Chapter 11 from "The Selfish Gene" Susan Blackmore - Memes, Minds and SelvesSusan Blackmore - The evolution of meme machinesCultural Evolution
| This is the chapter of the book by Richard Dawkins published in 1976 that started off the science of memetics. |
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| An introduction to the controversial concept of memes as the replicators of the mind. |
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| The concept of the meme emerged from evolutionary biology and the theory of replicators, and within this context it is well understood. But out on the web, and in popular discourse, the word 'meme' is horribly abused. |
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| Summary of |
| A brief summary of the main themes that underpin popular explanations of the emergence of modern human culture. |
Evolutionary ethics and morality
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| Evolutionary Ethics |
| Some say that natural selection has instilled human beings with a moral sense. If this were true, morality could be understood as something that arises naturally through the evolution of sociable, intelligent beings. Morality would be interpreted as a useful adaptation that increases the fitness of its holders by providing a selective advantage. |
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| The Evolution of Ethics |
| An online book about evolutionary ethics that attempts to construct a conceptual bridge between biology and human behavior by examining the cultural and biological feedback system that inspires the evolution of social rules. |
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| Soshichi Uchii - Darwin on the Evolution of Morality |
| An analysis of Charles Darwin's own biological considerations on morality. |
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| Evolution and Ethics - An Idea Whose Time Has Come? Part1 Part2 |
| Dr Peter Corning presents an insightful and knowledgeable summary of important ideas concerning evolutionary ethics from the time of ancient Greece to the present. |
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| The Evolution of Strong Reciprocity |
| How do human groups maintain a high level of cooperation despite a low level of genetic relatedness among group members? This paper offers a mathematical model of cooperation and punishment. |
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| Alex Rosenberg - Darwinism in moral philosophy and social theory |
| Surveys contemporary strategies for proving a naturalistic understanding and vindication of morality, ethical norms, our conception of justice, and the cooperative human institutions which these norms and conceptions underlie. |
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| Analysis of Ancient Moral Beliefs |
| Outlines the historical patterns behind the formation of systems of cooperative morality such as those used by traditional philosophy and religion from a purely naturalist evolutionary perspective. |
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| Plato.Stanford - Biological Altruism |
| In evolutionary biology, an organism is said to behave altruistically when its behaviour benefits other organisms, at a cost to itself. For the biologist, it is the consequences of an action for reproductive fitness that determine whether the action counts as altruistic, not the intentions, if any, with which the action is performed. |
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| Plato.Stanford - Game theory and Ethics |
| Game theory can be used to explain, to predict, and to evaluate human behavior in contexts where the outcome of action depends on what several agents choose to do and where their choices depend on what others choose to do. |
Evolutionary theories of sex
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| Wikipedia - Evolution of Sex |
| Wikipedia's introduction to the evolutionary advantages and disadvantages of sexual reproduction. |
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| Sex and gender scientists explore a revolution in evolution |
| A well-written news article about how leading researchers and theorists in the evolution of sexual behavior are calling for sweeping revisions to traditional Darwinian ideas of sexual selection. |
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The Evolution of Sexual Reproduction
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| A short introduction to evolutionary theories of sexual reproduction. |
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| Study sheds light on why sex evolved |
| If sexual reproduction is so biologically expensive then why did it evolve in the first place? This experiment used mutant fruit flies to test the answer. |
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| Carla Fehr - The evolution of sex |
| The evolution of sexual reproduction was probably driven by a combination of factors, meaning that we need more than one explanation in order to adequately account for it. |
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| Evolutionary Versus Social Structural Explanations for Sex Differences in Mate Preferences |
| Evolutionary psychology maintains that sex differences develop biologically as people adapt to changes in their environment. Social structural theory maintains that sex differences result from the social roles occupied by men and women. Jennifer Denisiuk at the Rochester Institute of Technology discusses how both theories apply to mate preferences, jealousy, and aggression. |
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| Why Sex Is Good |
| 'The Proper Study Of Mankind' reports about a new study published in Nature which helps to explain why sex is so ubiquitous. |
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| Sexual Morality |
| Looks at sexual morality from an evolutionary point of view and condemns the traditional religions for their positions on women's rights and birth control. |
Evolutionary theories of aging
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Evolutionary theories of aging
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| A short introduction to evolutionary theories of aging. |
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| Wikipedia - Senescence |
| A general introduction to theories of senescence or aging. |
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| Evolutionary Theories of Aging and Longevity |
| The Center on Aging at the University of Chicago introduces three major theories and presents recent experimental findings about how the process of aging might have evolved. |
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| Senescence.info - Joao Pedro de Magalhaes |
| Senescence.info aims to highlight the importance of research on aging and give an overview of current research on the biology of human aging. The ambitious goal of such research is to discover ways to prevent age-related degeneration, preserve health, and prolong life. |
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| Theodore Goldsmith - The Evolution of Aging |
| Is aging an inevitable fact of life? Or is it a treatable genetic disease? Recent discoveries and new theories indicate that we can medically alter the aging process to dramatically increase the human lifespan. This paper explains evolutionary theories of aging from Darwin to the present, and describes the discoveries and the politics of anti-aging research. |
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| Death by Design |
| Some researchers believe that aging is a mistake of nature, others believe that the process evolved for a reason. Joshua Mitteldorf argues that the process of aging is the result of evolutionary forces. |
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| Defending the evolutionary theory of aging |
| A discussion between experts in the field, commenting about how well the evolutionary biological theory of aging is holding up against mounting attacks. |
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| The Aging Reseach Center |
| Dedicated to helping researchers find the latest scientific information relating to the study of the aging process. |
