Received: by alpheratz.cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk id QAA02940 (8.6.9/5.3[ref pg@gmsl.co.uk] for cpm.aca.mmu.ac.uk from fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk); Sat, 9 Feb 2002 16:50:47 GMT X-Originating-IP: [62.31.30.7] From: "Steve Drew" <srdrew_1@hotmail.com> To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk Subject: Re: Apoptosis Date: Sat, 09 Feb 2002 16:45:10 +0000 Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed Message-ID: <F41ipkTOOY2pK7fbZAt0001fdf3@hotmail.com> X-OriginalArrivalTime: 09 Feb 2002 16:45:10.0595 (UTC) FILETIME=[236B3930:01C1B189] Sender: fmb-majordomo@mmu.ac.uk Precedence: bulk Reply-To: memetics@mmu.ac.uk
>Date: Fri, 08 Feb 2002 19:13:49 -0800
From: "Grant Callaghan" <grantc4@hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: Apoptosis
>The evidence for it
lies in how what we believe influences what we see and what we call
things
influences how we remember them and react to the emotionally. In other
words, our memes do influence our perceptions and as we adopt new ones,
our
perceptions change.<
Another thing to add to that last post about would be the concious level of
reflection that a person employs when they encouter a new meme. This would
range from someone thinking *thats seems like a good idea, i’ll give it a
try* through to dialect change by prolonged exposure to a version of the
language other than your own. This would obviosly be a slow, unnoticed
transformation. A more immediate one might be a persons behaviour in a crowd
or mob.
Now, is reflection a learned thing, or is there a biological basis as well.
My guess is both. I can’t really see how we could learn and adapt our
behaviour during the developement of the human race without some form of
reflection, even if it is at a very basic level. Another part of it must be
through learning how to reflect. Lewis Wolpert in *The Unnatural Nature of
Science* thinks that to do science properlyit is a learned behaviour, as
common sense is counter intuitive to the proccess. (I think he over does the
unnatural bit myself. I believe that if we can do something, it isn’t
unnatural). Aristotle thought that stones fell to the ground because that
was there natural place in his scheme of things. A common sense view would
be to agree - try chucking a rock in the air. Seeing the true explanation,
the mutal attraction of two bodies due to gravitation, is more difficult -
the Earth moves towards the rock (pull the other one).
So as i see it, we have an internal memeplex of behaviours that act as a
filter, with those memes that are closest to to your memeplex having a good
chance of being adopted without too much thought, which i term no choice,as
for me choice is an act rather than just acceptance. When we come to
choice, there must be some level of reflection or reasoning, even if the
logic behind it is immaterial (eg choosing between two cars because one of
them is green and the other isn’t, instead of on the basis of their running
costs). Finally, you have choice based upon considered reflection. (Using
the last example, choosing on the basis of running costs because you are
short of cash).
Any thoughts on this?
Regards
Steve
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