Who do you know? 6.6 degrees of separation

[mattl]

The old Kevin Bacon game of 6 degrees of separation appears to be pretty close to the truth. According to this article it's more like 6.6, but it appears we are all connected in some way.

If we were playing the game, I'd get a big boost via my cousin, who's husband is related by marriage to Robert Weinstein the film producer.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/01/AR2008080103718.html?hpid=topnews

 

[jeffg]

Barack Obama and Dick Cheney are cousins, so the number is probably smaller than many of us think.

But the game itself is much more revealing than what the exact number might be. If one's self-image or world view depends on their geneological distance to Kevin Bacon, they must be in pretty bad shape.

 

[mattl]

The interesting point the article raised is that we are much more connected than we realize. And for good or bad, finding a way to mobilize and utilize these interconnections can impact society in a number of ways.

 

[frontaloadotmy]

How is Kevin Bacon

related to 6 degrees of separation? I've never heard of that
connection. Though I do find the whole six degrees thing
to be very true. I lived right next door to one of my
Aunt's nieces for about a year and a half in San Francisco
but had no idea until about 5 years after the fact; who knows
it might have been six years after!

 

[jeffg]

> finding a way to mobilize and utilize these interconnections can impact society in a number of ways. <

Matt, such as how? I'm not trying to be difficult, I'm simply curious.

 

[mattl]

No problem, I was just commenting on the closing part of the article:

"Why does it matter that people from around the world are closely tied together? Researchers said that the knowledge might have applications for political organizations, charity efforts, natural disaster relief and missing-person searches.

"They could create large meshes of people who could be mobilized with the touch of a return key," Horvitz said. "

It's just an interesting concept, one that was proven true today at a funeral I attended. Our neighbor across the street died after a long battle with prostrate cancer. I knew the neighbors that attended but of the 200+ people at the church I really didn't know anyone else, or so I thought. As people were filing out I spotted my cousin's father-in-law, we see him quite often and I was surprised to see him there. Turns out he was an old family friend of the deceased and up until 15 years or so when his first wife died, they were back and forth all the time. I never would have connected the two.