The Meme Machine'Any theory deserves to be given its best shot, and that is what Susan Blackmore has given the theory of the meme I am delighted to recommend her book.' Richard Dawkins Humans are extraordinary creatures, with the unique ability among animals to imitate and so copy from one another ideas, habits, skills, behaviours, inventions, songs, and stories. These are all memes, a term first coined by Richard Dawkins in 1976 in his book The Selfish Gene. Memes, like genes, are replicators, and this enthralling book is an investigation of whether this link between genes and memes can lead to important discoveries about the nature of the inner self. Confronting the deepest questions about our inner selves, with all our emotions, memories, beliefs, and decisions, Susan Blackmore makes a compelling case for the theory that the inner self is merely an illusion created by the memes for the sake of replication. 'Anyone who hopes-or fears- that memetics will become a science of culture will find this surefooted exploration of the prospects a major eye-opener.' Daniel Dennett |
Contents
1 Strange creatures | 1 |
2 Universal Darwinism | 10 |
3 The evolution of culture | 24 |
4 Taking the memes eye view | 37 |
5 Three problems with memes | 53 |
6 The big brain | 67 |
7 The origins of language | 82 |
8 Memegene coevolution | 93 |
12 A memetic theory of altruism | 147 |
13 The altruism trick | 162 |
14 Memes of the New Age | 175 |
15 Religions as memeplexes | 187 |
16 Into the Internet | 204 |
17 The ultimate memeplex | 219 |
18 Out of the meme race | 235 |
| 247 | |
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Common terms and phrases
altruism trick analogy animals answer argue Baldwin effect believe benefit better big brain coevolution complex consciousness copied created creatures cultural evolution Darwin Darwinian Dawkins Dennett effect environment evolutionary psychology evolved example experience explain fecundity fidelity high fidelity hominids horizontal transmission human brain idea imagine increase inside instructions invention kind language learning live longevity look mate Matt Ridley meme pool meme's memeplexes memes and genes memetic driving memetic engineering memetic evolution memetic selection mind modern natural selection neurons obvious passed person phenotype predictions primeval soup produce psychologist question reciprocal altruism religions second replicator selection pressure selfish Selfish Gene selfplex sense simple sleep paralysis social society sociobiology someone sounds species spreading memes story successful memes suggest survival Susan Blackmore talk theory things understand women words