What's in a meme? Online backup service Mozy attempts to answers that question in an infographic that dissects these bite-size doses of Internet culture.
Originally defined by scientist and author Richard Dawkins in 1976, "meme" is short for the Greek word "mimeme," which means "imitated thing."
One of the earliest examples of memes dates back even further -- to the 19th century -- with an old-school version of LOLcats. An American photographer named Harry Whittier Frees took photos of his pet cats, added text and turned them into greeting cards, according to the infographic.
By 2001, memes were taking over the interwebz, and today, we see them in different forms -- from GIFs to videos and rage comics.
The infographic also breaks down how to create a viral meme, and explains how lucrative they are. For more, check out the entire thing, below.
What's your favorite meme? Tell us in the comments.
