June 19, 2025
Nadia Asparouhova — An Antimemetic Rollercoaster
Nadia Asparouhova, author of "Antimemetics: Why Some Ideas Resist Spreading," joins me for a fascinating exploration of why some ideas go viral while others—often the most important ones—resist transmission entirely.
We dive into antimemes, Curtis Yarvin's journey from being canceled to becoming mainstream, St. Paul as history's ultimate memetic engineer, and why "Don't Mess with Texas" became a masterpiece of viral messaging. Plus her current research on advanced meditation techniques, internet dynamics, and MUCH MORE!
Important Links:
Show Notes:
- Nadia’s fall into the Antimemetics Rabbithole
- Girardian Theory vs. Antimemetics
- The Story of Curtis Yarvin
- How Subcultures Form and Coalesce
- Engineering Supermemes
- Why Maxims are Compressed Memes
- The History of Antimemes
- Truth Tellers and Meme Spreading
- Gaining Immunity from Memetic Viruses
- Nadia’s Jhana Journey
- Nadia as Empress of the World
Books Mentioned:
- Antimemetics: Why Some Ideas Resist Spreading; by Nadia Asparouhova
- Virus of the Mind; by Richard Brodie
- There Is No Antimemetics Division; by qntm
- Steal This Book; by Abbie Hoffman
- Collective Illusions; by Todd Rose
- How to Change Your Mind; by Michael Pollan
- Thank You for Smoking; by Christopher Buckley
- Last Chance to See; by Douglas Adams
