Critically assess, compare and contrast the RANDOM NETWORK and the Essay

Critically assess, compare and contrast the RANDOM NETWORK and the SCALE-FREE network proposed by Barabasi and Albert. With the - Essay Example An examination of the vulnerability of scale-free networks is also discussed in this paper, and the effect of power law distribution on the network topology is analyzed. The removal of nodes in these network models and the effects of such removal are discussed. The contrast between Scale-free networks and random networks in the area of resisting failures is analyzed, as it has been suggested that the strongly connected nodes are responsible for the failure of scale-free networks. This paper also includes some theoretical syntheses, the proposal of new and exploratory conceptual models, theoretically grounded discussions of methodology, the analysis of historical developments with clear implications for current and future theory, theoretically relevant discussions of timely and important network issues, and comprehensive literature reviews with strong theoretical implications. INTRODUCTION In recent history, evolving networks have been seen as a relevant and very popular area of resea rch among physicists. Reka Albert and Albert-Laszlo Barabasi introduced a concept of evolving networks that is based on preferential attachment, in order to understand the areas from which the ubiquity of scale-free distributions in real networks originates. Reka Albert and Albert-Laszlo Barabasi studied a highly connected network model which was later called the scale-free network. â€Å"Networks have become a general tool for describing the structure of interaction or dependencies in such disparate systems as cell metabolism, the internet, and society.† (Barabasi A-L, Albert R 2002) With scale free networks, even in very large networks, nodes can be selected arbitrarily and connected through other nodes which serve as the intermediary nodes. â€Å"There are features that the scale-free network contains that are lacking in the random network. In a scale free network, a small number of nodes contribute heavily to connectivity. These nodes are called hubs. In a random network , each node contributes approximately the same to the overall connectivity of the network.†(Barabasi, Albert-Laszlo 2002) In a scale-free network, the network is self-similar, in that different parts of the network are statistically similar throughout the entire network. This self similarity is a major feature of fractals. â€Å"The term "scale-free" was first coined by physicist Albert-Laszlo Barabasi and his colleagues at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana. In 1998, they mapped the connectedness of the World Wide Web and found, to their surprise, that the web did not have an even distribution of connectivity (so-called "random connectivity"). Instead, a very few network nodes (also referred to as hubs) were far more connected than other nodes. In general, they found that the probability P (k) that a node in the network connects with k other nodes was, in a given network, proportional to k. They named this kind of network connectivity "scale-free". They also argued that there is a simple explanation for this behavior. Many networks expand through the addition of nodes to an existing network, and those nodes attach preferentially to nodes already well-connected. When this is the case, a scale-free network naturally arises.† (Watts, D.W 2003) Although a scale-free netw

What Does it Mean to Be Well Educated Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2500 words

What Does it Mean to Be Well Educated - Essay Example This research will begin with the statement that education happens to be the key of professionalism in the modern society. The modern society is very dependent on education because it depends on ideologies and well-organized strategies for its growth and development. This explains why people in the modern society do an effort to make sure they are well educated. To be well educated is a very critical topic, the fact is that individuals are only well educated in a certain field but not in all fields. This is where professionalism and division of labor come in; division of labor is a situation where individuals get involved in doing what they can do at their best. It is not funny to meet individuals who have specialized in medicine and cannot discuss a concept from the field of literature or individuals from the field of literature who cannot solve a simple mathematics problem. According to Alfie Kohn, people are only perfect with what they have specialized in, education is more of spe cialization. To be well educated can be defined as a situation where an individual can think deeply, function highly and be professionally successful in the field they have specialized in; this in short calls for competence. The problem about well-educated people arise when lacks some skills and facts they are expected to possess. The truth is that different education systems in the world have created monsters. This is a situation where individuals fail to perform in their field of specialization in education.... This is a situation where individuals fail to perform in their field of specialization in education. There are several myths which have been developed in the field of education and they have been destructive. One myth is where education is seen as the purpose of giving someone the means of upward mobility and success. This is very wrong because it makes people even to cheat in exams because promotion in job is based on class results ending up producing literally unfit individuals who are only interested in high pay and promotion in job. There is another myth which states that ignorance is a solvable problem. The truth is ignorance cannot be a solvable problem; this is because the advance of knowledge carries with it an element of ignorance (Orr, 1996). There are several attributes and notable traits which appear to be with most of the well educated people. These attributes are exceptional and makes educated people to be different from the uneducated or semi educated individuals. Most of well-educated people can listen and hear well, this means they know how to give attention and can fall an argument, track logical reasoning and detect illogic. They can also empathize with other people. They are accommodative; this means they can easily mingle with anyone freely due to exposure in different communication skills through education. They practice respect and humility, tolerance and self-criticism. This simply means that they can feel and understand the power of other individual’s dreams and nightmares as well as their own. They are good in nurturing and empowering people around them. This means they are willing to help other people to move up in the radar of both education and life success. Educated people through their education understands how to get