A prominent researcher on consciousness, memes, and the paranormal, known for her work on the concept of memes and her skepticism towards paranormal claims.
Susan Blackmore is a British writer, lecturer, and sceptic known for her groundbreaking work on memetics, consciousness, and the paranormal. Her book, The Meme Machine, is a seminal work that has had a profound impact on our understanding of the evolution of ideas and cultural transmission.
Susan Jane Blackmore was born on July 29, 1951, in England. She pursued her academic interests at St Hilda's College, Oxford, earning a BA Hons degree in psychology and physiology in 1973. She went on to receive an MSc in environmental psychology from the University of Surrey in 1974. Her academic journey culminated in a PhD in parapsychology from the same university in 1980, with a doctoral thesis titled Extrasensory Perception as a Cognitive Process.
Blackmore's early research focused on parapsychology and the paranormal, an area she was deeply fascinated by. In the 1980s, she conducted psychokinesis experiments with her baby daughter, Emily, to test the limits of her ESP abilities. These experiments were featured in the book accompanying the TV series Arthur C. Clarke's World of Strange Powers. She taught at the University of the West of England in Bristol until 2001, during which time her views on parapsychology began to shift from believer to sceptic.
The Meme Machine, published in 1999, is Blackmore's magnum opus. The book explores the concept of memes, units of cultural transmission that are capable of replicating and evolving, just like genes. This idea has had far-reaching implications in fields as diverse as marketing, sociology, and evolutionary biology. The book has been widely acclaimed for its innovative approach to understanding the spread of ideas and cultural evolution.
Blackmore's philosophical contributions lie in her sceptical approach to the paranormal and her commitment to the scientific method. She is a vocal critic of pseudoscience and has written extensively on the dangers of uncritical thinking. Her work has inspired a new generation of sceptics and scientists to approach claims of the paranormal with a healthy dose of scepticism.
In 1987, Blackmore had an out-of-body experience that was to have a lasting impact on her life and work. This experience, which she has written about extensively, marked a turning point in her views on the paranormal, leading her to adopt a more sceptical perspective.
Susan Blackmore's work has had a significant impact on modern society, inspiring a new generation of sceptics and scientists to approach claims of the paranormal with a critical eye. Her ideas on memes and cultural transmission have been influential in fields as diverse as marketing, sociology, and evolutionary biology.
Today, Blackmore continues to write and lecture on a wide range of topics, from the paranormal to the nature of consciousness. Her work remains a testament to the power of scepticism and the importance of critical thinking in a world filled with uncertainty.
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