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JOURNAL OF MEMETICS - Evolutionary Models of Information
Transmission (JOM-EMIT)
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JOM-EMIT is a new scientific journal published exclusively on the Web,
at URL:
http://www.cpm.mmu.ac.uk/jom-emit
The journal has no subscription fee.
JOM-EMIT is the first peer-reviewed journal devoted to the development
of the memetic perspective. This perspective looks at culture,
communication and information transmission as evolutionary phenomena,
governed by the mechanisms of variation, replication and selection. The
concept of "meme" was proposed by Richard Dawkins as 'a unit of
cultural transmission, or a unit of imitation'. The vagueness of this
initial
description may explain the present diversity of views on what a meme
really is, and how the memetic model can be used. JOM-EMIT wishes to
clarify these issues, by stimulating a constructive dialogue between the
active researchers in the field. More specifically JOM-EMIT seeks to
discuss the following topics related to memetics:
- Comparisons of different mechanisms and models of evolutionary
processes, possibly in distinct fields of inquiry.
- Philosophical or theoretical issues concerning epistemology and
evolution
- Boundaries of the evolutionary approach
- Empirical research on memetic processes
- Models of meme generation and meme spread
- Fundamental approaches aimed at structuring the field of memetics as a
science
Editorial Board: Gary Boyd, Bruce Edmonds (also publisher), Liane
Gabora, Francis Heylighen, Mark Mills, Hans-Cees Speel (managing
editor), and Mario Vaneechoutte.
Advisory Board: Gary Cziko, Richard Dawkins, Daniel Dennett, David
Hull, and Aaron Lynch.
The JOM-EMIT site contains two mailing lists: an announcement list for
the distribution of abstracts of new papers to all subscribers, and a
discussion list for open debate on the submitted papers, and other
memetics related issues. You can subscribe to these lists via the
Journal's
home page.
CONTENTS
The first issue (May-September) of JOM-EMIT is now online. It
contains four papers and one book review:
"The Six Essentials? Minimal Requirements for the Darwinian
Bootstrapping of Quality" by William H. Calvin
"Cultural R/K Selection" by Agner Fog
"The Origin and Evolution of Culture and Creativity" by Liane Gabora
"Macromemetics and the Re-unification of Philosophy" by Derek
Gatherer
Book review: "Evolutionary Paradigms in the Social Sciences. Special
Issue, International Studies Quarterly 40, (September, 1996)" by Francis
A. Beer.
New papers will appear continuously when they are accepted for
publication.
CALL FOR PAPERS
We invite interested authors to submit papers for the journal, along
with
information on the author, his/her address and affiliations, at the
journal's
email address:
jom-emit@sepa.tudelft.nl
All submitted papers will be anonymously reviewed. They will only be
accepted for publication if approved by at least two referees.
Controversial papers of high quality can be followed by commentaries by
request of the author after they are published (similar to the
commentary
structure the "Brain and Behavioral Sciences" uses, although JOM-EMIT
uses commentary only as an option after a paper is already published).
This means that a number of peers write a short comment, to which the
author can reply in a concluding short paper.
We also wish to invite letters which criticize published papers, and
book
reviews relevant to the journal's aims.
Further information for authors can be found at the web address:
http://www.cpm.mmu.ac.uk/jom-emit/ifa.html
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Bruce Edmonds,
Centre for Policy Modelling,
Manchester Metropolitan University, Aytoun Bldg.,
Aytoun St., Manchester, M1 3GH. UK.
Tel: +44 161 247 6479 Fax: +44 161 247 6802
http://www.cpm.mmu.ac.uk/~bruce
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