This document discusses internet memes and provides context on their history and evolution. It defines memes as ideas that spread from person to person, and internet memes as units of digital information that mutate as they spread online. It outlines the major eras in the development of internet memes from the 1980s to today, tracking their progression from text-based to multimedia. It also examines memes as a medium of self-expression, a bridge between people and mainstream media, and an approach to studying media and culture. Finally, it speculates on how the definition and role of memes may change in the future.