What Defines a Meme? | Arts & Culture | Smithsonian Magazine

What Defines a Meme? Our world is a place where information can behave like human genes and ideas can replicate, mutate and evolve. James Gleick. AskSmithsonian2017 ASmithsonianmagazinespecialreport Withtheriseofinformationtheory,ideaswereseenasbehavinglikeorganisms,replicatingbyleapingfrombraintobrain,interactingtoformnewideasandevolvinginwhatthescientistRogerSperrycalled"aburstwiseadvance." IllustrationbyStuartBradford Whatliesattheheartofeverylivingthingisnotafire,notwarmbreath,nota‘sparkoflife.’Itisinformation,words,instructions,”RichardDawkinsdeclaredin1986.Alreadyoneoftheworld’sforemostevolutionarybiologists,hehadcaughtthespiritofanewage.Thecellsofanorganismarenodesinarichlyinterwovencommunicationsnetwork,transmittingandreceiving,codinganddecoding.Evolutionitselfembodiesanongoingexchangeofinformationbetweenorganismandenvironment.“Ifyouwanttounderstandlife,”Dawkinswrote,“don’tthinkaboutvibrant,throbbinggelsandoozes,thinkaboutinformationtechnology.” Wehavebecomesurroundedbyinformationtechnology;ourfurnitureincludesiPodsandplasmadisplays,andourskillsincludetextingandGoogling.Butourcapacitytounderstandtheroleofinformationhasbeensorelytaxed.“TMI,”wesay.Standback,however,andthepastdoescomebackintofocus. Theriseofinformationtheoryaidedandabettedanewviewoflife.Thegeneticcode—nolongerameremetaphor—wasbeingdeciphered.Scientistsspokegrandlyofthebiosphere:anentitycomposedofalltheearth’slife-forms,teemingwithinformation,replicatingandevolving.Andbiologists,havingabsorbedthemethodsandvocabularyofcommunicationsscience,wentfurthertomaketheirowncontributionstotheunderstandingofinformationitself. JacquesMonod,theParisianbiologistwhosharedaNobelPrizein1965forworkingouttheroleofmessengerRNAinthetransferofgeneticinformation,proposedananalogy:justasthebiospherestandsabovetheworldofnonlivingmatter,soan“abstractkingdom”risesabovethebiosphere.Thedenizensofthiskingdom?Ideas. “Ideashaveretainedsomeofthepropertiesoforganisms,”hewrote.“Likethem,theytendtoperpetuatetheirstructureandtobreed;theytoocanfuse,recombine,segregatetheircontent;indeedtheytoocanevolve,andinthisevolutionselectionmustsurelyplayanimportantrole.” Ideashave“spreadingpower,”henoted—“infectivity,asitwere”—andsomemorethanothers.Anexampleofaninfectiousideamightbeareligiousideologythatgainsswayoveralargegroupofpeople.TheAmericanneurophysiologistRogerSperryhadputforwardasimilarnotionseveralyearsearlier,arguingthatideasare“justasreal”astheneuronstheyinhabit.Ideashavepower,hesaid: Ideascauseideasandhelpevolvenewideas.Theyinteractwitheachotherandwithothermentalforcesinthesamebrain,inneighboringbrains,andthankstoglobalcommunication,infardistant,foreignbrains.Andtheyalsointeractwiththeexternalsurroundingstoproduceintotoaburstwiseadvanceinevolutionthatisfarbeyondanythingtohittheevolutionarysceneyet. Monodadded,“Ishallnothazardatheoryoftheselectionofideas.”Therewasnoneed.Otherswerewilling. Dawkinsmadehisownjumpfromtheevolutionofgenestotheevolutionofideas.Forhimthestarringrolebelongstothereplicator,anditscarcelymatterswhetherreplicatorsweremadeofnucleicacid.Hisruleis“Alllifeevolvesbythedifferentialsurvivalofreplicatingentities.”Whereverthereislife,theremustbereplicators.Perhapsonotherworldsreplicatorscouldariseinasilicon-basedchemistry—orinnochemistryatall. Whatwoulditmeanforareplicatortoexistwithoutchemistry?