During class not too long ago we were asked to consider people who we knew we were hubs in our social networks. I didn't have very much to contribute to the ensuing discussion, simply because I really couldn't think of anyone who I would distinctly consider a hub. At school I have friends that I've met in various places either by chance or by frequent association, and no particular hubs among them come to mind. At home the general policy in my town is that everyone knows everyone else, so even if there were hubs they'd be difficult to distinguish without Gephi. However, after not too much deliberation I have managed to think of a fictional character who would most certainly be considered a hub within what I imagine must be an impressively extensive network.
For a character who is typically portrayed as too machine-like and focused on the pursuit of logic to be inconvenienced with typical social interactions and pleasantries, Sherlock Holmes is surprisingly adept at maintaining connections with multiple facets of London society. Moreover, his ability to do so is one of the many qualities that enable him to have a distinguished career as a consulting detective. Though he never directly admits it, despite his preference for the company of a violin over that of another human being he is fully aware of the importance of social networking as a source of both information and new cases.
In order to ensure that the data necessary to solve a case may be efficiently obtained, Holmes has contacts both on the fringes and at the center of informative networks. Though he primarily refers to Scotland Yard (or rather, they refer to him) for information concerning a case, his contacts among groups like the British government through his brother Mycroft and the less reputable underbelly of London society through the Baker Street Irregulars (a rag tag team of young street urchins who scurry about the city making inquiries per Holmes' requests) enable him to access data that, without these connections, would have required quite a few network hops and hansom rides. Holmes also frequently dons well-crafted disguises and personas to enable infiltration of networks present in social groups and strata different than his own, as it is easier to get information from those most knowledgeable of the suspect or the crime when he blended in as part of their group. As he explains to a much chagrined Watson while scolding him for having completed an investigation "remarkably badly:" "(I would have) gone to the nearest public-house. That is the centre of country gossip. They would have told you every name, from the master to the scullery-maid (The Solitary Cyclist)."
I also recall that in many of the stories, Holmes' clients are actually referred to him by mutual acquaintances (most often his previous clients.) A better example of using social networks connections to get work is actually seen in Holmes' arch nemesis, Professor Moriarty. Holmes describes Moriarty as "motionless, like a spider in the centre of its web, but that web has a thousand radiations, and he knows well every quiver of each of them (The Final Problem)." If that image were to be visualized in Gephi, it would produce a fairly accurate image of Moriarty's network structure.
Like Holmes, he sits at the center of an extensive network and maintains ties with various groups, many of which lack connections between each other. A bit unlike Holmes, however, is that he tends to form ties with people on the fringes of these groups, which in his case is advantageous as it helps to protect his anonymity. Holmes, on the other hand, typically has more to gain from forming ties with people with greater centrality in their groups (i.e. Inspector Lestrade and Wiggins, head of the Baker Street Irregulars), as this allows him to quickly access information from these groups by instructing his contacts to make inquiries rather than personally questioning all of their members himself. Thus, through these two characters, we see how the advantages of forming ties with multiple groups can vary depending on the characteristics of the nodes with whom the ties are formed. To reword one of Holmes' preferred adages, once you have eliminated the unnecessary hops, whatever connections you have, no matter how varied their groups are, must be a greater source of social capital.
No comments:
Post a Comment