Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id RAA08371 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Mon, 11 Sep 2000 17:41:11 +0100 Message-ID: <001d01c01c13$1f413f60$b504bed4@default> From: "Kenneth Van Oost" <Kenneth.Van.Oost@village.uunet.be> To: <memetics@mmu.ac.uk> References: <2D1C159B783DD211808A006008062D31017459F7@inchna.stir.ac.uk> Subject: Re: Article, A Solipsistic View On Memetics Date: Mon, 11 Sep 2000 19:09:24 +0200 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-Priority: 3 X-MSMail-Priority: Normal X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.00.2314.1300 X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V5.00.2314.1300 Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
Thanks Vincent for the comments.
> Anyway, I'm drifting off the point here. What I'm trying to get to here
is
> that it seems to me that memetics is inherently based in an acceptance of
> external reality- and our ability (however imperfect) to acquire some
degree
> of knowledge about that external reality. Memetics assumes a) that there
> are social phenomena that spread through any given culture, and that b) it
> is possible to study the processes and mechanisms of how social phenomena
> spread through cultures. With solipsism a) is a figment of the
> imagination, and thus b) cannot follow from it. What then does a
> solipsistic perspective on memetics actually offer from an empirical point
> of view- what do we study?
>
<< Solipsism can help in understanding the selfish nature of memes.
It seems to me that memes are not just that selfish, and certainly not if we
take the possibility in account that (as Susan Greenfield points out in the
serie Brain Story) the motor cortex in the brain was active 2000
milliseconds
before a decision was made. This is in my book not selfish but quit " alive
".
And if memes are " alive " and are selfish they would probably act in a
more
" solipsistic "- way than one other. Remerber memes will act in their own
interest, memes will lay down the memetic lineages in order to propagate
themselves, they will create a world wherein they will strive...and if each
meme is selfish in nature, than it would act along " solipsistic " -ways.
It would be the one meme existing, or do we think that memes are aware
of other memes...in a conscient way !? >>
Many regards,
Kenneth
( I am, because we are)
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