The Vehicle Principle: Toward a Substrate-Neutral Theory of Replicator Dynamics

Dawkins (1976) proposed that genes and memes are both replicators subject to variation, selection, and inheritance, yet no unified formal framework has been developed to describe the dynamics common to both. This paper presents the Vehicle Principle: the proposition that all replicators, regardless of substrate, obey the same fundamental dynamics, and that apparent differences between biological and memetic evolution arise not from distinct principles but from substrate-specific properties. We develop a three-tiered terminology that systematically maps concepts between biological genetics, memetic evolution, and a substrate-neutral metalanguage. We introduce the concepts of Meme Vector (substrate-independent transmission devices analogous to biological viruses), Memetic Carrying Capacity (the maximum complexity a population can sustain given its transmission technology), and Cross-substrate Coevolution (the mutual interaction between biological and memetic replicator systems). A minimal formal model of Memetic Carrying Capacity is presented, expressing it as a function of population size, replication fidelity, and vector efficiency. The framework generates several testable predictions and explicit falsifiability conditions, including a quantitative relationship between population size and cultural complexity in pre-literate societies, critical thresholds for memetic accumulation, and the potential role of artificial intelligence as a memetic vehicle. This paper establishes the theoretical foundation; companion papers will develop extended mathematical models and empirical tests.