The tension between centralized and decentralized network design is a common theme in network science. Even a “decentralized” system is actually a continuum, not a fixed state. A system moves along an axis degree of distributedness, and depending on its purpose, there’s not one ideal state. Here Gordon Brander writes about the tendency of networks to evolve, beginning as decentralized ecosystems, evolving through stages of consolidation, then collapsing back apart into discrete connected parts.
Here is a map of the internet. The first thing you might notice is that the internet is not evenly distributed. Instead, we...
You may have thought the entire 14th century was pretty bad, or maybe 1918 with its flu pandemic and millions of war casualties, but how about the 6th:
A mysterious fog plunged Europe, the Middle East, and parts of Asia into darkness, day and night—for 18 months. “For the sun gave forth its light without brightness, like the moon, during the whole year,” wrote Byzantine...