What does meme stand for?

Answer 1

According to Encyclopedia Britannica, "The term meme (from the Greek mimema, meaning “imitated”) was introduced in 1976 by British evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins in his work The Selfish Gene.

Dawkins conceived of memes as the cultural parallel to biological genes and considered them, in a manner similar to “selfish” genes, as being in control of their own reproduction and thus serving their own ends. Understood in those terms, memes carry information, are replicated, and are transmitted from one person to another, and they have the ability to evolve, mutating at random and undergoing natural selection, with or without impacts on human fitness (reproduction and survival).

Within a culture, memes can take a variety of forms, such as an idea, a skill, a behavior, a phrase, or a particular fashion. The replication and transmission of a meme occurs when one person copies a unit of cultural information comprising a meme from another person. Those memes that are most successful in being copied and transmitted become the most prevalent within a culture."

Answer 2

According to Google's dictionary it is "an element of a culture or system of behavior that may be considered to be passed from one individual to another by nongenetic means, especially imitation." According to my definition, it is anything weather picture, image, phrase, tradition, ect that is passed around throughout society. Interenet memes are usually in picture form with funny text going with them. But they don't have to be just pictures. "Leeroy Jenkins" is an example of a meme phrase.

Answer 3

Biological Definition (from Dawkins): A meme is the basic unit of cultural transmission, or imitation.

Psychological Definition (from Henry Plotkin): A meme is the unit of cultural heredity analogous to the gene. It's the internal representation of knowledge.

Cognitive Definition (from Daniel Dennet): A meme is an idea, the kind of complex idea that forms itself into a distinct, memorable unit. It is spread by vehicles that are physical manifestations of the meme.

Brodie finally settles on a working definition: A meme is a unit of information in a mind whose existence influences events such that more copies of itself get created in other minds. He also makes the point that memetics is a scientific model: "It's one way of looking at things. It's looking at ideas - memes - as distinct entities in competition for a share of your mind and a share of everyone else's. When those ideas are harmful… understanding this model can show you how to combat the infection."

Answer 4

According to Merriam-Webster, (m-w.com), the definition of memes is "an idea, behavior, style, or usage that spreads from person to person within a culture."

Answer 5

It's something on the internet that is like a fad. For instance the rick roll thing.