A simple question sparked a wave of nostalgia. Jamie Loftus tweeted a request for the internet stars of yesteryear — people, animals, events — that still stick in the memory. The response poured in. There are 4.7K quotes and over 45.3M views. The post became its own meme, a reminder of how quickly the internet forgets.
The concept of a meme, of course, comes from Richard Dawkins. In his 1976 book The Selfish Gene, the English biologist defined the meme as a unit of cultural information, similar to a gene in biology. Like a gene, a meme can be copied, transmitted from carrier to carrier, and evolve. Even Dawkins could not have predicted the direction memes would take.
Andy Warhol said everyone gets 15 minutes of fame. The internet has made that prediction true, and the Share button has amplified it. Anyone can become famous worldwide — and not necessarily in a good way. One viral tweet or video on TikTok is enough.
Dress Debate and Feral Hogs
The list includes some of the web’s most memorable moments. There is the white and gold (or black and blue) dress that divided opinion. There are the 30 or 50 feral hogs that took over headlines. There is the poor giant container ship that blocked the Suez Canal a couple of years ago.
Each of these memes served the same purpose. They made us smile. In a wild and difficult contemporary world, that is a real accomplishment.
Fame That Lasts a Few Days
The specificity of modern thinking is another dose of fast dopamine. Receive it, move on. The cycle repeats daily. Over the past decade and a half, hundreds of folks and things have been talked about worldwide — only to be forgotten a couple of days later.
The irony is not lost on the observer. A thread asking people to remember the forgotten became its own forgotten thing. The meme that asks you to recall the ephemeral is itself ephemeral.
Dawkins and the Origin of the Term
Dawkins introduced the term in 1976. He saw memes as cultural units that spread through imitation, much like genes spread through reproduction. The internet has accelerated that process. Memes now travel at the speed of a share button.
The evolution has been extraordinary. From a scientific concept to a global phenomenon, the meme has become the main creative form of modern culture.
Smiling Through the Chaos
The thread’s premise is simple: who are the internet main characters of the day you still think about? Good, bad, indifferent, who’s stuck with you. The dress debate, the feral hogs, the container ship — each one made people stop, look, and laugh.
The Fast Life of the Internet
Fame on the internet is fleeting. A meme’s lifespan is measured in hours, not decades. That is the nature of the beast. The thread itself captures that nature.
The observer notes the pattern. The ubiquity of the internet and the Share button have done their job. Literally anyone can become famous worldwide — and not necessarily in a good way. One viral tweet or video on TikTok is pretty much enough.
The thread is a record of a particular moment. It captures the internet’s obsession with the new and the novel. It also captures the human need to smile, to find joy in the chaos.
The dress, the hogs, the ship — each one made people laugh. That is the function of the meme. It is not easy to smile in such a wild and difficult contemporary world.
For a few days, they mattered.
KEY FACTS
– 4.7K quotes
– Over 45.3M views
– Introduced by Richard Dawkins in 1976
– The Selfish Gene, bestselling book
– Andy Warhol: “everyone will get their 15 minutes of fame”
– White and gold (or black and blue) dress
– 30 or 50 feral hogs
– Giant container ship blocked Suez Canal a couple of years ago
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