Book Reviews
Robert Aunger (2002). TheElectric Meme: A NewTheory of How WeThink . New York &London:Free Press, 392pages. ISBN: 07-432-0150-7.
Culturalevolution has received special attentionin mainstream social science and philosophy.How can we explain the disseminationof cultural forms? Why is it that some beliefshave becomeextremely “contagious”– touse DanSperber’ s term –while others have perishedimmediately after birth? Several theories of culturalevolution have beenexpounded to answer this question.Since its original presentationby Richard Dawkins in TheSel sh Gene ,memetics has beenamongst the most favoredmodels developed to account forthis kindof cultural puzzle. Couldmemetics becomea rigorousscience ofculture? Answering this questionin a positiveway is the leadingaim behind Aunger’ s projectin The ElectricMeme .Althoughhis bookis rst andforemost a systematic attemptto dealwith foundationalissues in memetic theory,it also suggests some theoretical insights concerning awiderange of problems. In this review, I’ll focuson two fundamentaltheses discussed in the book:the rst concerns the problemof the unityof replication and the second is relatedto the problemof communication. The rst issue is aboutthe foundationalstructure ofmemetic theory.Memet- ics is areplicationtheory. Cultural replication is possiblethanks tothe fact that there arespeci c culturalreplicators: memes. These arecertainly notthe only availablereplicators. There arealso genes and– as Aunger admirablydescribes in his book– prions.The fact that there arespeci cally cultural replicatorsis ex- tremely importantbecause itaccounts forthe possibilityof epigeneticalevolution. Unlike sociobiologyand evolutionary psychology, which aregene-based accounts, memetics postulatesthe existence ofspecically culturalreplicators. The existence ofmemes impingesa new rhythm toevolution: “ If genes arein control, then the duplicationof cultural information takes place passively, atthe behest ofgene- producedbrains. If the memetic perspective is correct, then atleast some bits ofcultural information have the abilityto in uence the probabilityof their own duplication.If memes arecauses, then they can biasthe course andtempo of evolution”(Aunger: 62). This is an interesting project.However the journeyproposed by memetic theory is fullof unexpected obstacles. The rst problemis denitional. What c KoninklijkeBrill NV, Leiden, 2003 Journal of Cognition and Culture 3.4 ° 360 BOOKREVIEWS memes really are?Within memetic theory there is something like atheoretical disarrayconcerning this issue.An outstandingcontribution of TheElectric Meme is precisely its attemptto clarify this point.Are memes physical entities? Aunger pointsout that memes are multiply realized :they can beinstantiated in different physical supports.Even ifalways physically localized,they areentities ofadifferent level oforganization than the material.Memes have an energetic format:they are electric, rather than material.He conceptualizes memes in dispositionalterms as the propensitythat some neurons have forinducing a replicationof its state in othernodes. This avoidsany identication of the meme with aneuronor set of neurons.This certainly sheds new lightto the notionof meme, providinga new conceptualisationof it. However, itis still unclear tome how this highly abstract notionwill beable to explain precise empiricalproblems. The denition of meme is relatedto a second foundationalproblem that memetic theory shoulddeal with –the notionof replication itself. As different critics have pointedout, cultural forms exhibit low delityin transmission. Howis replicationpossible in this case? Aungerhas clearly statedthe general conditions forreplication. First, causation– the copying-process shouldbe causally connected with asource.Second, similarity –the resulting copyshould be like the source atleast in some relevant aspects. Third,information transfer –the copyshould begenerated using the same source.Fourth, duplication – the end-result ofthe copyingprocess shouldgive rise totwo entities. Aungeris extremely clear onthis issue.If these conditionsare met, true culturallineages couldbe obtained. These culturallineages arewhat allowfor the cumulativeeffects ofselection. However the notionof reproductive potential usedby memetic theory is still controversial.Some ideas have ahigher chance ofsurvival because they aremore “ catchy”than others.This is certainly true. What is still unclear is what is exactly the notionof tness that is beingused bymemeticists. Withoutan independent criterionto evaluate the tness valueof differentmemes, we areunable to really understandwhy some memes rather than others have superiorsurvival rates. This problemis probablyendemic to memetic theory. The second thesis that Iwouldlike todiscuss concerns the problemof communication.According toAunger, the memetic approachis ableto improve ourunderstanding of communication, by providing a new theoretical setting that emphasizes the roleof the message andthe channel. Communication involves the replicationof information; memes arethe replicationunits ofthis process. As brain-centered creatures, memes jumpfrom brain to brain thanks tocommunication. Memetic communicationtheory –says Aunger– is a local theory ofcommunication:it accounts forimportant aspects ofthe communicative