Collective Behavior

In chapter one from Six Degrees, Norton mentions how Leonhard Euler developed the first theorem in graph theory, by proving that one cannot walk across all seven bridges in Königsberg without crossing the same bridge twice.

Euler happens to be one of my husband's favorite mathematicians. I'm told that the next dog we get will be named Euler, which I have no problem with except for the fact that we'll be pronouncing it like "Oi-ler" because that is technically the correct way to pronounce Euler's last name (those crazy Germans!). I can just see taking the poor mutt (I always get mutts) into the vet, and the vet saying "Hi "Yu-ler," and I'll have to say, "Actually it's pronounced 'Oi-ler,' he's named after Leonhard Euler, the famous mathematician. My husband is a nerd." Then maybe I'll go on to tell the story about the bridges.

Then my dog, my husband, my vet, and I will all have connections to the same piece of knowledge, but each of us for slightly different reasons, and each of us with different connotations. We'll have our own mini-Euler network, and all of you will be a part, now that you've read this post.

Now the next time someone mentions Euler, an odd thought may pop into your head about dogs, or about blogs, or about people who are really big nerds. Well I suppose that the nerds are the natural link there, but you get what I mean. This is just one tiny example of the way that we get and receive and link information in our minds. It's amazing, really if we think about it.

I think that it is also a great example of how the internet works, with networks formed by myriads of links. Just think back to the last time you followed all the interesting links in a Wikipedia article. If you're anything like me, you ended up on some page about fruit farmers, wondering how you got there from Northern Irish Murals. So there is the internet as an extension of our brains. It mimics patterns that we have always used. It gives me a sense of wonder, and also a sense of comfort. Sometimes it seems like a strange new world, but there's really nothing all that new about it.