I first picked up this book because I thought this book was about the world’s most prevalent network: the internet. However, I soon realized that the scope of this book was much bigger. To be sure, Barabasi uses the Internet (one of his primary research subjects) throughout the book, but this book is mostly about the development of network theory – and I do mean theory.
In particular, Barabasi discusses how social networks develop, how diseases spread, how innovative ideas are adopted, how food chains are interconnected, and how the internet functions. (It feels like Malcolm Gladwell’s Tipping Point but with more scientific observation). Interestingly, it appears that there are common elements of network behaviour in each of these scenarios. While I can’t get as excited about math and physics as Barabasi – and he does get excited – I do appreciate his attempt to present the history of network research as a series of stories rather than as a textbook. Sometimes stories just work better–actually, probably most times.