“Ithinkthatanewkindofreplicatorhasrecentlyemergedonthisveryplanet,”Dawkinsproclaimedneartheendofhisfirstbook,TheSelfishGene,in1976.“Itisstaringusintheface.Itisstillinitsinfancy,stilldriftingclumsilyaboutinitsprimevalsoup,butalreadyitisachievingevolutionarychangeataratethatleavestheoldgenepantingfarbehind.”That“soup”ishumanculture;thevectoroftransmissionislanguage,andthespawninggroundisthebrain. Forthisbodilessreplicatoritself,Dawkinsproposedaname.Hecalleditthememe,anditbecamehismostmemorableinvention,farmoreinfluentialthanhisselfishgenesorhislaterproselytizingagainstreligiosity.“Memespropagatethemselvesinthememepoolbyleapingfrombraintobrainviaaprocesswhich,inthebroadsense,canbecalledimitation,”hewrote.Theycompetewithoneanotherforlimitedresources:braintimeorbandwidth.Theycompetemostofallforattention.Forexample: Ideas.Whetheranideaarisesuniquelyorreappearsmanytimes,itmaythriveinthememepooloritmaydwindleandvanish.ThebeliefinGodisanexampleDawkinsoffers—anancientidea,replicatingitselfnotjustinwordsbutinmusicandart.ThebeliefthatEarthorbitstheSunisnolessameme,competingwithothersforsurvival.(Truthmaybeahelpfulqualityforameme,butitisonlyoneamongmany.) Tunes.Thistunehasspreadforcenturiesacrossseveralcontinents. Catchphrases.Onetextsnippet,“WhathathGodwrought?”appearedearlyandspreadrapidlyinmorethanonemedium.Another,“Readmylips,”chartedapeculiarpaththroughlate20th-centuryAmerica.“Survivalofthefittest”isamemethat,likeothermemes,mutateswildly(“survivalofthefattest”;“survivalofthesickest”;“survivalofthefakest”;“survivalofthetwittest”). Images.InIsaacNewton’slifetime,nomorethanafewthousandpeoplehadanyideawhathelookedlike,eventhoughhewasoneofEngland’smostfamousmen.Yetnowmillionsofpeoplehavequiteaclearidea—basedonreplicasofcopiesofratherpoorlypaintedportraits.EvenmorepervasiveandindeliblearethesmileofMonaLisa,TheScreamofEdvardMunchandthesilhouettesofvariousfictionalextraterrestrials.Thesearememes,livingalifeoftheirown,independentofanyphysicalreality.“ThismaynotbewhatGeorgeWashingtonlookedlikethen,”atourguidewasoverheardsayingoftheGilbertStuartportraitattheMetropolitanMuseumofArt,“butthisiswhathelookslikenow.”Exactly. Memesemergeinbrainsandtraveloutward,establishingbeachheadsonpaperandcelluloidandsiliconandanywhereelseinformationcango.Theyarenottobethoughtofaselementaryparticlesbutasorganisms.Thenumberthreeisnotameme;noristhecolorblue,noranysimplethought,anymorethanasinglenucleotidecanbeagene.Memesarecomplexunits,distinctandmemorable—unitswithstayingpower. Also,anobjectisnotameme.Thehulahoopisnotameme;itismadeofplastic,notofbits.Whenthisspeciesoftoyspreadworldwideinamadepidemicin1958,itwastheproduct,thephysicalmanifestation,ofameme,ormemes:thecravingforhulahoops;theswaying,swinging,twirlingskillsetofhula-hooping.Thehulahoopitselfisamemevehicle.So,forthatmatter,iseachhumanhulahooper—astrikinglyeffectivememevehicle,inthesenseneatlyexplainedbythephilosopherDanielDennett:“Awagonwithspokedwheelscarriesnotonlygrainorfreightfromplacetoplace;itcarriesthebrilliantideaofawagonwithspokedwheelsfrommindtomind.”Hulahoopersdidthatforthehulahoop’smemes—andin1958theyfoundanewtransmissionvector,broadcasttelevision,sendingitsmessagesimmeasurablyfasterandfartherthananywagon.Themovingimageofthehulahooperseducednewmindsbyhundreds,andthenbythousands,andthenbymillions.Thememeisnotthedancerbutthedance. Formostofourbiologicalhistorymemesexistedfleetingly;theirmainmodeoftransmissionwastheonecalled“wordofmouth.”Lately,however,theyhavemanagedtoadhereinsolidsubstance:claytablets,cavewalls,papersheets.Theyachievelongevitythroughourpensandprintingpresses,magnetictapesandopticaldisks.Theyspreadviabroadcasttowersanddigitalnetworks.Memesmaybestories,recipes,skills,legendsorfashions.Wecopythem,onepersonatatime.Alternatively,inDawkins’meme-centeredperspective,theycopythemselves. “Ibelievethat,giventherightconditions,replicatorsautomaticallybandtogethertocreatesystems,ormachines,thatcarrythemaroundandworktofavortheircontinuedreplication,”hewrote.Thiswasnottosuggestthatmemesareconsciousactors;onlythattheyareentitieswithintereststhatcanbefurtheredbynaturalselection.Theirinterestsarenotourinterests.“Ameme,”Dennettsays,“isaninformation-packetwithattitude.”Whenwespeakoffightingforaprincipleordyingforanidea,wemaybemoreliteralthanweknow. Tinker,tailor,soldier,sailor....Rhymeandrhythmhelppeoplerememberbitsoftext.Or:rhymeandrhythmhelpbitsoftextgetremembered.Rhymeandrhythmarequalitiesthataidameme’ssurvival,justasstrengthandspeedaidananimal’s.Patternedlanguagehasanevolutionaryadvantage.Rhyme,rhythmandreason—forreason,too,isaformofpattern.Iwaspromisedonatimetohavereasonformyrhyme;fromthattimeuntothisseason,Ireceivednorrhymenorreason. Likegenes,memeshaveeffectsonthewideworldbeyondthemselves.Insomecases(thememeformakingfire;forwearingclothes;fortheresurrectionofJesus)theeffectscanbepowerfulindeed.Astheybroadcasttheirinfluenceontheworld,memesthusinfluencetheconditionsaffectingtheirownchancesofsurvival.ThememeormemescomprisingMorsecodehadstrongpositivefeedbackeffects.Somememeshaveevidentbenefitsfortheirhumanhosts(“Lookbeforeyouleap,”knowledgeofCPR,beliefinhandwashingbeforecooking),butmemeticsuccessandgeneticsuccessarenotthesame.Memescanreplicatewithimpressivevirulencewhileleavingswathsofcollateraldamage—patentmedicinesandpsychicsurgery,astrologyandsatanism,racistmyths,superstitionsand(aspecialcase)computerviruses.Inaway,thesearethemostinteresting—thememesthatthrivetotheirhosts’detriment,suchastheideathatsuicidebomberswillfindtheirrewardinheaven. Memescouldtravelwordlesslyevenbeforelanguagewasborn.Plainmimicryisenoughtoreplicateknowledge—howtochipanarrowheadorstartafire.Amonganimals,chimpanzeesandgorillasareknowntoacquirebehaviorsbyimitation.Somespeciesofsongbirdslearntheirsongs,oratleastsongvariants,afterhearingthemfromneighboringbirds(or,morerecently,fromornithologistswithaudioplayers).Birdsdevelopsongrepertoiresandsongdialects—inshort,theyexhibitabirdsongculturethatpredateshumanculturebyeons.Thesespecialcasesnotwithstanding,formostofhumanhistorymemesandlanguagehavegonehandinglove.