Six Degrees of Separation

Six degrees of separation is the theory that anyone on earth can be connected to any other person on the planet through a chain of acquaintances that has no more than five intermediaries.

The theory was first proposed in 1929 by the Hungarian writer Frigyes Karinthy in a short story called Chains.

History

In the 1950's, Ithiel de Sola Pool (MIT) and Manfred Kochen (IBM) set out to prove the theory mathematically.

Although they were able to phrase the question (given a set N of people, what is the probability that each member of N is connected to another member via k1, k2, k3... kn links?), after twenty years they were still unable to solve the problem to their own satisfaction.

In 1967, American sociologist Stanley Milgram (see Small world phenomenon) devised a new way to test the theory, which he called "the small-world problem".

He randomly selected people in the American Midwest to send packages to a stranger located in Massachusetts, several thousand miles away.

The senders knew the recipient's name, occupation, and general location.

They were instructed to send the package to a person they knew on a first-name basis who they thought was most likely, out of all their friends, to know the target personally.

That person would do the same, and so on, until the package was personally delivered to its target recipient.

Although the participants expected the chain to include at least a hundred intermediaries, it only took (on average) between five and seven intermediaries to get each package delivered.

Milgram's findings were published in Psychology Today and inspired the phrase six degrees of separation.

Playwright John Guare popularized the phrase when he chose it as the title for his 1990 play.

Although Milgram's findings were discounted after it was discovered that he based his conclusion on a very small number of packages, six degrees of separation became an accepted notion in pop culture after Brett C.

Tjaden published a computer game on the University of Virginia's Web site based on the small-world problem.

Tjaden used the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) to document connections between different actors.

Time Magazine called his site, The Oracle of Bacon at Virginia, one of the "Ten Best Web Sites of 1996".

In 2001, Duncan Watts, a professor at Columbia University, continued his own earlier research into the phenomenon and recreated Milgram's experiment on the Internet.

Watts used an e-mail message as the "package" that needed to be delivered, and surprisingly, after reviewing the data collected by 48,000 senders and 19 targets (in 157 countries), Watts found that the average number of intermediaries was indeed, six.

Watts' research, and the advent of the computer age, has opened up new areas of inquiry related to six degrees of separation in diverse areas of network theory such as power grid analysis, disease transmission, graph theory, corporate communication, and computer circuitry.

Play/film

Six Degrees of Separation is also the title of a play and film written by John Guare, based on the true story of a confidence man who bluffed his way into Manhattan high society by claiming to be the son of a famous actor.

About the play:

Six Degrees of Separation at CU-Boulder

Genealogy

The term "six degrees of separation" is often distorted to indicate that six generations is the maximum extent to which everyone in the world is related.

This has been disproved in numerous genealogy circles, since six generations translates roughly to 250 years.

It has been calculated, more accurately, that the maximum relationship a person living in the modern age can be to someone else, anywhere in the world, is 30-32 generations removed which is roughly 1200 years of ancestry.

Games

• Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon is a party game based on the idea and the prolific Kevin Bacon.

• Erdos-Bacon numbers are a further extension of the same thinking.

See also

SixDegrees.com was an early social networking site based on the concept, that is now closed

External links

• Six degrees of Wikipedia is a counting site of Wikimedia.

• Knock, Knock, Knocking on Newton's Door - article published in Defense Acquisition University's journal Defense AT&L, based largely on Six Degrees by Duncan Watts.

Explores theory and practice of social networking, as related to military technology development.

• Sim6D is an online experiment based on the six degrees of separation where individuals can attempt to contact a stranger in another part of the world through their connections.

