Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id AAA19924 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Thu, 29 Nov 2001 00:59:44 GMT Subject: Re: artefacts Date: Wed, 28 Nov 2001 19:54:46 -0500 x-sender: wsmith1@camail2.harvard.edu x-mailer: Claris Emailer 2.0v3, Claritas Est Veritas From: "Wade T.Smith" <wade_smith@harvard.edu> To: "Memetics Discussion List" <memetics@mmu.ac.uk> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Message-ID: <20011129005445.AAA1752@camailp.harvard.edu@[205.240.180.33]> Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
Hi Ray Recchia -
>However, your
>artefacts still need to reproduce somehow if you are going to consider them
>evolutionary replicators.
No, new ones have to be made. And made again.
>Imitation has
>been tendered by behaviorists as a blanket method of explaining replication
>in large part because they wanted to avoid having to delve too deeply into
>the unknowns of the human mind.
Not my fault they're taking the easy way out.
>Otherwise you have no way of
>distinguishing your artefacts from artefacts created by birds or
>wasps.
That's more problematic, I'll agree. However, I think eyewitness
testimony and patent attorneys will settle most of the cases brought
against us by the wasps.
>In the next few decades the human race will likely begin genetically
>altering itself. This will make humans artefacts of themselves and thus by
>your definition - memes.
Yup, that's entirely a fact. What a brave new world it will be....
>In closing, I would like to admonish you for having taken on the devil as a
>client when fellow Massachusetts jurist Daniel Webster fought so hard to
>defeat him in the early part of the U.S.A's development.
Now, I know most lawyers are snakes. I'm a divorced father in
Massachusetts- don't begin to start me up! And while I have never stated
that I'm taking the devil's side, I don't think there's one single thing
angelic about the memes-are-in-the-mind position at all.
So, I guess I have to admonish you for taking on the angels as your
client.
- Wade
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