Why everything is connected to everything else |
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| Institution: | 1. Rubenstein School of the Environment and Natural Resources, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, USA;2. Department of Geography, Geosciences Institute, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil;3. Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, UK;4. Accelerator Mass Spectrometry Laboratory, Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre, East Kilbride G75 0QF, UK;1. Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve, 131 Waquoit Highway, Waquoit, MA 02536, United States of America;2. Department of Geography, McGill University, 805 Sherbrooke St W, Montreal, QC H3A 0B9, Canada;3. School of Environmental and Forest Sciences, Dept. of American Indian Studies, University of Washington, 3715 West Stevens Way NE, Seattle, WA 98195, United States of America;4. Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries, University of British Columbia, AERL, 2202 Main Mall, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z4, Canada;1. The University of Queensland, School of Earth Sciences, Steele Building, Brisbane, Qld 4072, Australia;2. University of Queensland, School of Earth Sciences, Australia and Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Departamento de Geologia, Brazil;1. Department of Geography, University of Victoria, PO Box 1700 STN CSC, Victoria, BC V8W 2Y2, Canada;2. fRI Research Grizzly Bear Program, 1176 Switzer Drive, Hinton, AB T7V 1V3, Canada |
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| Abstract: | In Earth surface systems (ESS), everything is connected to everything else, an aphorism often called the First Law of Ecology and of geography. Such linkages are not always direct and unmediated, but many ESS, represented as networks of interacting components, attain or approach full, direct connectivity among components. The question is how and why this happens at the system or network scale. The crowded landscape concept dictates that linkages and connections among ESS components are inevitable. The connection selection concept holds that the linkages among components are (often) advantageous to the network and are selected for, and thereby preserved and enhanced. These network advantages are illustrated via algebraic graph theory. For a given number of components in an ESS, as the number of links or connections increases, spectral radius, graph energy, and algebraic connectivity increase. While the advantages (if any) of increased complexity are unclear, higher spectral radii are directly correlated with higher graph energy. The greater graph energy is associated with more intense feedback in the system, and tighter coupling among components. This in turn reflects advantageous properties of more intense cycling of water, nutrients, and minerals, as well as multiple potential degrees of freedom for individual components to respond to changes. The increase of algebraic connectivity reflects a greater ability or tendency for the network to respond to changes in concert. |
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