Update: With help from Ray, I was able to register and access the paper.  When you see the message "If you are an ACM or SIG Member, enter your member number before you click CONTINUE", just click CONTINUE.  While the message is logically correct, its confusing.  My stupidity did help either.  Yes, anyone can access the paper after free registeration.

Since I am not an ACM member and don't feel like joining it, I can only ponder about what might be in the "On the Bursty Evolution of Blogspace" paper mentioned by Ray Ozzie today.  Here is an excerpt from its abstract:

"We propose two new tools to address the evolution of hyperlinked corpora. First, we define time graphs to extend the traditional notion of an evolving directed graph, capturing link creation as a point phenomenon in time. Second, we develop definitions and algorithms for time-dense community tracking, to crystallize the notion of community evolution."

I propose that, while people appear intelligent and have complex behaviors individually, people get dumber and their behavior simpler as group gets larger.  If this is true, then given a large enough group of people, group behavior will be indistinguishable from the behavior of a buffalo herd.  True or not, its a curiously shaped wedge for prying open other interesting thoughts.

Do bursts of activity happen in a buffalo herd?  Most of the time, a herd of buffalo will just wander around a location or stroll in one direction forming small subgroups.  Once in a while the herd activity picks up, usually in response external threats but occasionally prompted by actions of the leading buffalo.  Does this behavior match that of bloggers?  I believe it does, not exactly since bloggers would make rather unruly buffalos, but similarity is there.

What about growth of the herd?  Here the buffalo analogy breaks down.  With buffalos, only female buffalos can reproduce and once a year.  With bloggers, every blogger can reproduce year round without any limits to the number of offsprings.  We are worse than rats or rabbits.  We are worse than SARS.  We are the Borgs.