RE: virus: Checksums for Faithfulness of Memes

Wright, James 7929 (Jwright@phelpsd.com)
Wed, 23 Apr 97 08:46:00 EDT


Lee wrote:
>> Could we use something similar to ensure that memes transmit more
>> faithfully and mutate slower?<<

>1. "in other words..."
>2. "which is not to say that..."
>3. "as you can see from..."
>4. "as Jefferson once said..."
>5. "contrary to what you might think..."

>All these phrases introduce meme error-correction mechanisms, used to
>fend off possible misinterpretation of the ideas expressed with them.
>(1) tells the listener to find a meaning that matches both phrasings.
>(2) tells him to rethink his interpretation of one phrase if it matches
>another. (3) tells him to match the meaning of a phrase to a drawing
>or example. (4) tells him that the meaning is probably typical of
>what a certain known person might say, or can be clarified by the
>context in which he said it. (5) tells him that the meaning might be
>counter-intuitive, so find a meaning for which that is the case.

>I'm sure there are hundreds of others, and we use them naturally.<

Thanks! Good post. Since memes are typically short, this technique may be
tough to use, but we can try and it is there.
james