TERRAIN Book Club: 'Antimemetics'

A book club can be anything. Following sentiments that resonated with us in The Good Stack, and in the words of Jared Zhang from Care Culture: "You can actually book club anything. You could have a book club but only for objects, you know. A book club that is not a book club at all, but it's fulfilling our needs of ingesting something and talking about it."

The need to talk it through will likely rise from something provocative you’ve read, or simply the way a book may unsettle your sense of things. Rather than dispersing online into chat threads, comment sections, or podcasts – we can gather people together to chat off the cuff, to let the conversation unfold where it likes. That’s the spirit of book clubbing.

Book club is hosted by TERRAIN, with conversations facilitated by Cristina Napoleone (TERRAIN's Founder) with Mary Knowles (she/her) – a policy analyst from Aotearoa New Zealand and Ireland, with a background in environmental studies and a love of local conservation movements.

ABOUT THE BOOK

Why do some ideas spread like wildfire, while others resist being seen — despite their importance? A new book by Nadia Asparouhova explores the emerging phenomenon of antimemetics. Published by the Dark Forest Collective.

It's easier than ever to share ideas, yet some of the most interesting ideas are burrowing deeper underground, circulating quietly among group chats, texts, and whisper networks. While memes – self-replicating bits of culture – thrive in an attention-driven economy, other ideas are becoming strangely harder to find. Antimemetics: Why Some Ideas Resist Spreading explores this paradox, uncovering the hidden forces that determine what we remember, what we forget, and why some ideas – no matter how compelling – resist going viral.

Drawing on historical examples, internet phenomena, and the mechanics of attention, as well as her experiences in the technology sector, Nadia Asparouhova examines how cultural and technological systems shape what enters the public consciousness. She argues that while some ideas spread effortlessly, others are structurally resistant to spread, whether due to their complexity, our personal discomfort with these ideas, or a lack of incentives to share them.

​As we collectively navigate a highly charged, memetic world where the hive mind dictates what we see and think about, Antimemetics offers a new way to think about our place in the information ecosystem. It’s easy to be overwhelmed by the tide of viral noise, and often it seems like the only options are to either disengage or be swept away. But withdrawing from the conversation isn’t the only answer. By noticing what gets lost in the memetic churn, we can reclaim our attention, find thoughtful ways to participate, and shape the exchange of ideas – rather than letting it unconsciously shape us.

EVENT DETAILS

Book: 'Antimemetics: Why Some Ideas Resist Spreading' by Nadia Asparouhova. Books are available to purchase separately in-store or online.

When: Wednesday 30th September, 6:30-8:00pm.

Tickets: Free for members (RSVP inside DFOS), $30 for non-members, includes non-alcoholic refreshments and vegetarian friendly charcuterie for grazing.

Capacity: We like to keep our book clubs intimate, each session has 14 tickets available (plus the facilitator). For adults 18+.