(Clichésarememes.)Languageservesasculture’sfirstcatalyst.Itsupersedesmereimitation,spreadingknowledgebyabstractionandencoding. Perhapstheanalogywithdiseasewasinevitable.Beforeanyoneunderstoodanythingofepidemiology,itslanguagewasappliedtospeciesofinformation.Anemotioncanbeinfectious,atunecatchy,ahabitcontagious.“Fromlooktolook,contagiousthroughthecrowd/Thepanicruns,”wrotethepoetJamesThomsonin1730.Lust,likewise,accordingtoMilton:“Eve,whoseeyedartedcontagiousfire.”Butonlyinthenewmillennium,inthetimeofglobalelectronictransmission,hastheidentificationbecomesecondnature.Oursistheageofvirality:viraleducation,viralmarketing,virale-mailandvideoandnetworking.ResearchersstudyingtheInternetitselfasamedium—crowdsourcing,collectiveattention,socialnetworkingandresourceallocation—employnotonlythelanguagebutalsothemathematicalprinciplesofepidemiology. Oneofthefirsttousetheterms“viraltext”and“viralsentences”seemstohavebeenareaderofDawkinsnamedStephenWaltonofNewYorkCity,correspondingin1981withthecognitivescientistDouglasHofstadter.Thinkinglogically—perhapsinthemodeofacomputer—Waltonproposedsimpleself-replicatingsentencesalongthelinesof“Sayme!”“Copyme!”and“Ifyoucopyme,I’llgrantyouthreewishes!”Hofstadter,thenacolumnistforScientificAmerican,foundtheterm“viraltext”itselftobeevencatchier. Well,now,Walton’sownviraltext,asyoucanseeherebeforeyoureyes,hasmanagedtocommandeerthefacilitiesofaverypowerfulhost—anentiremagazineandprintingpressanddistributionservice.Ithasleaptaboardandisnow—evenasyoureadthisviralsentence—propagatingitselfmadlythroughouttheideosphere! Hofstadtergailydeclaredhimselfinfectedbythememememe. Onesourceofresistance—oratleastunease—wastheshovingofushumanstowardthewings.Itwasbadenoughtosaythatapersonismerelyagene’swayofmakingmoregenes.Nowhumansaretobeconsideredasvehiclesforthepropagationofmemes,too.Noonelikestobecalledapuppet.Dennettsummeduptheproblemthisway:“Idon’tknowaboutyou,butIamnotinitiallyattractedbytheideaofmybrainasasortofdungheapinwhichthelarvaeofotherpeople’sideasrenewthemselves,beforesendingoutcopiesofthemselvesinaninformationaldiaspora....Who’sincharge,accordingtothisvision—weorourmemes?” Heansweredhisownquestionbyremindingusthat,likeitornot,weareseldom“incharge”ofourownminds.HemighthavequotedFreud;insteadhequotedMozart(orsohethought):“InthenightwhenIcannotsleep,thoughtscrowdintomymind....Whenceandhowdotheycome?IdonotknowandIhavenothingtodowithit.” LaterDennettwasinformedthatthiswell-knownquotationwasnotMozart’safterall.Ithadtakenonalifeofitsown;itwasafairlysuccessfulmeme. Foranyonetakenwiththeideaofmemes,thelandscapewaschangingfasterthanDawkinshadimaginedpossiblein1976,whenhewrote,“Thecomputersinwhichmemeslivearehumanbrains.”By1989,thetimeofthesecondeditionofTheSelfishGene,havingbecomeanadeptprogrammerhimself,hehadtoamendthat:“Itwasobviouslypredictablethatmanufacturedelectroniccomputers,too,wouldeventuallyplayhosttoself-replicatingpatternsofinformation.”Informationwaspassingfromonecomputertoanother“whentheirownerspassfloppydiscsaround,”andhecouldseeanotherphenomenononthenearhorizon:computersconnectedinnetworks.