Richard Dawkins likened memes to genes, but aย new study by Facebook showsย just how accurate that analogy is.
Memes adapt to their surroundings in order to survive, just like organisms. Post a liberal meme saying no one should die for lack of healthcare, and conservatives will mutate it to say no one should die because Obamacare rations their healthcare. And nerds will make it about Star Wars.
Facebookโs data scientistsย used anonymized dataย to determine that โJust as certain genetic mutations can be advantageous in specific environments, meme mutations can be propagated differentially if the variant matches the subpopulationโs beliefs or culture.โ
When a meme has a clear template with substitutable variables, people recognize how to put their own spin on it. Theyโre then more likely to share their own modified creations, which drives awareness of the original.
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For social networks like Facebook, understanding how memes evolve could make sure we continue to see fresh content. Rather than showing us the exact copies of a meme over and over again in the News Feed, Facebookโs algorithms could purposefully search for and promote mutated variations.
Read the full, original article:ย Facebook Data Scientists Prove Memes Mutate And Adapt Like DNA
Additional Resources:
- Can you trust Facebook with your genetic code? Venture Beat
- Would you post your DNA on Facebook? Wall Street Journal
