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Wikipedia

June 15th, 2005

Wikipedia is like the future and the past, all at once.

It’s the future of human information. Services like Technorati and Delicious already let you see what’s important to people… Wikipedia just amplifies the effect. What does it mean when the article for a band that doesn’t even exist is almost as long as the article on Ghandi?

But Wikipedia is also the past. It’s like a glimpse into a prior age of Internet surfing. 99% of what I view on the web is within one or two clicks of a half-dozen main hubs. But I can burn an hour or more just browsing through the Wikipedia, clicking wherever fancy takes me.

This extraordinary property of the Wikipedia led to an amusing game over msn with some friends: “Pick two articles, as unrelated as possible, and connect them in as few joins as possible.”

Think you can connect Quantum Chromodynamics to Britney Spears? Here’s one solution:

> Quantum Chromodynamics -> Confinement -> Solitary Confinement -> The Shawshank Redemption -> Sex Appeal -> Sex Symbol -> Britney Spears.

Going the opposite direction?

> Britney Spears -> Controversy -> Sciences -> Particle Physics -> Quantum Chromodynamics

Can Weezer be connected to Moon Pie? Here’s two solutions:

> Weezer -> Harvard -> Crimson -> Salt -> Table Salt -> FDA -> Food -> Snack Food -> Moon Pie

> Weezer -> New York City -> Grand Central Terminal -> Fast Food -> Junk Food -> Snack Food -> Moon Pie

Good times.

Mike

← Earlier Later → Posted at 2:27 am to Internet.

Discussion

  1. That game stole too much of my life. I foresee it being played much over the work term.

    Posted at 10:38 pm on June 15th by Ryan Gariepy.

  2. So fun :) Remember, no Dates or Mass Link pools. Creativity wins all :) Better yet… Weezer -> New York City -> Ticker-tape parade -> Parade -> Mardi Gras -> Moon Pie !

    Posted at 10:59 pm on June 15th by Jeffrey Aho.

  3. Oh yeah, forgot to mention that.

    Ticker-tape parade… wow.

    Posted at 11:16 pm on June 15th by Mike Purvis.

  4. Who says Spinal Tap doesn’t exist? Did Sherlock Holmes exist? Santa Claus? Well, maybe not in a pure atomic sense, but mental reality is just as “real” as any person or thing. Realer. How many real people have the name recognition of old Sherlock?

    Memes have no physical substance, but they generate nations, religons, wars, moon shots, all the heavy stuff.

    So I see Spinal Tap as the first “virtual band”. I bet ST is no less real in the minds of its fans than Brittany Spears is to the millions who have never seen her other than electronically. ST sounds a heck of a lot better too!

    Posted at 2:15 am on July 18th by Big John.

  5. Oh, very well.

    But you’d have to admit that it’s pretty funny when their record catalogue includes sixteen albums, only two of which were ever actually ‘released’.

    As for virtual/artificial bands, I think of the Monkees as being one of the earliest, but perhaps my definitions are wonky.

    Posted at 9:15 pm on July 18th by Mike Purvis.

  6. So I want to know does any body else use wikipedia and what for?
    what was the most informatibve artical you found there?
    What was the wierdest one you found?
    I use wikipedia mostly durring my lunch time at work to just read up on stuff. the most informative artical I found was on the mineing and refineing
    process for copper (because I learned about the job I have, and got to show off to co-workers ;p) the most interesting was probably on cheese witch I
    actualy e-mailed to my self so I could finish reading it after work.
    oh well, got wiki?

    Posted at 3:48 pm on December 20th by Eddie.

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