>Has either the Virus or Zero lists been able to answer the question :-
>"Why do different people subscribe to different memes?"
>
>Reason, logic, critical thinking : doesn't a person first have to
>accept that logic is superior to faith etc. before one can use
>logic to dispute faith?
Your second question makes the unspoken assumption that the decision to
adopt a meme is based on an objective evalution. In the most scientific of
terms: There is simply NO evidence for this assumption. (But if someone
can site some for me...)
In fact, most scientific studies to date have shown that the subjective
opinions about the /experience/ of having a meme (that one gathers from
friends and acquainances) and the advantages that they /perceive/ as coming
with holding such a meme (regardless of whether those perceptions are
correct) are the most important factors in an adoption-decision. [1] A
strictly objective evaluation is seldom a deciding factor for the majority
of adopters.
I think talking about "logic" when discussioning a memetic adoption-decision
falls clearly the the catagory of things we think "should" be, rather than
being one of the things that scientific study has told us "is" the case in
reality.
-Prof. Tim
[1] Other factors influencing the adoption-decision include compatiblity
with currently held memes (perhaps an answer to your first question,
Hakeeb), trailablity (can the meme be "test driven" before a full
adoption-decision is made), and complexity (memes that are hard to
understand are adopted less readily).