In the Apr 17, 2007 issue of Fink Again former Editor-in-Chief of The Cornell Daily Sun Erica Fink analyzes the various ways Facebook has been used outside of its definition as an online medium for social interaction. The piece culminates with a look into how Facebook as a social network has turned into a unifying force for college students. In terms of the network studies presented in class, the analysis provided in this opinion piece suggests Facebook as a catalyst of creating random links. 

The conceptual background presented in class revolves around the concept of ”six degrees of freedom.” Six degrees of freedom highlights the idea of a small world by postulating that every person in the world is connected through a network of mutual acquaintance and that on average the number of edges required to link two people is six. The Watts-Strogatz model for this concept constructs a random graph for which every node has r^2+k outlinks, r^2 representing links to neighboring nodes, and k random links to nodes of arbitrary length away. The ability for two nodes to be connected through such a small number of edges relies on random links being able to reach out arbitrary distances, and overall the number of links required to connect any two nodes as a function of the network size runs on a logarithmic relationship.

Traditionally the concept of connectedness is viewed more in terms of direct links, the r^2 number from the previous example. However, from the context provided by six degrees of freedom, a new definition of connectedness can be formed through an analysis of how random links are distributed in a network. In this sense, connectedness is a measure of how well connected two distant nodes (of which “distant” is a qualitative measure) are. When the number of random links hits a certain threshold, they can no longer be viewed as random and the definition of connectedness returns to its original definition. However, for a network of considerable size, say college students residing in the United States of America, the likelihood of this happening is negligible. So for a set number (that is lower than the threshold) of random links with a given distribution, connectedness of a network can be measured.

The opinion piece demonstrates that Facebook acts as a catalyst for creating random links and thus increasing the connectedness of a network. The example of the Virgina Tech shootings is obviously a little hyphenated. Even without Facebook, such a catastrophic event broadcasted over all major news networks would evoke a strong response (connection) to those who were affected. However, the prescence of Facebook, particularly the creation of support groups, presents an example of how random links are created. Facebook users who may never have heard of VT may have formed a significant link to those who were affected. Those at VT, the victims displayed on TV, or the faceless others who survived but were scarred nonetheless, become more than just a statistic, but an emotional commitment that in terms of network theory, constitutes a random (though temporary) link. In this manner, Facebook may indeed be responsible for making the world a smaller place.