Memes are conceived of as the cultural equivalents to genes. As cultural
change can be modelled using theories and concepts from population genetics, a
“meme’s eye view” of cultural change is arguably valid. However, such views are frequently dismissed. Whatever the merits or demerits of memetics are as a science, no
prominent objections to the meme concept appear well-grounded by either evidence
or logic. This paper suggests that such criticisms arise from a few key misunderstandings and fallacies concerning memes and questionable assumptions about evolution,
culture and psychology on which these misunderstandings are based. These misunderstandings are described in this paper using examples of criticisms which have been
made about the meme concept. These are then scrutinized using basic principles of
evolutionary biology, economics, and psychology. It is hoped that future attempts to
apply the meme concept are encouraged by addressing these issues here.

• Myths about memes