Six Degrees of Separation Theory

[Scar Symmetry]

This is something I've been thinking about a lot recently, it's the idea that everyone in the world is linked together through 5 other people.

While this is probably a very rough estimate and obviously the degrees of separation between people may be vast, it's an interesting concept to think that everyone in the world is some how linked through however many people.

Means of internet communication such as MSN Messenger, Facebook, MySpace and even internet forums like this make it possible for people half way around the world to communicate and even form 'friendships'.

It just puts my mind into action about who I could be linked to and if we will ever cross paths.

Fascinating, I think.

Here's the Wikipedia article on it:

Six degrees of separation - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

And here is a quote from the play 'Six Degrees of Separation':

I read somewhere that everybody on this planet is separated by only six other people. Six degrees of separation between us and everyone else on this planet. The President of the United States, a gondolier in Venice, just fill in the names. I find it A) extremely comforting that we're so close, and B) like Chinese water torture that we're so close because you have to find the right six people to make the right connection... I am bound to everyone on this planet by a trail of six people.

While it's likely that some people are distanced by 20, 30 maybe even 50 degrees of separation or more, we are meeting new people every day and the more we communicate, the closer we all are to each other.

The world isn't as 'big' as it used to be.

 

[ralphy1976]

man, that's pretty heavy...i thought heavy was for heavy metal, not heavy MENTAL!!!

keep smiling

Ralphy

 

[SamSam]

I think this may well be possible in the western world. I think it would be very difficult for this to be possible if 3rd world countires etc. are included.

Then agan, who knows?

 

[Scar Symmetry]

I did think that it's a lot more likely within Western countries, but with the ethnic diversity in the USA, England, Australia and Russia I could very well be global.

like I said, it could be 50+ degrees of separation for some people, but the general rule of 6 is a nice idea.

 

[Zehailiu]

That is pretty damn interesting, any guesses as to whether Dream theater ripped off this for their album title?

It's also interesting how we still hate/fear each other even with all this connectedness.

 

[Scar Symmetry]

Dream Theater must've used the idea yeah.

I like hating on people who are clearly idiots, but apart from that I think the blind hate and fear of other people is just ridiculous.

 

[leandroab]

Well. How about the Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon?
Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

[Zehailiu]

Well. How about the Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon?
Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

hi la rious.

I guess the degree of separate between us is hugely affected by the definition of "knowing" or "connected", if you're only required to know someone's name then the separation will be pretty small, if you had to know a person as well as he knows himself, then separation would be infinite.

 

[JBroll]

Erdos numbers are even more badass.

I'd find it hard to believe such things about some random kid in some forgotten African or South American village, but as far as 'first-world' countries it'll be even less than six.

Jeff

 

[Zehailiu]

Sorry if this is a stupid question but if you've seen kevin bacon on tv, does that count as a connection?

 

[Scar Symmetry]

I'd find it hard to believe such things about some random kid in some forgotten African or South American village, but as far as 'first-world' countries it'll be even less than six.

yeah that's pretty much how I feel about it.

for dudes living in mud-huts in Somalia the degrees of separation are probably vast or none in relation to most people in Western countries, but it's cool to think that I can be somehow linked to people like Aubrey De Grey.

come to think of it, Aubrey De Grey doesn't live too far from me so that's an easy one, I'm gonna go for David Hasslehoff instead

 

[ralphy1976]

the Hoff rules!!!

wouldn't it be awesome if you were realted to the Hoff...or the STIG for that matter...

 

[Anthony]

Does this mean I'm only six people away from Per Nilsson?

 

[Scar Symmetry]

Does this mean I'm only six people away from Per Nilsson?

more or less, in theory.

 

[reptillion]

Goddamn, all these washington bigshots, president included, are 1 person between me, interesting... Which leads to global links... Interesting

 

[CypherKnight]

I think this may well be possible in the western world. I think it would be very difficult for this to be possible if 3rd world countires etc. are included.

Then agan, who knows?

Actually, i watched a program about this "six degrees of separation" thing on National Geographic, and a woman in the middle of nowhere in a third world county was able to send a package to a guy in Boston in about six steps.

I wonder if I could talk to Yngwie Malmsteen in person?

 

[Rick]

Does this mean I'm only six people away from Per Nilsson?

I'm one person away from Dino Cazares.

 

[Scar Symmetry]

shit, I bet some people on here are linked to each other in less than 5 degrees

 

[Varcolac]

Erdos numbers are even more badass.

I'm technically only three degrees away from a load of celebrities - a I was doing charity fundraising in the "richest village in Britain" and a member of my team signed up Michael Parkinson, so I can realistically get to a lot of people in only three steps. That is sort of cheating though.

Until the place got repossessed, my flatmates this year were math students. This means I possibly have a defined Bacon-Erdös number. This is good, right?

 

[JBroll]

Unless you coauthored a paper (and they previously coauthored a paper with a finite Erdos number) and acted in a film (with colleagues who have some finite connection to Bacon), I'm afraid not.

Jeff