> Date: Tue, 17 Feb 1998 19:47:05 -0600 (CST)
> Message-Id: <[log in to unmask]>
> Reply-To: [log in to unmask]
> Originator: [log in to unmask]
> Sender: [log in to unmask]
> Precedence: bulk
> From: Art De Vany <[log in to unmask]>
> To: Multiple recipients of list <[log in to unmask]>
> Subject: Re: Body builders vs ballet boys

> Two strategies for propagating one's genes are: attract women or =
> scare off rivals for women.  Both are used throughout the animal =
> kingdom (where did that phrase ever come from?).

> Do women have more choices now?  Has intimidation taken a =
> different form?  I don't know how the balance has shifted, or if =
> it has. =20

> New in the equation is a breaking of the connection between =
> physical prowess and resources.  How can so many ugly and =
> ill-behaved rock stars attract women?  They are rich and the =
> center of attention.  Two clues to which modern women probably =
> remain as attuned to as their ancestors.  Men too, are tuned in, =
> not so much as attraction as gaining a powerful rival against =
> other males and as intimidation.

> What I have failed to understand about human nature is the role of =
> celebrity.  Can anyone speculate as to the role of celebrity in a =
> band of hunter gatherers?  Maybe Michael Kern can comment on =
> celebrity among Native Americans.
>
> -rest snipped-

Susan Blackmore writes in pp. 130? in her book, "The Meme Machine":

"Let us consider some examples.  In an early hunter-gatherer society, a man
who was especially good at imitation would have been able to copy the latest
hunting skills or stone tool technology and hence would have gained a
biological advantage.  A woman who mated with him would more likely have
children who shared that imitation ability and that advantage.  So how would
she choose the right man?  I suggest she would have to look for signs of being
a good imitator in general.  This is the critical point--in a world with
memes, signs of being a good imitator changes as fast as the memes change.
Genes for choosing men who could make use of the old stone technology might
once have had an advantage but as more memes arose and spread they would not.
Instead, genes for choosing the best ability to imitate or even innovate would
fare better.  In a hunter gatherer society such signs might include making the
best tools, singing the best songs, wearing the most stylish clothes or body
paint, or appearing to have magical healing powers.  The direct mimetic
[<-word unreadable in my hand transcription] evolution took would influence
the genes."

One of the recent issues of Scientific American has a debate on memes.
(Another has a cover story on "Muscles and Genes," with a discussion on the
development of the various kinds of muscle fibers.)

Ming