Updated Ideospheric Sampling Model

Recently I've used graphs from Google Trends, Nielson's Blogpulse and Alexa.com to bolster or refute trends which I've detected with MemeMiner.

Normal meme propagation tends to look like an S-curve over time.

As memes propagate over the Internet, they seep into different domains at different rates -

We can define three types of "avenues" -

1) Communication avenue which is the true vector of meme propagation like Dejanews.com, blogs or email.

2) Measurement avenues such as Alexa or Netcraft measure network flows.

3) Reference avenues catalog existing data. Reference avenues will always lag meme propagation.

My original graphs were based on one memetic entry point - Dejanews.com. In this three-part model, I'm sampling across a range of memetic propagation - a memetic entry point (a communication avenue like Dejanews.com, email or blogs), a measurement or feedback point like Alexa.com or Netcraft.com and a reference avenue like Google Trends or Wikipedia.

These sampling points may provide insight about why a meme is propagating, a trouble-shooting model if you will.

Note: "nothing" means "less than expected". The nature of propagation is that seepage (bleedover) will occur at different rates throughout the Ideosphere.

Sub-bandwidths of the Ideosphere can be categorized into five types -

An Ideospheric bandwidth (or "channel") either represents a certain meme (and its sub-memes) or it does not. If it represents a meme, it can denote either a positive or negative connotation. Unallocated bandwidth has three potential states -

a) bandwidth which was never exposed to the current meme

b) bandwidth which actively avoids the current meme

c) bandwidth which accepted the current meme and discarded it in favor of a more desirable meme.

Positive and negative connotations are detectable by associated keywords (i.e. a semantic map).

The cause of unallocated bandwidth is trickier to determine, particularly for memes are which actively avoided. Today's case-in-point is "deficit". In spite of massive increases in consumer credit, the Federal deficit and trade deficit, the general public avoids talk and thought of "deficits" -

The absence of information is often meaningful... if it can be detected.