Six degrees of separation is the theory that anyone on earth can be connected to any other person on the planet through a chain of acquaintances that has no more than five intermediaries. The theory was first proposed in 1929 by the Hungarian writer Frigyes Karinthy in a short story called Chains. History In the 1950's, Ithiel de Sola Pool (MIT) and Manfred Kochen (IBM) set out to prove the theory mathematically. Although they were able to phrase the question (given a set N of people, what is the probability that each member of N is connected to another member via k1, k2, k3... kn links?), after twenty years they were still unable to solve the problem to their own satisfaction. In 1967, American sociologist Stanley Milgram (see Small world phenomenon) devised a new way to test the theory, which he called "the small-world problem". He randomly selected people in the American Midwest to send packages to a stranger located in Massachusetts, several thousand miles away. The senders knew the recipient's name, occupation, and general location. They were instructed to send the package to a person they knew on a first-name basis who they thought was most likely, out of all their friends, to know the target personally. That person would do the same, and so on, until the package was personally delivered to its target recipient. Although the participants expected the chain to include at least a hundred intermediaries, it only took (on average) between five and seven intermediaries to get each package delivered. Milgram's findings were published in Psychology Today and inspired the phrase six degrees of separation. Playwright John Guare popularized the phrase when he chose it as the title for his 1990 play. Although Milgram's findings were discounted after it was discovered that he based his conclusion on a very small number of packages, six degrees of separation became an accepted notion in pop culture after Brett C. Tjaden published a computer game on the University of Virginia's Web site based on the small-world problem. Tjaden used the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) to document connections between different actors. Time Magazine called his site, The Oracle of Bacon at Virginia, one of the "Ten Best Web Sites of 1996". In 2001, Duncan Watts, a professor at Columbia University, continued his own earlier research into the phenomenon and recreated Milgram's experiment on the Internet. Watts used an e-mail message as the "package" that needed to be delivered, and surprisingly, after reviewing the data collected by 48,000 senders and 19 targets (in 157 countries), Watts found that the average number of intermediaries was indeed, six. Watts' research, and the advent of the computer age, has opened up new areas of inquiry related to six degrees of separation in diverse areas of network theory such as power grid analysis, disease transmission, graph theory, corporate communication, and computer circuitry. Play/film Six Degrees of Separation is also the title of a play and film written by John Guare, based on the true story of a confidence man who bluffed his way into Manhattan high society by claiming to be the son of a famous actor. About the play: Six Degrees of Separation at CU-Boulder Genealogy The term "six degrees of separation" is often distorted to indicate that six generations is the maximum extent to which everyone in the world is related. This has been disproved in numerous genealogy circles, since six generations translates roughly to 250 years. It has been calculated, more accurately, that the maximum relationship a person living in the modern age can be to someone else, anywhere in the world, is 30-32 generations removed which is roughly 1200 years of ancestry. Games • Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon is a party game based on the idea and the prolific Kevin Bacon. • Erdos-Bacon numbers are a further extension of the same thinking. See also SixDegrees.com was an early social networking site based on the concept, that is now closed External links • Six degrees of Wikipedia is a counting site of Wikimedia. • Knock, Knock, Knocking on Newton's Door - article published in Defense Acquisition University's journal Defense AT&L, based largely on Six Degrees by Duncan Watts. Explores theory and practice of social networking, as related to military technology development. • Sim6D is an online experiment based on the six degrees of separation where individuals can attempt to contact a stranger in another part of the world through their connections. °	TESTO PARALLELO INCASELLATO Scopri come è facile capire l'inglese se c'è a fianco la traduzione parallela incasellata!
