Aaron McDaid

We're generally accustomed to the idea of evolution by natural selection of DNA and genes. We are simply machines to help our sperm and eggs to copy their data into the next generation. Or are we? Why do many people die, childless, for a political or religious idea? Our brains use our mouths to try to copy ideas from one brain to another, the obvious examples being political or religious ideas. There is a symmetry between our brains and our sex organs - each tries to take advantage of the other to advance their own copying. Nature obviously chooses the genes that are best at replicating themselves. But the same is true of memes; why else do we want to 'win the argument'? It probably explains why I'm writing this piece! Winners of arguments are helping the meme to replicate, and may be actually harming their genes' prospects. You will often pass both memes and genes to your children, but the memes are much more mobile. A news story can 'infect' billions of brains within hours. The internet helps to copy memes, not genes, so the importance of memes over genes can only increase. Maybe genes are already irrelevant. Before the mass communication in the modern era, humans would often pick up memes directly from their parents. Genes and memes were inseperable then, but not any more. It may be best to consider our brains and our gonads as two seperate species that are currently in symbiosis with each other. In future, we'll likely see more genetic engineering because parents are more interested in bringing up healthy children than in having 'their' children. Such parents are sacrificing their genes in order to pass on memes. The humans that prioritize good ideas/information/data/memes over genes will be more productive and powerful. The humans that first colonize other planets won't be those with the genes to want to expand, they'll be the humans will the best memes (technology and frontier spirit). Bye bye Evolution of genes by Natural Selection; we only just got to know you and now you're irrelevant to us humans.