As above, so below.
As humans, we are part of an endless, complex series of networks.
Think of dark matter and gravity on the universal scale.
Think of the food chain, the internet, social and terrorist networks and bibliographies on the human scale. Think of neurons in our nervous systems, phase shifts in chemistry, the interactions of genes in cancer formation or prevention, and so on at the molecular scale. Think of entanglement and string theory at the quantum level, and you will begin to appreciate how the complex interaction or relationships between bodies or nodes affects everything in our lives, much more than the bodies themselves.
It's the glue that matters!
For centuries, science has gone down the path of reductionism to try to discover the ultimate truth, which consisted of breaking big things into smaller and smaller things to try to find the indivisible units of which everything else was made. At one time, atoms were believed to be the smallest particles, then science discovered electrons, protons, neutrons, and then smaller and smaller particles and wave functions, and the quest goes on.
However, when you just examine the parts, there are so many answers missing. Answers that lie in the relationships between the parts. This is what network science is all about.
What are the organizing principles behind networks? What are the vulnerabilities of different network structures? What are the potential benefits to emerge from understanding networks better?
