Linked Part II

The concluding chapters of Linked by Albert-Laszio Barabasi discusses in the ‘Eleventh Link’ titled ‘Awakening Internet’ the immergence of the internet. The connection follows similar to the connection of networks and nods in early chapters. ‘Paul Baran’s Networks’ “suggests that there were three possible architectures for such a network-centralized and decentralized, and distributed-and warned that both the centralized and decentralized structures that dominated communications systems of the time were too vulnerable to attack. Instead he proposed that the Internet should be designed to have a distributed, mesh-like architecture”. Treating networks with a mesh-like architecture follows from the internet to life. In comparison to the structural build of internet social media sites and research sites such as Google, and Bing. “Understanding the topology of the Internet is a prerequisite for designing tools and services that offer a fast and reliable communication infrastructure.” Understanding these tools and services offer the opportunity to broaden many internet sites and expand them to achieve a better user-friendly experience.  

The size of something as large as the World Wide Web seeks and attempt to determine the size of the internet to bring about structure and make solid connections. “The Continents of a Directed Network” states that, “networks such as the World Wide Web naturally break down into several easily identifiable continents. In the central core each node can be reached from every other node. Nodes in the IN continent are arranged such that the links eventually brings you back to the central core.” Each portion is connected somehow to the central core, such as we are connected socially, and also what connects online publishing sites. In this example, the subject of the news would be the central core. Including this explanation is an excellent illustrate to bring together how the connections are made. While you are roaming through the internet, and visiting different sites one does not ever consider the connections made between each site. For example, the number of results found when searching through Google for a specific word or subject. Barabasi mentions in this chapter about ‘The Fragmented Web” that, “the NEC Research Institute…they built a meta-search engine, a robot called Inquirus that could inquire at each major search engine for documents matching a given query.” Many search engines using this method to search for the most documents for a subject. This is why many sites and news engines tend to make an important on connecting a story or a subject on searchable words. Often this is the difference between one viral video and another that has minimal views.

Barabasi also speaks of the “Map of Life” concluding that like the internet and social links the body creates its own links and maps to make connections within the genes in our bodies. In short it is stated that, “it is now clear that the number of genes is not proportional to our perceived complexity…networks point to the answer.” Networks are created within the body and they are created online and in between connections with each other.