Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id LAA28663 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Sat, 26 Jan 2002 11:20:15 GMT X-Originating-IP: [194.117.133.84] From: "Steve Drew" <srdrew_1@hotmail.com> To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk Subject: Grants theory of everything Date: Sat, 26 Jan 2002 11:15:58 +0000 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Message-ID: <F117dTWaSOiz8JDx2I50000129d@hotmail.com> X-OriginalArrivalTime: 26 Jan 2002 11:15:59.0221 (UTC) FILETIME=[D4E63A50:01C1A65A] Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
Date: Thu, 24 Jan 2002 08:23:17 -0800
From: "Grant Callaghan" <grantc4@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Grant's theory of Everything
New memes grow out of old memes and the pool of memes we have available
to
us as individuals, based on our past experience, limit the size of that
pool. Throw in the emotional attachment we have to many of our memes,
also
gained from our experience, and it narrows the choice even further. So
although the pool of available memesis large, the life you've lived
constrains the choices you are likely to make. In the final analysis,
most
of your choices are predetermined based on memes you already have
experience
with and have chosen previously with good results. It's when you run
into a
situation outside of your experience with that the freedom of choice
becomes
important. Then, the more options you have available the greater your
chances will be of finding a useful solution.
Thus spake Grant ;-)>
Experience does limit the size of the memepool, but it is still a very large
pool, and this pool will contain memes of various fidelity of the originals.
Some will be near perfect copies, but some will only be a pale shadow of the
original. So instead of having choice in a new situation , you are going to
have a choice in a vaguely familiar situation. One example would be a dinner
party for the first time. We all have a basic idea through watching tv etc
of the appropriiate behaviours expected, but when we actually perform it it
will tend to feel strange and unfamiliar as it is something we have not
performed before, and we will look around the room at other peoples
behaviour and try to mimic theirs. So it is not just new situations where
choice exists, but situations were we have an imperfect grasp of what is
going on. This is where your theory may be of use.
You wrote:
< We see someone use a tool to get (do? - my addition) something and we try
to use it. If it doesn’t work as we expected, we listen and try again until
we can use it, or discard it.>
This would straddle between the familiar and automatic and the unfamiliar
and new.
Steve
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