From the Selfish Gene to COVID-19
Food for thought...
In 1976, Richard Dawkins wrote the book *The Selfish Gene*, where he analyzed the evolution of species from the perspective of genes rather than the individual. According to this view, Dawkins argued that the gene is the fundamental evolutionary unit from which life originated. In other words, organisms are programmed machines designed to ensure the survival of genes. Thus, species, including humans, become the instrument that genes use to perpetuate themselves over time. In the book, he also defined the concept of a meme as a unit of information transmitted from one brain to another through language, customs, writing, teaching, skills, behavior, imitation, gestures, repetition, and any other form that can be imitated.
So, memes are essentially cultural genes, which, like DNA genes, transmit information, self-replicate, and mutate. Genes encode genetic information in DNA, while memes encode cultural information in sound waves, electromagnetic waves, smells, and so on. When memes self-replicate enough, they group together and form a memplex, a set of memes that help each other survive. Dawkins' theory has profound implications because, depending on the information transmitted—whether from genes or memes—the outcome or fate of the species would be different. In the philosophical realm, many questions arise: Could humankind eventually guide its own evolution by controlling genes and memes?
Reflecting on Dawkins' work, one might also ask: if it were possible to observe impersonally what is happening in these times of pandemic, would we see a battle between two molecules: the RNA of the coronavirus and our DNA? Both molecules have the same biological mandate: to survive. Viruses "know" they cannot perpetuate themselves without us; that is why they invade us and make us cough, so they can spread into the environment and infect more hosts. Until a vaccine is developed, we will be at a disadvantage.