As much as we want to think that we are independent, self reliant, non conformist, and proud of our unique qualities; we have to sheepishly admit that we have created an idealized illusion of humankind. We are hardly any of the above, we are terribly dependent on each other, very similar to each other, we rewrite our memories every time we recall them, therefore not terribly reliable. We are followers and cannot wait to have some religious or political leader sell us the moon for us to follow them. The me generation has egg on its facade, it did not last long for that reason. The social network world is really who we are. Studies have shown that the decisions we make, or the opinion we have, are strongly influenced by the decisions and opinions of our friends, or more generally, our contacts in our social network. The human problem is that we let ourselves be convinced by the individuals in our social network even if we end up within a Locust plague. We are not infatuated by sameness but by variety. We follow a new trend or a different idea, or a new direction based on our network. Just think of the clothes in your closet to the cars in your garage to the play you saw last week. all about following a group....! your thoughts are welcomed.
In a study published on July 15, 2011, in the Institute of Physics and German Physical Society's New Journal of Physics, researchers have shown that swarming, a phenomenon that can be crucial to an animal's survival, is created by the same kind of social networks that humans adopt. Locusts rely heavily on swarming as they are in fact cannibalistic. As they march across barren deserts, locusts carefully keep track of each other so they can remain within striking distance to consume one another -- a cruel, but very efficient, survival strategy. (ScienceDaily July 2011)
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