4 ms·

Real social networks aren't even networks, they are simplexes.

by antt 7y ago

swsieber 7y ago
Ok. I don't know the word simplex, but after brief googling, it looks like simplexes are a type of network. Could you explain what you mean a little bit more?
arcticfox 7y ago
Why are they simplexes? I'm reading about simplexes, and having a hard time visualizing how they map to social networks
- antt 7y ago
  The hyper volumes between vertices can have single weights. Say you have a pump that is contaminated with cholera. You can either model the pump as a node on the graph with every person drinking from it being connected by an edge, allow an arbitrary number of edges between any two nodes, or allow for a relationship that can connect an arbitrary number of nodes. I built a rather sophisticated simplex based trade analyser for one of my contracts for a broker trader. From what I've heard it's given them an edge since no one even knows about it. It's been three years so my NDA and non-compete are finished. I might get around to writing it up if I don't get hired to do another one.
  - wnkrshm 7y ago
    With hypervolumes you mean all the (n-1)-dimensional 'faces' (n > 1) formed by a vertex and its neighbours in an n-dimensional simplex or a mesh of those? To assign unique weights to all interactions between a vertex and up to n-1 of its neighbours, I assume.
    - antt 7y ago
      Yeah. And because they are sparse the representation is both tiny and stupidly powerful.
      - kian 7y ago
        Would you care to share some pointers to materials where one could learn about simplicial representations of things traditionally modeled by networks?
        antt 7y ago
        There aren't any I could find, I had to do everything from first principles and the notebooks were left with my employer.
kmill 7y ago
Maybe you mean something like a simplicial complex? I don't understand how you can do very much with a single simplex (which is a generalization of a triangle and a tetrahedron in the language I'm used to).
- therein 7y ago
  I think he is talking about a simplex tree.
dredmorbius 7y ago
Your comment informs little. Do you mean that real social networks are to networks as tensors are to vectors? More dimensions? If so, what do those dimensions represent? Or am I missing your point (which is ... not very clearly made).

Real social networks aren't even networks, they are simplexes.

by antt 7y ago

Real social networks aren't even networks, they are simplexes.

Ok. I don't know the word simplex, but after brief googling, it looks like simplexes are a type of network. Could you explain what you mean a little bit more?

arcticfox 7y ago

Why are they simplexes? I'm reading about simplexes, and having a hard time visualizing how they map to social networks

antt 7y ago
The hyper volumes between vertices can have single weights. Say you have a pump that is contaminated with cholera. You can either model the pump as a node on the graph with every person drinking from it being connected by an edge, allow an arbitrary number of edges between any two nodes, or allow for a relationship that can connect an arbitrary number of nodes. I built a rather sophisticated simplex based trade analyser for one of my contracts for a broker trader. From what I've heard it's given them an edge since no one even knows about it. It's been three years so my NDA and non-compete are finished. I might get around to writing it up if I don't get hired to do another one.
- wnkrshm 7y ago
  With hypervolumes you mean all the (n-1)-dimensional 'faces' (n > 1) formed by a vertex and its neighbours in an n-dimensional simplex or a mesh of those? To assign unique weights to all interactions between a vertex and up to n-1 of its neighbours, I assume.
  - antt 7y ago
    Yeah. And because they are sparse the representation is both tiny and stupidly powerful.
    - kian 7y ago
      Would you care to share some pointers to materials where one could learn about simplicial representations of things traditionally modeled by networks?
      - antt 7y ago
        There aren't any I could find, I had to do everything from first principles and the notebooks were left with my employer.

kmill 7y ago

Maybe you mean something like a simplicial complex? I don't understand how you can do very much with a single simplex (which is a generalization of a triangle and a tetrahedron in the language I'm used to).

therein 7y ago
I think he is talking about a simplex tree.

dredmorbius 7y ago

Your comment informs little. Do you mean that real social networks are to networks as tensors are to vectors? More dimensions? If so, what do those dimensions represent? Or am I missing your point (which is ... not very clearly made).