The Pseudoscience of Memes

I was just on Mitchell Stephens blog (as usual), this time discussing Richard Dawkins. Along the way, I brought up the pseudoscience of Dawkins' theory of memes. If you've been on the internet long, you've probably seen the word meme used quite frequently. Going into my own opinion on the theory and Dawkins' applications of it would take more time and energy than I have at the moment. In brief, I'll refer you to my previously posted opinions about f*cking for chastity. So, here are some links on why the idea of memes is so seriously lacking in scientific respectability.

A review of Thought Contagion by memeticist Aaron Lynch

Only a Game: The Trouble with Memes This has some interesting discussion as to whether memes are pseudoscience or protoscience and what those two terms mean in practice.

Memes as Pseudoscience from Michael Shermer's The Skeptic Encyclopedia of Pseudoscience