RE: Message From Sue Blackmore on her Hair

From: Vincent Campbell (v.p.campbell@stir.ac.uk)
Date: Thu Dec 14 2000 - 13:11:22 GMT

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From: Vincent Campbell <v.p.campbell@stir.ac.uk>
To: "'memetics@mmu.ac.uk'" <memetics@mmu.ac.uk>
Subject: RE: Message From Sue Blackmore on her Hair
Date: Thu, 14 Dec 2000 13:11:22 -0000
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    Thanks Paul for passing this on, and thanks to Sue for the background.

    I'm sorry if it seemed a rather personal comment, it's just that one piece
    of published research I've done was on pseudo-science documentaries, e.g.
    about the Loch Ness Monster and alien abductions. I did a textual analysis
    of a sample of programmes including Susan's Horizon programme about alien
    abductions, and the Everyman programme about alien abductions on which Susan
    also appeared. So Susan's screen image, if you like, was in my mind when
    watching the other night. If anyone's interested, although it's not really
    list- relevant, the book it's in is coming out in the next couple of weeks:-

    John Izod and Richard Kilborn with Matthew Hibberd (eds), From Grierson to
    the Docu-Soap (Luton, University of Luton Press: 2000) ISBN 1 86020 577 1

    My argument basically says that such programmes show that the notion of
    documentary as a scientific medium, which many have quite seriously claimed
    it to be, is inaccurate. I also reference some of Susan's work on theories
    of why people believe in the paranormal.

    Vincent

    > ----------
    > From: Paul Marsden
    > Reply To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
    > Sent: Thursday, December 14, 2000 7:16 pm
    > To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
    > Subject: Message From Sue Blackmore on her Hair
    >
    > Sue asked me to pass this on:
    >
    > Dear Vincent - reclusive non-list-joiner that I am, I could not resist
    > putting you out of your misery. I caught the hair meme decades ago from
    > neuroscientist Dave Perrott. It lay dormant until, about three years ago,
    > I got so infuriated by being mixed up with Susan Greenfield (famous,
    > serious, anti-drugs etc) that the memes got together and took this old
    > body along to the hairdresser. It's been many colours (often according to
    > my daughter's whim and mainly because they fade so quickly) but is now
    > bright pink all over (the interview for Tuesday's TV show predated the
    > pink and the new Scientist 'I'm giving up the paranormal' article). Yes, I
    > did tell them all about memes but am not really surpised they chose bits
    > without - still if the idea of infectious ideas gets out, there is a
    > better niche for the meme word to leap into when people meet it; as they
    > will. The meme meme is certainly making me work hard for it.
    > Sue.
    >

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