Last Problem:
Pick any two people out of all the persons living in the United States. If you wanted to link those two persons by a chain of acquaintances (such as a friend of a friend of a friend …), how many people or connections would you need to make on average?
Answer:
The usual answer to this question is that it would take about 100 people to make a connection. Research shows however that any two strangers in the United States can be linked by a chain of intermediate acquaintances only five to six people long.
This problem is otherwise known as the “small world” problem. Chains of acquaintances have always been important, but revolutions in communication over the past decade mean today that people are connected to one another through a few connections to virtually every person on the planet.
Today’s Problem:
What do the red letters have in common?
What do the black letters have in common?
ACTBYK
MDUEW