Yes, and it certainly isn't the first. Here are a few more, all of which reference lolcat at some point (all of these I believe are PhD dissertations, assuming

Yes, and it certainly isn't the first. Here are a few more, all of which reference lolcat at some point (all of these I believe are PhD dissertations, assuming I set the filter correctly): Frigiola, H. N. (2009). The meanings of dogs and cats in U.S. american culture based on movies, cartoons, and consumer goods. Purdue University). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, http://search.proquest.com/docview/304990738?accountid=12725 http://search.proquest.com/docview/304990738?accountid=12725 Beyer, J. L. (2011). Youth and the generation of political consciousness online. University of Washington). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, http://search.proquest.com/docview/930881479?accountid=12725 http://search.proquest.com/docview/930881479?accountid=12725 Bacon, J. (2011). The digital folklore project: Tracking the oral tradition on the world wide web. East Tennessee State University). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, http://search.proquest.com/docview/918226965?accountid=12725 http://search.proquest.com/docview/918226965?accountid=12725 Ellcessor, E. (2012). Access ability: Policies, practices, and representations of disability online. The University of Wisconsin - Madison). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, http://search.proquest.com/docview/1017548871?accountid=12725 http://search.proquest.com/docview/1017548871?accountid=1272... Helms, J. M. (2010). RHIZ|Comics: The structure, sign, and play of image and text. Clemson University). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, http://search.proquest.com/docview/305186664?accountid=12725 http://search.proquest.com/docview/305186664?accountid=12725 Rosatelli, M. E. (2011). A framework for digital emotions. Virginia Commonwealth University). ProQuest Dissertations and Theses, http://search.proquest.com/docview/879043137?accountid=12725 http://search.proquest.com/docview/879043137?accountid=12725