A Memetic Social Machine

(2016)

People aren’t aware of mechanics that are driving them.

Humans are creatures of habit, and from birth, we are programmed for survival. As we grow older, we develop a framework for thinking that is often biased and limited, shaped by societal programming and norms. We learn to compare ourselves to others and measure our success in terms of social status, titles, degrees, and wealth. However, this narrow focus can lead to an overloaded and overwhelming society, where everyone is playing a game invented by the old society.

The game is memetic, and each generation creates a new variation of the same game, without questioning the underlying structure. As a result, we are stuck in a cycle of playing the same game over and over again, without ever realizing that it is limiting us.

We often pass on the same flawed system of societal norms and programming to our children, without questioning whether it is truly the best way for them to succeed. We hope that they will follow in our footsteps and achieve the same markers of success that we did, but in doing so, we limit their thinking and perpetuate the same cycle of playing a memetic game without considering whether it truly serves our individual and collective nature.