the cultural systems of a people.
    >
    > In addition, each individual changes some or many of his/ hers ways of
    > speaking, as he does this others imitate him, and the change spread.
            [BJ]
            The reason for dialects and regional sayings. My son was with some
    friends from England while working in Mass. a few years ago. (talk about a
    strange mixture of languages). While taking a little trip one weekend as a
    group , my son was navigating and on eof the gentlemen from England was
    driving. My son saw on the map that a turn to the right was coming up and
    said, "Yergonnawanna turn right up here." Needles to say confusion reigned.
    Had he been talking to a fellow Texan from the Panhandle .... no problem.
    The meaning was the same, the concept was the same, the utterance was
    different ..... memetic mutation?

    > An examination of the facts would give indeed a strange picture.For change
    > there had to be actor, an action and a goal.
    > This leads to the suggestion that not one memeplex but three memeplexes
    > were involved ! Does this means that the concept of memetics was then
    > already in place !?
            [BJ]
            Why three?

    > The question is particular important to us, the memetisists:- is a general
    > culture habit reflected in the language (and if so what came first_the
    > idea (meme) of the word (for that meme)) or is the use of a particular
    > word a prior stimulus to change our behavior and thus the language !? (For
    > example, the use of computers is reflected in different words as virtual
    > reality; links; . com and www. or vice versa_did www. change our behavior
    > and thus the language !?
            [BJ]
            Good question. The development of a specialist language during an
    interest in the art/science/hobby of memetics is extremely fortunate and
    should be taken advantage of.

            Bruce Jones

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