Sunday, June 24, 2007

Information Battlespace IV: Department of This Thing Looks Like That Thing

Uh oh. Behold the Internet (or, more precisely, "the hierarchical structure of the Internet, based on the connections between individual nodes (such as service providers)"):

network picture of the Internet, looking like a big HAL eye

Cf. Hal (or, more precisely, "Heuristically Programmed Algorithmic Computer") 9000:

picture of Hal 9000's camera eye

Scared yet? You should be. "At the center of the Internet are about 80 core nodes through which most traffic flows. Remove the core, and 70 percent of the other nodes are still able to function through peer-to-peer connections."

See also terrorism, the brain, and biology in general. Remember that New Yorker article about how hemispherectomies aren't a big deal? Apparently nothing can be damaged ever.

No comments: