Your brain has a biological limit of 150 meaningful relationships. Understanding the Dunbar number helps you optimize personal networks, build better teams, and navigate social media's illusion of unlimited connection.
Social contagion spreads behaviors and beliefs through networks following mathematical laws, from viral memes to mass panic. Understanding these mechanisms lets us recognize manipulation, harness contagion for good, and navigate information ecosystems designed to exploit our ancient social instincts.
Social contagion spreads through networks using the same mathematical principles as disease outbreaks, with network structure, centrality, and reinforcement thresholds determining which behaviors go viral and which fizzle out.
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