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Seeing and Tuning Social Networks
Lisam writes "Jon Udell, in a fascinating column titled "Seeing and Tuning Social Networks", writes: "New forms of social software are one of the most hopeful green shoots erupting from a still-bleak technology landscape." Software is catching up with what we know about social networks: the greater the reach of your array, the more effective an actor you can be within an organization.In this column, Jon talks with two observers about software that maps social networks and their patterns..."
It's not 'waaaay' over your head, just a different context than you're used to. Most of the article is just talking about statistics and their implications... no hard facts or revelations, just kinda like rumors that haven't been verified but might be interesting in the future.
It's much like talking about cloning, we all know what it means but what are the ramifications to our gene pool? Without recombinate dna how will we evolve? Clones begetting clones begetting clones, where is the fun in that? not to mention the lack of orgasms...
BTW this isn't 'new tech' it is just old tech on speed... and similar in it's results, ie: premature ejaculation of info that may or may not be relevant.
A fool throws a stone into a well and a thousand sages can not remove it.
This whole realm is already at least partially mapped out by a number of researchers. The ones referenced in the article are actually the least impressive of the lot, in my experience.
My personal pick for most notable researcher in this area is Joshua Epstein. He's with the Sante Fe Institute. The best book of the several he's written is:
Nonlinear Dynamics, Mathematical Biology
and Social Science (Santa Fe Institute
Series, Lecture Notes, Vol 4)
Joshua M. Epstein
Perseus Publishing
ISBN: 0201419882
It presents a number of mathematical models (games theory), including a variant of a Non-linear Richardson called "GloboCop", which does a fairly good job of modelling "core team" based Open Source software projects (IMO).
There has actually been a lot of work along these lines; the first I ever heard of it was an article in Analog Magazine's "Science Fact" column, entitled "Toward a Science of Psychohistory".
-- Terry
What this article points to most of all, at least for me, is the need for better tools to map abitrary dynamic non-hierarchical networks. Social networks, interlinked buearocracies, realms of knowledge (that whole noosphere thing), the internet itself, the list goes on. There are specific projects about looking into one or another of these, but few share the tools they develop to do the analysis, and those that do tend to release things very specialized to whatever they're studying.
I know I for one am interested in collecting and mapping several datasets, for intellectual and practical gain, but lack the time, resources, knowledge and skill to develop full dynamic network visualization software (preferably in web-friendly form) all by my lonesome.
So, uh... Hey! You! Open source developers! Get to work, chop chop!
(to pre-emptively answer the 'why don't you start a project then?' question, I'm just an artist with geek tendencies who can write a little code, and I do mean a little)
----- I don't believe in wisconsin.