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Susan Blackmore Quotes

Writer

Susan Blackmore is a British writer and cognitive scientist known for her in-depth research into consciousness, death, and parapsychology. Her work explores the nature of human consciousness and how we understand death and life.

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All Memes Genes Ifs Thinking Way Brain Consciousness Might People Wells Body Climate Change Evolution Global Warming Humans I Can Ideas Illusion Mind Planets

Famous Susan Blackmore Quotes

“If you found a mammal with feathers, then you'd know that Darwin was wrong. Well, it's rather the same with memes.”

Ifs Knows Wells Found Feathers Mammals Memes

Author:Susan Blackmore

“Consciousness is an illusion constructed by the memes.”

Consciousness Illusion Memes

Author:Susan Blackmore

“You start by copying other people's paintings or music or whatever. You get all of those skills before you branch out. Really creative people have a fantastic ability to copy things and then combine them in new ways. And whether we're talking about genes or memes, recombination is the real heart of creativity.”

People Way Heart Real Ability Talking Creativity Creative Painting Skills Fantastic Branches Copies Genes New Ways Creative People Copying Memes Real Heart

Author:Susan Blackmore

“Imagine a world full of brains, and far more memes than can possibly find homes. Which memes are more likely to find a safe home and get passed on again?”

World Home Brain Imagine Safe Memes

Book:The Meme Machine

Source: The Meme Machine

“Free will and consciousness is an illusion, and the self is a complex of memes.”

Self Consciousness Illusion Complexes Free Will Memes

Author:Susan Blackmore

“The sale of sex in modern societies is not about spreading genes. Sex has been taken over by the memes.”

Has Beens Sex Taken Modern Genes Modern Society Memes

Book:The Meme Machine

Source: The Meme Machine

“'Temes' [technology-enhanced memes] don't care about us - they simply want to create more of themselves. Don't think we created the internet for our own benefit - think about temes spreading for themselves because they must.”

Thinking Want Care Technology Internet Benefits Don't Care Memes

Author:Susan Blackmore

“One of the biggest mistakes that people make when they think about memes is they try to extend on the analogy with genes. That's not how it works. It works by realizing the concept of a replicator.”

People Thinking Trying Realizing Mistake Concepts Working It Genes Analogies Biggest Mistake Memes

Author:Susan Blackmore

“Certainly almost everything we do and think is colored in some way by memes, but it is important to realize that not everything we experience is a meme. If I walk down the street and see a tree, the basic perception that's going on is not memetic.”

Ifs Thinking Way Important Realizing Walks Tree Streets Perception Memes

Author:Susan Blackmore

“If everyone understood evolution, then the tyranny of religious memes would be weakened, and we little humans might find a better way to live in this pointless universe.”

Ifs Way Humans Littles Might Would Be Universe Religious Evolution Understood Tyranny Pointless Better Ways Way To Live Memes

Author:Susan Blackmore

“All other species on this planet are gene machines only. They don't imitate at all well; we alone are gene machines and meme machines as well.”

Wells Inspiration Motivation Planets Machines Species Genes Memes

Author:Susan Blackmore

About the Author

Born: July 29, 1951
Known for: Writer
Quotes: 23

Books & Sources

The Meme MachineRelated source material

Consciousness: An IntroductionRelated source material

Zen and the Art of ConsciousnessRelated source material

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