“Manyofthem,”hewrote,“areliterallywireduptogetherinelectronicmailexchange....Itisaperfectmilieuforself-replicatingprogramstoflourish.”Indeed,theInternetwasinitsbirththroes.Notonlydiditprovidememeswithanutrient-richculturemedium,italsogavewingstotheideaofmemes.MemeitselfquicklybecameanInternetbuzzword.Awarenessofmemesfosteredtheirspread. Anotoriousexampleofamemethatcouldnothaveemergedinpre-Internetculturewasthephrase“jumpedtheshark.”Loopyself-referencecharacterizedeveryphaseofitsexistence.Tojumpthesharkmeanstopassapeakofqualityorpopularityandbeginanirreversibledecline.Thephrasewasthoughttohavebeenusedfirstin1985byacollegestudentnamedSeanJ.Connolly,inreferencetoanepisodeofthetelevisionseries“HappyDays”inwhichthecharacterFonzie(HenryWinkler),onwaterskies,jumpsoverashark.Theoriginofthephraserequiresacertainamountofexplanationwithoutwhichitcouldnothavebeeninitiallyunderstood.Perhapsforthatreason,thereisnorecordedusageuntil1997,whenConnolly’sroommate,JonHein,registeredthedomainnamejumptheshark.comandcreatedawebsitedevotedtoitspromotion.Thewebsitesoonfeaturedalistoffrequentlyaskedquestions: Q.Did“jumptheshark”originatefromthiswebsite,ordidyoucreatethesitetocapitalizeonthephrase? A.ThissitewentupDecember24,1997,andgavebirthtothephrase“jumptheshark.”Asthesitecontinuestogrowinpopularity,thetermhasbecomemorecommonplace.Thesiteisthechicken,theeggandnowaCatch-22. Itspreadtomoretraditionalmediainthenextyear;MaureenDowddevotedacolumntoexplainingitintheNewYorkTimesin2001;in2002thesamenewspaper’s“OnLanguage”columnist,WilliamSafire,calledit“thepopularculture’sphraseoftheyear”;soonafterthat,peoplewereusingthephraseinspeechandinprintwithoutself-consciousness—noquotationmarksorexplanation—andeventually,inevitably,variousculturalobserversasked,“Has‘jumptheshark’jumpedtheshark?”Likeanygoodmeme,itspawnedmutations.The“jumpingtheshark”entryinWikipediaadvisedin2009,“Seealso:jumpingthecouch;nukingthefridge.” Isthisscience?Inhis1983column,Hofstadterproposedtheobviousmemeticlabelforsuchadiscipline:memetics.Thestudyofmemeshasattractedresearchersfromfieldsasfarapartascomputerscienceandmicrobiology.Inbioinformatics,chainlettersareanobjectofstudy.Theyarememes;theyhaveevolutionaryhistories.Theverypurposeofachainletterisreplication;whateverelseachainlettermaysay,itembodiesonemessage:Copyme.Onestudentofchain-letterevolution,DanielW.VanArsdale,listedmanyvariants,inchainlettersandevenearliertexts:“Makesevencopiesofitexactlyasitiswritten”(1902);“Copythisinfullandsendtoninefriends”(1923);“Andifanymanshalltakeawayfromthewordsofthebookofthisprophecy,Godshalltakeawayhispartoutofthebookoflife”(Revelation22:19).Chainlettersflourishedwiththehelpofanew19th-centurytechnology:“carbonicpaper,”sandwichedbetweensheetsofwritingpaperinstacks.Thencarbonpapermadeasymbioticpartnershipwithanothertechnology,thetypewriter.Viraloutbreaksofchainlettersoccurredallthroughtheearly20thcentury.Twosubsequenttechnologies,whentheirusebecamewidespread,providedorders-of-magnitudeboostsinchain-letterfecundity:photocopying(c.1950)ande-mail(c.1995). InspiredbyachanceconversationonahikeintheHongKongmountains,informationscientistsCharlesH.BennettfromIBMinNewYorkandMingLiandBinMafromOntario,Canada,beganananalysisofasetofchainletterscollectedduringthephotocopierera.Theyhad33,allvariantsofasingleletter,withmutationsintheformofmisspellings,omissionsandtransposedwordsandphrases.