	Six degrees of separation is the theory that anyone on earth can be connected to any other person on the planet through a chain of acquaintances that has no more than five intermediaries.	Sei gradi di separazione è la teoria secondo cui chiunque sulla terra può essere collegato a qualunque altra persona sul pianeta attraverso una catena di conoscenze costituita da non più di cinque intermediari.
	The theory was first proposed in 1929 by the Hungarian writer Frigyes Karinthy in a short story called Chains.	La teoria fu proposta per la prima volta nel 1929 dallo scrittore ungherese Frigyes Karinthy in un racconto intitolato “Chains” (catene).
	History	Storia
	In the 1950's, Ithiel de Sola Pool (MIT) and Manfred Kochen (IBM) set out to prove the theory mathematically.	Negli anni '50, Ithiel de Sola Pool (MIT) e Manfred Kochen (IBM) incominciarono a dimostrare matematicamente la teoria.
	Although they were able to phrase the question (given a set N of people, what is the probability that each member of N is connected to another member via k1, k2, k3... kn links?), after twenty years they were still unable to solve the problem to their own satisfaction.	Anche se riuscirono a formulare il problema (dato un insieme N di individui, qual è la probabilità che ogni membro di N sia collegato ad un altro membro attraverso k1, k2, k3... kn collegamenti?), dopo vent’anni non erano ancora riusciti a risolvere il problema in maniera soddisfacente.
	In 1967, American sociologist Stanley Milgram (see Small world phenomenon) devised a new way to test the theory, which he called "the small-world problem".	Nel 1967 il sociologo americano Stanley Milgram (si veda il “Small world phenomenon” - Fenomeno del piccolo mondo) escogitò un nuovo metodo per verificare la teoria, che chiamò "il problema del piccolo mondo".
	He randomly selected people in the American Midwest to send packages to a stranger located in Massachusetts, several thousand miles away.	Scelse a caso alcune persone del Midwest americano per far loro spedire dei pacchi a degli abitanti sconosciuti che abitavano nel Massachusetts, a diverse migliaia di miglia di distanza.
	The senders knew the recipient's name, occupation, and general location.	I mittenti conoscevano il nome del destinatario, il suo lavoro e la sua ubicazione.
	They were instructed to send the package to a person they knew on a first-name basis who they thought was most likely, out of all their friends, to know the target personally.	Venne loro detto di spedire il pacco ad una persona con cui fossero in rapporto di familiarità* e che ritenevano avesse, fra tutti i loro amici, la maggiore probabilità di conoscere il destinatario personalmente.
	That person would do the same, and so on, until the package was personally delivered to its target recipient.	Quella persona avrebbe fatto la stessa cosa, e così via, fino a che il pacco fosse consegnato di persona al destinatario.
	Although the participants expected the chain to include at least a hundred intermediaries, it only took (on average) between five and seven intermediaries to get each package delivered.	Sebbene i partecipanti si aspettassero che la catena avrebbe incluso almeno un centinaio di intermediari, ci vollero (in media) solo fra i cinque e i sette intermediari per far sì che ciascun pacco fosse consegnato.
	Milgram's findings were published in Psychology Today and inspired the phrase six degrees of separation.	I risultati di Milgram furono pubblicati in Psychology Today ed ispirarono l'espressione “sei gradi di separazione”.
	Playwright John Guare popularized the phrase when he chose it as the title for his 1990 play.	Il commediografo John Guare rese celebre quest’espressione quando la scelse come titolo per la sua commedia scritta nel 1990.
	Although Milgram's findings were discounted after it was discovered that he based his conclusion on a very small number of packages, six degrees of separation became an accepted notion in pop culture after Brett C.	Anche se i risultati di Milgram furono ridimensionati dopo che si scoprì che aveva basato le sue conclusioni su di un numero molto piccolo di pacchi, “sei gradi di separazione” divenne un concetto acquisito nella cultura pop dopo Brett C.
	Tjaden published a computer game on the University of Virginia's Web site based on the small-world problem.	Tjaden pubblicò sul sito web dell’Università della Virginia un gioco per computer basato sul problema del piccolo mondo.
	Tjaden used the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) to document connections between different actors.	Tjaden si servì dell’Internet Movie Database (IMDB) per documentare i collegamenti tra i diversi attori.
	Time Magazine called his site, The Oracle of Bacon at Virginia, one of the "Ten Best Web Sites of 1996".	La rivista Time nominò il suo sito, The Oracle of Bacon at Virginia, uno dei “dieci migliori siti web del 1996”.