Human diversity and equality
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| The Biology of Race and the Concept of Equality |
| Ernst Mayr speculates about the potentially controversial relationship between human genetic diversity and political notions of human equality. |
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| Frequently asked questions about racial difference |
| Do biological races exist within the human species? John Goodrum's paper investigates what constitutes a race (or subspecies) and answers some of the questions regarding the biological distinctions between human races. |
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| Jared Diamond - The historical differences between populations |
| Why did human history unfold so differently on different continents over the last 13,000 years? The acclaimed author of Guns, Germs, and Steel explains why. |
Evolutionary metaphysics
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| Talk.Origins - God and Evolution |
| A collection of frequently asked questions and answers about the compatibility of belief in evolution and God. |
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| Talk.Origins - Evolution and metaphysics |
| Discusses the metaphysical implications and complications of evolutionary science. |
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| Edward T. Babinski - Creation vs Evolution |
| An open-minded freethinker who writes about creation science, creation vs evolution, intelligent design, and on the value of genuine scientific inquiry. |
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| Alec's Evolution Pages - Creation vs Evolution |
| This site contains essays and articles which present some of the scientific evidence for evolution. It also contains refutations and critiques of creationist arguments and creationism. |
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| Scientific American - 15 Answers to Creationist Nonsense |
| Opponents of evolution want to make a place for creationism by tearing down real science, but their arguments don't hold up. |
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| An Open Letter Concerning Religion and Science |
| A proclamation signed by thousands of members of the clergy embracing the theory of evolution as being entirely compatible with Christianity. |
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| Plato.Stanford - Teleological notions in biology |
| Teleological notions were commonly associated with the pre-Darwinian view that the biological realm provides evidence of conscious design by a supernatural creator. Even after creationist viewpoints were rejected by most biologists there remained various grounds for concern about the role of teleology in biology. |
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| Biology, Evolution and the Global Brain |
| Howard Bloom outlines the concept of a developing superorganic global brain and the reasons why such a concept is widely rejected by the evolutionary community. |
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| Academy of Evolutionary Metaphysics |
| Contemplates the existence of the universe and questions whether consciousness has any kind of cosmic purpose. |
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| Evolutionary Metaphysics |
| Discusses extending the theory of evolution to include the struggle for political power and the development of advanced technology. |
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| Evolving Technology |
| Traces the development of artificial intelligence and genetic engineering and contemplates the philosophical implications of consciously controlled evolution. |
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| Modern Materialism |
| Analyzes the modern political power struggle and the emergence of secular beliefs like existentialism and humanism. |
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| Deepening Consciousness |
| Looking at the evolution of consciousness as a natural phenomenon, like a force, that accumulates and analyzes information. |
Objections to evolution
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| Social impacts of the theory of evolution - Social Darwinism |
| Early evolutionary thinkers argued that evolutionary change should be deliberately nurtured by the more intense prosecution of the evolutionary struggle for existence which would encourage the 'best' out of individuals and societies. |
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| The Immoral Evolutionist |
| Creationists not only think that evolution is incorrect, they think that it is evil. Jim Loy has compiled a list of excerpts from several creationist sources, on the subject of the immorality of evolution. |
Science and philosophy forums
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| Philosophy forums |
| Discuss philosophy, religion, metaphysics, ethics, physical science, social science, mathematics, politics, or the arts. |
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| I Love Philosophy |
| Online debate website for people with an interest in philosophy, religion, and other related topics. |
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| Philosophy Chat Forum |
| IRC chat channel and website forum for those with an interest in philosophy who want to express their ideas and share their thoughts |
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| Science Chat Forum |
| IRC chat channel and website forum for professional scientists, students, and amateurs with an interest in science, evolution, or related topics. |
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| JREF Forum |
| James Randi Educational Foundation's online forums debating a wide range of topics. |
Scientific publications
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| New Scientist |
| Online science magazine with updates throughout the day on the latest in science and technology. Includes special reports on hot topics. Search through thousands of articles. |
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| Scientific American |
| The oldest continuously published magazine in the United States, bringing its readers unique insights about developments in science and technology for more than 150 years. |
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| Science Daily |
| One of the Internet's leading online magazines devoted to science, technology, and medicine. News about the latest discoveries and hottest research projects in everything from astrophysics to zoology. |
Scientific organizations
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| The Leaky Foundation |
| Devoted to supporting scientific discovery by raising funds for researchers in the field. Dr. Leakey's foundation funded the work of legends like Jane Goodall, Don Johanson, and Dian Fossey. |
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| The Jane Goodall Institute |
| A global nonprofit organization that empowers people to make a difference for all living things by creating healthy ecosystems, promoting sustainable livelihoods and nurturing new generations of committed, active citizens around the world. |
Evolution humor
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| The Descent of Man - Creationism vs Evolutionism |
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| Spiderman vs Darwinism |
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Other evolution link pages
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| Evolution Research News |
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| Evolutionary Biology Resources |
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| Harvard University - Evolution Links |
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| Social and Cultural Evolution |
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| Anthropology Links |
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| Biological Anthropology Web |
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| Metaphysics Links |
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| Paleontology Links |
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| DMOZ - Evolution |
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