“Theselettershavepassedfromhosttohost,mutatingandevolving,”theyreportedin2003. Likeagene,theiraveragelengthisabout2,000characters.Likeapotentvirus,theletterthreatenstokillyouandinducesyoutopassitontoyour“friendsandassociates”—somevariationofthisletterhasprobablyreachedmillionsofpeople.Likeaninheritabletrait,itpromisesbenefitsforyouandthepeopleyoupassitonto.Likegenomes,chainlettersundergonaturalselectionandsometimespartsevengettransferredbetweencoexisting“species.” Reachingbeyondtheseappealingmetaphors,thethreeresearcherssetouttousethelettersasa“testbed”foralgorithmsusedinevolutionarybiology.Thealgorithmsweredesignedtotakethegenomesofvariousmoderncreaturesandworkbackward,byinferenceanddeduction,toreconstructtheirphylogeny—theirevolutionarytrees.Ifthesemathematicalmethodsworkedwithgenes,thescientistssuggested,theyshouldworkwithchainletters,too.Inbothcasestheresearcherswereabletoverifymutationratesandrelatednessmeasures. Still,mostoftheelementsofculturechangeandblurtooeasilytoqualifyasstablereplicators.TheyarerarelyasneatlyfixedasasequenceofDNA.Dawkinshimselfemphasizedthathehadneverimaginedfoundinganythinglikeanewscienceofmemetics.Apeer-reviewedJournalofMemeticscametolifein1997—publishedonline,naturally—andthenfadedawayaftereightyearspartlyspentinself-consciousdebateoverstatus,missionandterminology.Evencomparedwithgenes,memesarehardtomathematizeoreventodefinerigorously.Sothegene-memeanalogycausesuneasinessandthegenetics-memeticsanalogyevenmore. Genesatleasthaveagroundinginphysicalsubstance.Memesareabstract,intangibleandunmeasurable.Genesreplicatewithnear-perfectfidelity,andevolutiondependsonthat:somevariationisessential,butmutationsneedtoberare.Memesareseldomcopiedexactly;theirboundariesarealwaysfuzzy,andtheymutatewithawildflexibilitythatwouldbefatalinbiology.Theterm“meme”couldbeappliedtoasuspiciouscornucopiaofentities,fromsmalltolarge.ForDennett,thefirstfournotesofBeethoven’sFifthSymphony(quotedabove)were“clearly”ameme,alongwithHomer’sOdyssey(oratleasttheideaoftheOdyssey),thewheel,anti-Semitismandwriting.“MemeshavenotyetfoundtheirWatsonandCrick,”saidDawkins;“theyevenlacktheirMendel.” Yetheretheyare.Asthearcofinformationflowbendstowardevergreaterconnectivity,memesevolvefasterandspreadfarther.Theirpresenceisfeltifnotseeninherdbehavior,bankruns,informationalcascadesandfinancialbubbles.Dietsriseandfallinpopularity,theirverynamesbecomingcatchphrases—theSouthBeachDietandtheAtkinsDiet,theScarsdaleDiet,theCookieDietandtheDrinkingMan’sDietallreplicatingaccordingtoadynamicaboutwhichthescienceofnutritionhasnothingtosay.Medicalpractice,too,experiences“surgicalfads”and“iatro-epidemics”—epidemicscausedbyfashionsintreatment—liketheiatro-epidemicofchildren’stonsillectomiesthatswepttheUnitedStatesandpartsofEuropeinthemid-20thcentury.Somefalsememesspreadwithdisingenuousassistance,liketheapparentlyunkillablenotionthatBarackObamawasnotborninHawaii.Andincyberspaceeverynewsocialnetworkbecomesanewincubatorofmemes.MakingtheroundsofFacebookinthesummerandfallof2010wasaclassicinnewgarb: