Lesson1: Barabasi - The First Link

1. What elements or factors were critical to Paul's success in spreading the Christian message?　
Firstly, Paul abolished circumcision and the strict food laws. In addition, he exploded the message using the social network; he walked about 10,000 miles in 12 years, spread the Christian message to the biggest communities which had many people. He used the social network effectively, and that is one of the critical factors to Paul's success.

2. Barabasi asks the question, "Could it happen again?" (p.4), what is your answer?
I think it could happen again, but the way to the success is different from what Paul did because at now people can use another kind of social network; people can make conversations without being face to face. Also I think the chance of the success like Paul did is very low because at present, people have lots of information and they can choose what they believe after judging the information.

3. What new kinds of maps have been made of our interconnectivity (p.5)? What kinds of interconnectivity would you like to see mapped?
Firstly, maps of the internet have been made, and they have told the people about the internet's vulnerability to hackers. Secondly, maps of the companies which show the links of trade or ownership have been made, and they have made people to be able to trace the trail of power and money in Silicon Valley. Thirdly, maps which shoes the interactions between species on ecosystems have been made, and they have told people about the humanity's destructive impact on the environment. In addition, the maps of genes working together in a cell have provided insights have been made, and it have shown people how cancer works.
I want to see the map which tells how the languages of the world are connected with each other.

4. What is the 'real surprise' (p.5) that such maps have revealed? Personally, does this surprise you?
The 'real surprise' is that these maps have the similar or the same blueprint though the maps are very different from each other. Actually, this structure and evolution of the complex networks are governed by the natural laws.
Personally, I was surprised because I did not know that the basics of those maps are the same even though their categories are completely different from each other.

5. How does the author define the nature of most scientific research in the 20th Century? What is the problem associated with such an approach (p.6-7)?
The author defines the nature of most scientific research in the 20th century as Reductionism. The notion of Reductionism is that people have to divide the nature to its constituents to understand the whole; people can never understand the whole without considering the constituents.
However, the problem of this approach is that people became not able to put the constituents back together to understand the whole of nature. It was very complex because nature consists of the all-encompassing laws of self- organization.

6. What does Barabasi predict will be the new focus of scientific research in the coming era (p.7)? What is your view?
Barabasi predict that the networks will dominate the new century, and he claims that everything in the world are linked together and to understand the networks which link everything is most important. I think that to investigate the details and to understand the networks are both important, and to see the networks after investigating the details seems good idea.