This Veritasium video unpacks the “six degrees of separation” idea by showing how just a few random “shortcuts” in a network turn it into a small-world where we’re all only a handful of hops apart. You’ll see Duncan Watts’s small-world model, learn why weak ties are surprisingly powerful bridges, and discover how hubs naturally form through preferential attachment—making everything from gossip to diseases spread at lightning speed.
Packed with interactive simulations (from disease outbreaks to network growth), playful experiments like the prisoner’s dilemma, and insights from Strogatz and Barabási, the video proves that our everyday interactions can literally reshape the global web of connections—so yes, your next click or chat could change the world.
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