BETA
Chapter 1
The biological origin of the meme
Chapter 2
The dawn of the internet meme
Chapter 3
Global memes and cultural translation
Chapter 4
The mechanics of virality
Chapter 5
Memes as a social force
YOUR GOAL
Master of The story of the meme
Ch 4 · The mechanics of virality
futura The mechanics of virality
Oh-oh-oh, a quick reaction, Makes a meme take flight! Algorithm's got the traction!
Fun Fact
Distracted Boyfriend: The famous 'Distracted Boyfriend' photo was taken in mid-2015 in Barcelona by photographer Antonio Guillem as a stock photo.
Glossary
virality (noun)
The rapid and widespread circulation of an image, video, or link on the internet. In 2019, a simple photo of a brown egg achieved global reach, amassing fifty million Instagram likes.
The rapid and widespread circulation of an image, video, or link on the internet. In 2019, a simple photo of a brown egg achieved global reach, amassing fifty million Instagram likes.
Quiz
Which defunct six-second video application launched in 2013 birthed many modern meme formats?
Quiz
Which social news website uses subreddits and upvotes to organize and spread viral memes?
Quiz
Which platform's 'For You' page algorithm popularized memes by measuring user watch time?
Quiz
What high-energy psychological state drives people to share memes more than low-energy emotions?
Quiz
Which 2012 Korean music video became the first YouTube upload to reach one billion views?
Quiz
What is the phenomenon where trying to censor information causes it to go viral instead?