Re: breaking extropian rules?

From: Harvey Newstrom (mail@HarveyNewstrom.com)
Date: Fri Feb 23 2001 - 09:50:51 MST


At 2:38pm +0000 2/21/01, Steve Nichols wrote:
>Is there any evidential studies backing up his claims
>how memes operate, and if so what is the verdict?

I have always felt that memes were an analogy for how ideas spread.
Like all analogies, they can lead to false conclusions if taken too
far. Memes cannot be assumed to act like viruses in all
circumstances any more than the biosphere can be assumed to act like
a living organism in all circumstances. As an analogy, it is a
quick-and-dirty way to convey some knowledge. But I always have
problems when people start analyzing the analogy and making logical
conclusions based on untested assumptions.

-- 
Harvey Newstrom <http://HarveyNewstrom.com>



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