Re: virus: Rationality

David McFadzean (david@lucifer.com)
Thu, 27 Feb 1997 10:01:23 -0700


At 10:18 AM 27/02/97 -0500, Alex Williams wrote:

>Language is just a very complex series of signs that memes use to
>signal from one cluster of memes to others in another head across a
>vast uncrossable sea of nullity. Those signals are /not/ memes in the
>same way that the flashes of Morse sent across the ocean to another
>ship moored at port are not the message intended. It can be
>reconstructed from, with some degree of accuracy, but the message is
>not transmitted, signals are and then interpreted, with varying
>degrees of success.

If this e-mail message (an electronic file) is transmitted across
the internet, then memes are transmitted. Both are converted to
signals and converted at the receiving end into something resembling
the original. Of course you could say (with some accuracy) that no two
people share a meme, they are all slightly different, but I don't think
that is constructive at all.

--
David McFadzean                 david@lucifer.com
Memetic Engineer                http://www.lucifer.com/~david/
Church of Virus                 http://www.lucifer.com/virus/