	In 2001, Duncan Watts, a professor at Columbia University, continued his own earlier research into the phenomenon and recreated Milgram's experiment on the Internet.	Nel 2001, Duncan Watts, un professore della Columbia University, riprese le sue precedenti ricerche su questo fenomeno e ricreò l’esperimento di Milgram su Internet.
	Watts used an e-mail message as the "package" that needed to be delivered, and surprisingly, after reviewing the data collected by 48,000 senders and 19 targets (in 157 countries), Watts found that the average number of intermediaries was indeed, six.	Watts utilizzò un messaggio e-mail come “pacco” da consegnare e, sorprendentemente, dopo un esame dei dati raccolti da 48.000 mittenti e 19 destinatari (in 157 paesi), scoprì che il numero medio di intermediari era in effetti sei.
	Watts' research, and the advent of the computer age, has opened up new areas of inquiry related to six degrees of separation in diverse areas of network theory such as power grid analysis, disease transmission, graph theory, corporate communication, and computer circuitry.	La ricerca di Watt, e l’avvento dell’era dei computer, hanno dischiuso nuove aree di ricerca collegate a “sei gradi di separazione” in diverse aree della teoria delle reti, come l’analisi delle reti elettriche, la trasmissione delle malattie, la teoria dei grafi, la comunicazione aziendale, ed i circuiti dei calcolatori.
	Play/film	Commedia/film
	Six Degrees of Separation is also the title of a play and film written by John Guare, based on the true story of a confidence man who bluffed his way into Manhattan high society by claiming to be the son of a famous actor.	Sei gradi di separazione è anche il titolo di una commedia e di una pellicola scritti da John Guare, basati sulla vera storia di un truffatore* che riesce a entrare nell’alta società di Manhattan facendosi passare per il figlio di un attore famoso.
	About the play:	La commedia:
	Six Degrees of Separation at CU-Boulder	Six Degrees of Separation at CU-Boulder
	Genealogy	Genealogia
	The term "six degrees of separation" is often distorted to indicate that six generations is the maximum extent to which everyone in the world is related.	L’espressione “sei gradi di separazione” viene spesso usata a sproposito per indicare che sei generazioni rappresentano il massimo grado con cui ciascuno nel mondo è imparentato.
	This has been disproved in numerous genealogy circles, since six generations translates roughly to 250 years.	Ciò è stato confutato in numerosi ambienti genealogici, poiché sei generazioni equivalgono a circa 250 anni.
	It has been calculated, more accurately, that the maximum relationship a person living in the modern age can be to someone else, anywhere in the world, is 30-32 generations removed which is roughly 1200 years of ancestry.	È stato calcolato, più accuratamente, che il rapporto massimo in cui una persona vivente nell’era moderna può trovarsi con un’altra persona, in qualsiasi parte del mondo, è a una distanza di 30-32 generazioni corrispondente a circa 1200 anni di ascendenza.
	Games	Giochi
	• Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon is a party game based on the idea and the prolific Kevin Bacon.	• Six Degrees di Kevin Bacon è un gioco di società basato su quest'idea e sul prolifico Kevin Bacon.
	• Erdos-Bacon numbers are a further extension of the same thinking.	• I numeri di Erdos-Bacon sono un'ulteriore estensione dello stesso modo di pensare.
	See also	Vedere anche
	SixDegrees.com was an early social networking site based on the concept, that is now closed	SixDegrees.com è stato uno dei primi siti di networking sociale basato sul concetto. Attualmente non è più attivo.
	External links	Links esterni
	• Six degrees of Wikipedia is a counting site of Wikimedia.	• Six degrees of Wikipedia è un sito contatore di Wikimedia.
	• Knock, Knock, Knocking on Newton's Door - article published in Defense Acquisition University's journal Defense AT&L, based largely on Six Degrees by Duncan Watts.	• Knock, Knock, Knocking on Newton's Door (bussando alla porta di Newton)- articolo pubblicato in Defense Acquisition University's journal Defense AT&L, basato in gran parte su Six Degrees di Duncan Watts.
	Explores theory and practice of social networking, as related to military technology development.	L'articolo esplora la teoria e la pratica del networking sociale negli aspetti collegati allo sviluppo della tecnologia militare.
	• Sim6D is an online experiment based on the six degrees of separation where individuals can attempt to contact a stranger in another part of the world through their connections.	• Sim6D è un esperimento online basato sui sei gradi di separazione in cui gli individui possono tentare di contattare uno sconosciuto in un’altra parte del mondo attraverso le loro connessioni.