Team # 49436 Page 2 of 22
Contents
1. Introduction .................................................................................................. 3
1.1 Problem Background ............................................................................... 3
1.2 Previous Research .................................................................................... 3
1.3 Our Work .................................................................................................. 3
2. Assumptions and Justification ...................................................................... 4
3. Topology of Information Networks .............................................................. 4
3.1 Two Types of Communications ............................................................... 4
3.2 A Slice of Toast: Construct Single-Layer Network .................................. 6
3.3 Slices of Toast: Construct Multi-Layer Networks ................................... 7
4. Model of Inherent Value of Information ...................................................... 8
4.1 Attributes of Information ......................................................................... 9
4.2 The Inherent Value of Information ........................................................... 9
4.3 Pick News out of Information ................................................................ 10
5. The Dynamic Information Flow Model ..................................................... 10
5.1 The Forwarding Rules of Media Nodes ................................................. 11
5.2 The Forwarding Rules of Person Nodes ................................................ 11
6. How a BBC’s News Disseminated: Validate Our Model ........................... 12
6.1 Find Data for Simulation ....................................................................... 12
6.2 Simulation .............................................................................................. 12
6.3 Results .................................................................................................... 13
7. The Evolution of Information Networks .................................................... 13
7.1 Definitions of capacities and relationships of networks ........................ 14
7.2 Emergence of a New Network ............................................................... 14
7.3 The Peak of Different Networks ............................................................ 14
7.4 Networks’ Evolution Based on Life-Cycle Theory ................................ 14
7.5 Prediction of Society’s Information Networks in 2050 ......................... 16
8. Change People’s Minds: An Opinion-Changing Model ............................. 16
8.1 The Opinion of Publics .......................................................................... 17
8.2 The Opinion-Changing Mechanism ....................................................... 17
9. Sensitivity analyses .................................................................................... 18
9.1 More people agree at first, more people agree at last ............................ 18
9.2 Want a bigger influence, go to find a media .......................................... 19
9.3 More Homogeneous, More Efficient ..................................................... 19
9.4 Media Nodes vs. Person Nodes ............................................................. 20
10. Strengths and Weaknesses .......................................................................... 21
10.1 Strengths .............................................................................................. 21
10.2 Weaknesses .......................................................................................... 21
11. References .................................................................................................. 22