Tag galaxy is a website that is designed to aggregate images from Flickr that comply with the tag names individuals have entered as their search criteria. The system then displays an image of a globe orbited by smaller planets of all the keyword-tagged image categories containing the tag-search word.
The assumption of the website is that every ‘similar’ image is tagged with relevant descriptions. One is then able to consider the tags to be reliable and consistent. For instance, an image of Bondi Beach might be tagged with: ‘Bondi’, ‘Bondi Beach’, or ‘beach’. Also, the more tags that are associated with an image, the more likely it is that the image will be picked up. The individual who uses Taggalaxy can potentially become part of an affiliation network based on the attractiveness (popularity) of certain tags that images are associated with (Watts 2003).
Similar in nature to Amazon, once an individual enters a word into the system, the site recommends books with affiliated tags that the individual may also wish to consider. This affiliation network consists of other people that have similar preferences for similar books on the one hand and general books on the other (Watts, 2003, 2004). Prospectively, the individual may entertain the offer, and has the option to join the affiliation network. Hence, actors connect on the premise that they share a common social dimension (Watts, 2003, 2004).
At the time of writing, the chances that an individual will see his/her posted image on Flickr reflected on Taggalaxy is less than six intermediaries (six clicks or tag searches) apart: Six Degrees of Separation. However, as more images are added, the odds any one person will see its own image in a tag-search seems less likely. Validating this calculation is beyond the scope of this blogpost.
References:
Watts, D. J. 2003. Six Degrees: The Science of a Connected Age, London, Vintage Books.
Watts, D. J. 2004. The “New” Science of Networks. Annual Review Sociology, 30, 243-270.
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