Date: Tue, 10 Jun 1997 05:14:06 -0400
From: Dr I Price <PEWLEYFORT@compuserve.com>
Subject: RE: The photocopier meme
To: "INTERNET:memetics@mmu.ac.uk" <memetics@mmu.ac.uk>
Nick asks me
>You suggest that technomemes replicate independantly of other
memetic phyla, such as language and belief. I'm not certain that
they do, but then I must confess I'm a bit hazy about the
distinction you make. Perhaps you could spell it out more fully?<
I am not sure that I can as yet. One of my interests is the question of
whether there is any memetic analog of the phylogenetic classification
[species etc].
Before anyone makes the obvious point I am an admirer of Steve Gould's
writings and largely accept his point that one of key differences between=
cultural and biologic evoluion is that biological lineagess, once evolved=
,
are distinct whereas cultural ones intertwine. I do though see more
barriers to that theoretical intertwining.
The idea of language memes, belief memes, and techno memes as three, at
least partially independent memetic phyla is one I am just starting to
explore and I am more interested in testing whether others on this list s=
ee
it as a potentially useful distinction.
Regards
If Price
Active Personal Learning, Guildford UK
http://members.aol.com/ifprice/ifresch.html
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