SometimesIJustWanttoCopySomeoneElse'sStatus,WordforWord,andSeeIfTheyNotice. Thenitmutatedagain,andinJanuary2011Twittersawanoutbreakof: OnedayIwanttocopysomeone'sTweetwordforwordandseeiftheynotice. BythenoneofthemostpopularofallTwitterhashtags(the“hashtag”beingagenetic—or,rather,memetic—marker)wassimplytheword“#Viral.” Inthecompetitionforspaceinourbrainsandintheculture,theeffectivecombatantsarethemessages.Thenew,oblique,loopingviewsofgenesandmemeshaveenrichedus.TheygiveusparadoxestowriteonMöbiusstrips.“Thehumanworldismadeofstories,notpeople,”writesthenovelistDavidMitchell.“Thepeoplethestoriesusetotellthemselvesarenottobeblamed.”MargaretAtwoodwrites:“Aswithallknowledge,onceyouknewit,youcouldn’timaginehowitwasthatyouhadn’tknownitbefore.Likestagemagic,knowledgebeforeyouknewittookplacebeforeyourveryeyes,butyouwerelookingelsewhere.”Nearingdeath,JohnUpdikereflectedon Alifepouredintowords—apparentwasteintendedtopreservethethingconsumed. FredDretske,aphilosopherofmindandknowledge,wrotein1981:“Inthebeginningtherewasinformation.Thewordcamelater.”Headdedthisexplanation:“Thetransitionwasachievedbythedevelopmentoforganismswiththecapacityforselectivelyexploitingthisinformationinordertosurviveandperpetuatetheirkind.”Nowwemightadd,thankstoDawkins,thatthetransitionwasachievedbytheinformationitself,survivingandperpetuatingitskindandselectivelyexploitingorganisms. Mostofthebiospherecannotseetheinfosphere;itisinvisible,aparalleluniversehummingwithghostlyinhabitants.Buttheyarenotghoststous—notanymore.Wehumans,aloneamongtheearth’sorganiccreatures,liveinbothworldsatonce.Itisasthough,havinglongcoexistedwiththeunseen,wehavebeguntodeveloptheneededextrasensoryperception.Weareawareofthemanyspeciesofinformation.Wenametheirtypessardonically,asthoughtoreassureourselvesthatweunderstand:urbanmythsandzombielies.Wekeepthemaliveinair-conditionedserverfarms.Butwecannotownthem.Whenajinglelingersinourears,orafadturnsfashionupsidedown,orahoaxdominatestheglobalchatterformonthsandvanishesasswiftlyasitcame,whoismasterandwhoisslave? AdaptedfromTheInformation:AHistory,ATheory,AFlood,byJamesGleick.Copyright©2011byJamesGleick.Reprintedwiththepermissionoftheauthor. JamesGleickistheauthorofChaos:MakingaNewScience,amongotherbooks.IllustratorStuartBradfordlivesinSanRafael,California. / Therearevehiclesbywhichideastravel;RichardDawkinscalledthem"memes." DavidLevenson/GettyImages / Withtheriseofinformationtheory,ideaswereseenasbehavinglikeorganisms,replicatingbyleapingfrombraintobrain,interactingtoformnewideasandevolvinginwhatthescientistRogerSperrycalled"aburstwiseadvance." IllustrationbyStuartBradford / "Who'sincharge...,"asksphilosopherDanielDennett,"weorourmemes?" BartMuhl/ReduxPictures / Thistunehasspreadforcenturiesacrossseveralcontinents. WikipediaCommons BigIdeas Biology ThoughtInnovation RecommendedVideos PostaComment MostPopular FoundinaCandyTin:OneoftheFirstCoinsStruckinColonialNorthAmerica TenHilariousWinnersoftheComedyWildlifePhotographyAwards FortheOnlyPersonEverHitbyaMeteorite,theRealTroubleBeganLater AMosaicFromCaligula's'PleasureBoat'Spent45YearsasaCoffeeTableinNYC TheBestBoardGamesof2021