results of the competition about memes
Solution with chain explanation
Spoiler alert!
Below we explain the sequence we laid down and some of the solutions that the participants submitted.
The sequence consists of 9 pictures. It looks like this:
At first glance, it may not be clear how all these pictures are connected.
Each meme in the chain (except the first one) contains two topics: for example, Actor A / Actor B or Movie A / TV Series B.
On topic A, it can be associated with the previous meme, on topic B – with the next one.
According to the original idea, a relationship was assumed only between the current and the previous meme. It seemed to us that the term “chain” reflected this, but here too we were mistaken. In some of the responses, the participants seemed to go back to the old links, building intricate patterns, instead of the strict narrative line that we expected.
Participants’ decisions
Like-minded people
So, two participants made a chain that almost coincided with the one that we laid. With a difference in one last meme (about Dune) – the guys did not include it, and we understand why.
In the condition, we indicated that the minimum length of a chain is 8 memes, but we used a chain of 9. Why did we do this? On the one hand, we didn’t want to receive chains of length 2 or 3, because the task in this case would be very easy, on the other hand, we didn’t want to prompt the exact length in the condition (too clever?).
Reptile lover
One participant put together a sequence very similar to ours, but modified it a little. For example, after one meme with Keanu Reeves, he added a second one with the same actor (which is logical):
This participant, like the previous two, did not include the Dune meme at the end, but came up with his own interesting continuation of the chain:
We suggested how the participant could link the memes:
Aquaman + eaten fish> eaten crox, cannibalism + alligator> alligator + aka reptile> turtle (also a reptile).
The idea is very interesting, but it seems that there is no connection between aquaman and cannibalism, because giant worms live in Dune, and cannibalism involves eating its own kind. Jason Momoa hardly looks like a crocodile, even in an aquaman costume. If you have other versions, write in the comments.
Discovers a secret relationship between Zac Efron and Spider-Man
For another participant, the first three memes coincided with our chain, and then there was an interesting continuation.
Possible connection:
Keanu Reeves> Keanu Reeves + Thanos> Spider-Man (Tobey Maguire)> Spider-Man (Tom Holland)> Zac Efron (here the hypothesis that the participant thought that Zac Efron is very similar to Andrew Garfield, who played Spider-Man in the films ” The Amazing Spider-Man and The Amazing Spider-Man High Voltage, and mixed them up) + food (pasta)> Food (lunch).
There is no guru of the MARVEL universe among us, however, as far as we know, there were no Thanos and the Avengers in the universe of the first Spider-Man (Tobey Maguire). And Zac Efron and Andrew Garfield are similar only if you squint. But at the same time, we do not exclude that our interpretation of the pattern is not correct, and the author saw other, more logical connections that we did not describe above. If you have any idea how these pictures can be connected together – feel free to write in the comments!
Is interested in poetry or NLP
And, finally, one of the most interesting solutions is just a case that we initially did not lay down, but it also has a place to be.
Memes are linked by text.
Meme with Leonardo DiCaprio (word “meme”)> Meme from Futurama (word “meme” + word “work”)> Meme with a cat (word “wife” + word “work”)> Meme with olives (word “work” + word “eating”)> Meme with Kristen Stewart (word “eating” + word “mom”)> Meme with message (word “mom” + word “fuck”)> Meme with Botanical Garden (word “fucking” + word “ sad ”)> Meme with Madagascar (word“ sad ”).
There is an undeniable connection here, and although it is simpler than the one that we laid, it was much more difficult to find it. To create it, the participant had to read the text of each meme and find common words in the scattered inscriptions on more than 150 pictures!
Selection of winners
Above, we described just a few, the most interesting, in our opinion, examples, there were also clearly random answers, where the numbers went beyond the limit of the number of pictures, as well as sequences with a pattern in numbers, but not in memes (powers of two), in addition we got answers that did not understand the participant’s train of thought.
According to the terms of the competition, the winner was chosen at random among those who sent in the sequence we had conceived. But in the process, it became clear to us that the rules were not strict enough, which led to many controversial cases. Therefore, we increased the prize pool and decided to award the main prize to three participants who still managed to reproduce our chain as accurately as possible. We also gave 2 additional prizes to those whose answers seemed to us the most logical, despite the discrepancy with the original idea.
As a feedback, we took only an e-mail address, so we cannot provide a list of winners here, but all participants will receive an email from us with information about the prize and how to receive it. If for some reason you did not receive a letter or came, but in it we said that we did not choose you, and you are sure that your chain is logically excellent – feel free to write in the comments under this post, and we will revise your answer separately!
If you did not participate in the conference, but you liked the idea and you want to try your hand, leave your answers in the comments, we have prepared separate prizes for such a case. Go for it, maybe you have the power of a real Jedi memes in you!
