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+ KurzVortrag gehalten am [[2012-11-01]] am Bad Homburger ForschungsKolleg HumanWissenschaften (ForschungsBereich "Digitales Selbst") der Goethe-Universtität zu Frankfurt.
+
+ [*Titel:*] "internet memes"
+
+ Folien-Gerüst im pinpoint-Format (Quelltext ohne Bilddateien): [[???]]
+
+ Christian Heller / 2012-11-01 / Forschungskolleg Humanwissenschaften / Bad Homburg
+
+ !!!!] Internet memes
+
+ !!!] Ancestry: "memetics"
+
+ *] "meme":
+ *] unit of cultural information
+ *] derived from a mix of "gene", French "même" und Greek "mimema"
+ *] survives, spreads, mutates according to evolutionary principles, like genes
+ *] "universal Darwinism":
+ *] principles of variation, selection, retention can be applied to non-biological spheres, too
+ *] "replicators" such as genes and memes transform their environment into machines for protection and copying of themselves
+ *] replicator-centric view of evolution: selfishness of genes and memes, structures of "individuals" and "groups" their mere instruments
+ *] expounded by, among others:
+ *] Richard Dawkins ([/The Selfish Gene/], Oxford University Press 1973)
+ *] Daniel Dennett ([/Darwin's Dangerous Idea/], Simon & Schuster 1995)
+ *] Susan Blackmore ([/The Meme Machine/], Oxford University Press 1999)
+ *] problems:
+ *] no discrete, countable, tangible unit – seemingly delineates anything from words to stories to styles of architectures to ideas and religions
+ *] internalism vs. externalism: where do memes reside – in our minds, in our artifacts?
+ *] "memetics" lost traction after short period of popularity
+
+ !!!] Internet memes
+
+ *] term quickly gained autonomy from more general "memetics" to describe very specific phenomena of internet culture
+ *] digital texts that spread into popularity "virally" on the internet, from user to user, via affective mechanisms, e.g.:
+ *] funny, cute, offensive pictures ("dancing baby", "LOLcats", "Goatse")
+ *] humorous or emotional phrases ("LOL", "But does it run Linux?", smileys)
+ *] somewhat related: e-mail hoaxes / chain mails, computer viruses
+ *] meme unit problem solved: internet memes are identical configurations of discrete symbols (characters), shapes (images), states (binary data) that can easily be counted, isolated, compared and discretely manipulated
+ *] internet memes are distributed not top-down, but horizontally or bottom-up; a large percentage of their consumers must also be directly involved in shaping/creating and distributing them
+
+ !!!] Types of internet memes
+
+ *] phrases, "snowclones" (template phrases), "copypasta", e.g.:
+ *] “LOL", "ROFL", "ROFLMAOPMP"
+ *] Yakov Smirnoff variations: "In Soviet Russia, [object] [verb] [subject]"
+ *] "I think [person] is a pretty cool guy, eh [activity] and doesn't afraid of anything" (notice kept spelling errors)
+ *] shock or trick websites, e.g.:
+ *] Rick roll
+ *] Goatse
+ *] "image macros" (text superimposed on found pictures):
+ *] LOLcats
+ *] advice animals
+ *] found footage remixes
+ *] "This is Sparta!"
+ *] YTMNDs
+ *] (list not exhaustive)
+
+ !!!] Online communities, their memes and meme mechanisms
+
+ *] Slashdot:
+ *] "Imagine a beowulf cluster of these!"
+ *] "I for one welcome our [topic] overlords!"
+ *] Twitter:
+ 3*] hashtag memes
+ *] YouTube and its remix culture:
+ *] "Downfall" subtitles
+ *] speeding up, slowing down, inverting video clips
+ *] reaction clips
+ *] YTMND.com:
+ *] "classic" YTMNDs: "You're the man now, dog", "Get your ass to Mars", "Picard Song"
+ *] isolation of motions, sounds, formulas: e.g. "Ridin' Spinnaz" and its descendants
+ *] 4chan and other imageboards:
+ *] low entry barriers, enforced anonymity
+ *] volatility of content: low control, high selection pressure
+ *] reddit, Facebook, 9gag:
+ *] creativity or mere re-distribution and (re-)branding of memes?
+
+ !!!] Internet meme ressources (non-academic):
+ *] KnowYourMeme Internet Meme Database: [[http://knowyourmeme.com/]]
+ *] Encyclopedia Dramatica: [[https://encyclopediadramatica.se/]]
+ *] Oh Internet!: [[http://ohinternet.com/]]
+ *] Urban Dictionary: [[http://www.urbandictionary.com/]]