The thing is, the specific meaning transmitted in a meme can shift slightly depend on how and where it is used. I’ve seen this format used in one of two contexts to date:

1. Purity statement, whereby one side is clearly meant to be the ‘correct’ position. Usually assigned to the male figure, but with some variants where that is switched.

2. Illustration of differences between two groups, where the idea of ‘correctness’ of one side over the other is either absent or secondary to just illustrating that difference.

Then there’s the slippage between these two, which can be fun to tease out. IMO this meme is an example of the second usage, with some possible slippage. Both sides claim to love science, both sides have things that are sciences and things that are science related but adjacent. Each is assigned topics for which there’s a stereotype about men’s/women’s level of participation. I look at it and think “Here are two people who both truly do love science, but different domains, and each is still learning which is why some elements are imprecise/not specific sciences”). Basically, 1st year undergrad BSc man and woman meet at the record store.

Now, depending on authorship and original context, a declaration of purity may be intended (I’ve seen stuff like this with that intent from insecure engineering students before, usually men), but I feel it loses some of that when deployed in a generic science memes community (as opposed to something like ‘Spicy Memes for Bridge Building Boys’ or whatever).

I’d be curious if this was OC, or if not where it was taken from.

#memesaresrsbusiness