Friday 8 August 2008

six degrees from kevin bacon


Microsoft have confirmed the theory there are only six degrees of separation between strangers. Or 6.6 to be precise.

Researchers tracked 30 billion instant messages among 180 million people from around the world and found there’s only an average of 6.6 hops between each person. And the world is only going to get smaller as new technology bridges the divide.

Thinking about nimi’s post earlier, what does it mean for the structure of our social networks? The outer ring of weak contacts is going to keep growing at a steady rate – pretty good for wom marketing and ‘strength of weak ties’ theorists. Or will there be a backlash and a return to more emotionally fulfilling friendships?

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

Hey if Im six degrees from Johnny Depp... im not complaining! :)