What is a meme? A scientific term? Or 'a pretentious way of stating the obvious'?
This cartoon refers to 'Rickrolling' meme (see below) The word meme was first introduced by Richard Dawkins in The Selfish Gene . Dawkins was looking for "a monosyllable that sounds a bit like 'gene'" to apply a biological concept to 'cultural evolution'. He wrote that evolution depended not on the particular chemical basis of genetics , but only on the existence of a self-replicating unit of transmission – in the case of biological evolution, the gene . For Dawkins, the meme exemplified another self-replicating unit with potential significance in explaining human behavior and cultural evolution. [1] The form a meme can take is very fluid. Here BBC Radio 4's Start the Week discuss a 'cultural meme' listen to ‘English FAQ: What is a meme?’ on Audioboo The term internet meme is a further simplification of what some have argued is a pseudo-scientific term. It is defined on one tech blog as: a catchphrase or concept