Yes, I think this is a problem.
First, I agree with the dicotomy (in spite of my strong statements about
there being combined in one evolution process) as long as we're clearly
talking about the varioius mechanisms of evolution, rather than different
kinds of evolution as a singular result.
Second, I tend to agree that "meme" is not as clearly structural as "gene."
But that is because we are used to thinking in terms of physical structure
and "meme" is non-physical. We don't know how or where it exists as a meme.
The best I can do is think that there are two things going on with memes.
One is the purely non-physical component which, as I stated before,
transcends our physical universe and "classical" space-time reality. This
is perhaps better thought of as a "happening" than a "state." "State" is a
classical concept. A "happening" is a metaphysical concept that is presumed
in all classical events. Something "happens" yet we don't have a way of
encoding the "happening" part, only the result. Quantum phenomena are so
interesting in this regard because they allow us to examine the
"happening," or at least be aware of it as a very real component of
existence. Things don't simply pre-exist, as was once thought. In that
former view it was much simpler. All we had to do was figure out how all
the pre-existing things combine and build. But now we know they don't
pre-exist, except relatively with respect to a set of prior interactions
and "happenings."
So, I'd say the idea of a meme really combines two things. The "happening"
part of though or information, which is innovative and not derivable from
what we are used to calling physical events; and then the immediate
registration of that happening in the form of physically stored information
or data. An idea occurs to me, say. It first "happens" - a purely
non-physical event which is evidenced by a physical event of memory in my
brain. The constant interplay in the brain between stored results of prior
"happenings," or thoughts, and new thoughts may reinforce the pattern
produced by the thought or it may become discarded. Social interaction may
reinforce it's pattern in other brains. The pattern will, along with all
other non-physical "functional" concepts, affect behavior. Behavior will
affect both external associations (where, when, etc.) and may alter the
external environment. Both of these alterations subject one to
physical/biological selection. Thus succeeding generations are altered by
the results of a thought. Does this process stop after one generation, and
thus can be ignored? I don't think so. Just as we can "read" the
electro-chemical information related to our thoughts from our brains, we
can also "read" the patterns created in the environment by previous
generations, and even other species. This is what is being said when native
people claim to "listen" to nature. They really do listen (so do we, but
we're less aware of it). The character of the inner city affects everyone's
functional concept. The ideas stored in physical structures affect
evolution. Hence, I think the idea of a "meme" is useful to capture all of
this, even though it can easily be stated in other terms.
>______________________________________________________
>
>Luis Mateus Rocha (Postdoctoral Associate)
>Los Alamos National Laboratory
>Computer Research and Applications Group (CIC-3)
>Los Alamos, NM 87545, USA
>e-mail: rocha@lanl.gov or rocha@santafe.edu
>www: http://www.c3.lanl.gov/~rocha
>
>
-----------------------------------------------
John J. Kineman, Physical Scientist/Ecologist
National Geophysical Data Center
325 Broadway E/GC1 (3100 Marine St. Rm: A-152)
Boulder, Colorado 80303 USA
(303) 497-6900 (phone)
(303) 497-6513 (fax)
jjk@ngdc.noaa.gov (email)