Efficient Behavior of Small-World Networks

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  • 25 January 2001
Abstract
We introduce the concept of efficiency of a network, measuring how efficiently it exchanges information. Using this simple measure, we give a new unifying definition of small-world networks, as systems that are both globally and locally efficient. This allows to give a clear physical meaning to the concept of small-world, and also to perform a precise quantitative analysis of the system. We analyze different neural networks and man-made transportation systems: besides showing the subtle quantitative differences we show that the underlying general principle of their construction is in fact a small-world principle of high efficiency.

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