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The Power of Networks: Six Principles That Connect Our Lives
An accessible illustrated introducton to the networks we use every day, from Facebook and Google to WiFi and the Internet
What makes WiFi faster at home than at a coffee shop? How does Google order search results? Why do Amazon, Netflix, and YouTube use fundamentally different rating and recommendation methods―and why does it matter? Is it really true that everyone on Facebook is connected in six steps or less? And how do cat videos―or anything else―go viral? The Power of Networks answers questions like these for the first time in a way that all of us can understand and use, whether at home, the office, or school. Using simple language, analogies, stories, hundreds of illustrations, and no more math than simple addition and multiplication, Christopher Brinton and Mung Chiang provide a smart but accessible introduction to the handful of big ideas that drive the technical and social networks we use every day―from cellular phone networks and cloud computing to the Internet and social media platforms.
The Power of Networks unifies these ideas through six fundamental principles of networking, which explain the difficulties in sharing network resources efficiently, how crowds can be wise or not so wise depending on the nature of their connections, how there are many building-blocks of layers in a network, and more. Understanding these simple ideas unlocks the workings of everything from the connections we make on Facebook to the technology that runs such platforms. Along the way, the authors also talk with and share the special insights of renowned experts such as Google's Eric Schmidt, former Verizon Wireless CEO Dennis Strigl, and "fathers of the Internet" Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn.
Networks are everywhere. The Power of Networks shows how they work―and what understanding them can do for you.
What makes WiFi faster at home than at a coffee shop? How does Google order search results? Why do Amazon, Netflix, and YouTube use fundamentally different rating and recommendation methods―and why does it matter? Is it really true that everyone on Facebook is connected in six steps or less? And how do cat videos―or anything else―go viral? The Power of Networks answers questions like these for the first time in a way that all of us can understand and use, whether at home, the office, or school. Using simple language, analogies, stories, hundreds of illustrations, and no more math than simple addition and multiplication, Christopher Brinton and Mung Chiang provide a smart but accessible introduction to the handful of big ideas that drive the technical and social networks we use every day―from cellular phone networks and cloud computing to the Internet and social media platforms.
The Power of Networks unifies these ideas through six fundamental principles of networking, which explain the difficulties in sharing network resources efficiently, how crowds can be wise or not so wise depending on the nature of their connections, how there are many building-blocks of layers in a network, and more. Understanding these simple ideas unlocks the workings of everything from the connections we make on Facebook to the technology that runs such platforms. Along the way, the authors also talk with and share the special insights of renowned experts such as Google's Eric Schmidt, former Verizon Wireless CEO Dennis Strigl, and "fathers of the Internet" Vint Cerf and Bob Kahn.
Networks are everywhere. The Power of Networks shows how they work―and what understanding them can do for you.
- GenresTechnologyScience
328 pages, Hardcover
Published October 4, 2016
3 people are currently reading
86 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
June 20, 2019
This book was very interesting, because it talked about how a lot of technology worked. I have always wondered how cell towers work, because there were a lot of phones talking to one tower. This book told me more than I needed to know. There are a couple good ones like CDMA, where things are coded, or TDMA where things are timed out. There was also this interesting part were they talked about how search engines worked, and they included and interview with former Google CEO Eric Schmidt. There was another interesting part were they talked about how companies like Netflix recommend you movies to watch. They find others like you and do a lot of crazy math just to recommend a movie to you. I guess it makes sense because it gives them a lot of extra money. They even made a competition for others to make their own algorithm, and the winner got $1 million. This book is by no means exciting, it took me a very long time to finish it, but it is very interesting.
December 28, 2017
Great framing of networks around us
This is a great book for anyone wanting to understand the foundation and opportunities for different types of networks: from the basics of device networks to the power of social networks. Understanding the positive or negative feedback of networks, concepts around the importance of the wisdom of crowds based on independence and ranking algorithms to contextualize AI opportunities are valuable for any professional in high tech.
Overall well written with a good balance of high level concepts and depth.
This is a great book for anyone wanting to understand the foundation and opportunities for different types of networks: from the basics of device networks to the power of social networks. Understanding the positive or negative feedback of networks, concepts around the importance of the wisdom of crowds based on independence and ranking algorithms to contextualize AI opportunities are valuable for any professional in high tech.
Overall well written with a good balance of high level concepts and depth.
November 21, 2020
Surprisingly engaging given the technical subject matter. Refreshingly clear STEM writing.
December 17, 2016
Apparently this book was supposed to be written in a way that all of us can understand. I beg to differ. It rapidly descended into in-depth technical details that were confusing and unclear. There were some interesting interviews with tech leaders, that were particularly interesting and added some great colour to the ideas presented here, but the main body of the text was way too technical. In addition, when it tried to simplify things by drawing comparison with real-world events, most of the real-world events were equally confusing! Maybe I'm just easily confused, but this book failed to deliver at the very basic level of living up to its billing. Not for the casual user.
April 1, 2020
It has a lot of information about networks, but it’s not a read for everyone, especially for those who read casually
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews