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	<title>thinktoomuch.net &#187; Celibacy</title>
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	<description>Pondering the South African Memesphere - Looking for the Good in Everything</description>
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		<title>Dan Dennet on Memes</title>
		<link>http://www.thinktoomuch.net/2008/02/29/dan-dennet-on-memes/</link>
		<comments>http://www.thinktoomuch.net/2008/02/29/dan-dennet-on-memes/#comments</comments>
		<pubDate>Fri, 29 Feb 2008 12:58:41 +0000</pubDate>
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				<category><![CDATA[Religion and Science]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Celibacy]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Dan Dennett]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Islam]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[Memes]]></category>
		<category><![CDATA[TED Talk]]></category>

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		<description><![CDATA[The first talk of Dan Dennett that I watched, disappointed me. (It was his talk on &#8220;Believing in Belief&#8221;.) My disappointment came at the end of the talk, when he employed rhetorical devices reminiscent of what I see at creationist talks. Anyway, he&#8217;s still a potent thinker, worth listening to. Check his TED talk on [...]]]></description>
			<content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>The first talk of Dan Dennett that I watched, disappointed me. (It was his talk on &#8220;Believing in Belief&#8221;.) My disappointment came at the end of the talk, when he employed rhetorical devices reminiscent of what I see at creationist talks. Anyway, he&#8217;s still a potent thinker, worth listening to.</p>
<p>Check <a href="http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/116">his TED talk on memes</a>. Here is the blurb on the page:</p>
<blockquote><p>Here&#8217;s one of those talks that can change your view of the world forever. Starting with the deceptively simple story of an ant, Dan Dennett unleashes a dazzling sequence of ideas, making a powerful case for the existence of &#8220;memes&#8221; &#8212; a term coined by Richard Dawkins for mental concepts that are literally alive and capable of spreading from brain to brain. On the way, look out for:<br />
+ a powerful one-sentence secret of happiness<br />
+ a compelling insight into terrorists&#8217; motivation<br />
+ a chilling view of Islam<br />
And just when you think you know where the talk&#8217;s heading, it dramatically shifts direction and questions some of western culture&#8217;s fundamental assumptions.<br />
This. Is. Unmissable.</p></blockquote>
<p>Rather high praise for the talk, probably accurate. I didn&#8217;t experience it as being that ground-breaking, but I&#8217;ve been thinking about these things for a long time and have thought about pretty much all the things he touches on in the talk. Have a look, and let me know if you care to discuss any particular aspect of this talk. Let&#8217;s stick to the subject matter <em>in</em> this talk though, if you know what I mean. Certain digressions we so love making aren&#8217;t particularly useful.</p>
<p><strong>UPDATE</strong>: For your convenience, the embedded video:</p>
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