Connected The Surprising Power of Our Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives by Nicholas A. Christakis, M.D., Ph.D. and James H. Fowler, Ph.D.
Connected is about social networks both in the physical world and on the internet. The book talks about both the larger connections between people and how connections influence people in making decisions about their lives. According to the book, there are six degrees of separation between people and three degrees of influence.
There are many different ways people are connected together, both immediately and through networks. This book covers a wide spectrum of subjects; politics, money, sex, love, work, voting, and other circumstances. We learn about how a dollar bill travels, why not to seek sex on the internet, your friends can make you fat, why marriage is good for your health, and how one person can affect the voting choices of many people through their personal contacts.
The subjects being discussed are concrete and personal. I found them quite entertaining. In addition to text there are social network maps throughout the book. For example, there is a very interesting map of the strong social divide between democrats and republicans in the United States.
The first part of the book focuses on immediate social networks and their consequences for health, well being, and social status. The latter part of the book goes into the recent developments of networks on computers. Some of the social networks covered are World of Warcraft, Myspace, and Facebook.
Computer social networks are viewed as extenders of personal networks. Like the telephone and modern transportation, computer social networks extend the number of people who we can reach out to. While this may not have an immediate impact on close friendships and marriage, it does affect how we can reach out to larger groups. I found this section to be very useful. We learn how social networks increase our ability to reach out to find jobs, exchange goods, and learn more.
This book is entertaining, well informed, and well researched. It is full of gripping facts and thoughtful ideas. It made me rethink how I might use social networks on the internet and make personal connections. It is a book well worth reading. The book which I read is an advanced reading copy. The book is due out in September of 2009.
Showing posts with label connected the surprising power of our social networks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label connected the surprising power of our social networks. Show all posts
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Daly Thoughts 6/7/2009
William Morris Age 53 Daily Thoughts 6/7/2009
Yesterday, I went to the Strand after going to the Museum of Comic and Cartoon Art to see if they had In The Stormy Red Sky by David Drake. They were out of stock there. They also do not have it at my local library or the library I work at. I could order it, but I decided to try it on Baen as a Webscription.
This is the first time I have spent money on an ebook online. I went to the Baen website, joined as a member, then downloaded the book. The first thing I noticed was that I needed an unzipper to make the download available. I got a new one. Then I looked at the two different formats available that I could read on my computer as an .rtf or an .html file. When I looked at the .rtf file, it looked like I was reading a Word document. This was not to my liking. I tried the HTML reader which is much better. Now, I can finish reading the book on my computer. It cost me $15.00 online versus $25.00 at the bookstore. The .html document looks like most of the books in the Baen free library which I am used to.I also finished reading Connected The Surprising Power of Our Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives by Nicholas A. Christakis, MD, Ph.D. and James H. Fowler, Ph.D.. I am thinking about how I will review it. It made me a bit uncomfortable because it made me realize that I was not networking or using social networks properly. I am going to have to change my behavior if I am going to get the full use of both social networks online and in person. There is al lot for me to learn.
Twitter for libraries and librarians. http://www.infotoday.com/cilmag/may09/Milstein.shtml
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Daily Thoughts 6/4/2009
A Copyleft Image of the Beat Poet, Gregory Corso.
Daily Thoughts 6/4/2009 While I was at Book Expo America, I had picked up a free copy of The Shortest Investment Book Ever by James O'Donnell. I picked it up and read it because I saw a review of it at http://libdrone.info/2009/04/book-review-the-shortest-investment-book-ever/ . The review was spot on.
On the train, I started reading Connected The Surprising Power of Our Social Networks and How They Shape Our Lives by Nicholas A. Christakis, M.D., Ph.D. and James H. Fowler, Ph.D. It is about social networks. According to the book, people have six degrees of separation and three degrees of influence. This is an advanced reading copy, the book will be out in September.
Web Bits
I spent some time this morning selecting some of the titles from this article.
http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6661944.html?desc=topstory
While I was looking at COLLDV-L (Collection Development Listserv) mailing list emails, I came across this blog which I find kind of interesting. It seems to focus a lot on ebooks lately. http://collections2point0.wordpress.com/
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