It boggles my mind that the term meme came from academia. I guess it makes sense and, in a way, it reminds me of the origins of the smiley face emoticon. As a something that caught on first in academia. It’s kind of funny to me that there is so much discourse about the term. I do get that the definition is broad, but I think it’s appropriate, and more than a definition I think the fact that the term has entered into mainstream culture shows that it does have a lot of significance. Also the line, “the concept once kicked out the door by many academics is coming back through the Windows (and other operating systems) of Internet users” is one of the best things I have read in an academic paper.
My Boyfriend Came Back from the War was a great introduction to net art, but this article really defined what net art is for me. I really appreciated the parts about the importance of what is happening behind the screen and the ideas of preserving the internet in the way it was when a piece of net art was first created. I also liked the point that net art is about the internet and how it connects people. I think this is what separates net art from just interactive art on the internet.
