8
The Nose of a Rat and the Human Mind--
A Brief History of the Rise of Memes
"How many gods can there be in one sky?"
--from a song by the rock group Squeeze
Memes probably arose by accident. At least that's the
implication of one clue to their origin--a clue from the world of the rat.
Rats are obsessed with genes. They absolutely love their
relatives. In their nests, fathers, mothers, aunts, uncles and children
crawl over, under and around each other, seeking constant body
contact. And they watch out for one other. For example, if a rat
discovers that a tempting hors d'oeuvre is actually laced with poison,
he defecates and urinates on the insidious morsel to make sure none of
his loved ones is duped into tasting the fatal snack.
But the kindness of rats only extends to family. Rats will
mercilessly hunt down members of a rival clan. And if a non-relative
accidentally stumbles into their nest, the homey little creatures who a
moment before were hugging one another will turn on the guest with
the foreign genes and tear him limb from limb.12
How do rats know who's kin and who's not? How can they tell
who shares their genes? Rodents don't have a compound microscope
with which to examine the replicators at the center of a visitor's cells, so
they're stuck with making genetic guesstimates. And those
guesstimates are based on smell.
Each rat household has its own tell-tale odor. The smells of scent
glands, excreta, food, the soft, warm stuff that lines the nest, and the
wood, straw or earth of the chamber's walls blend into an
unmistakable olfactory brew. And every inhabitant wears that living-
<< < GO > >>