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Wikipedia:Six degrees of Wikipedia

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This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Canonymous (talk | contribs) at 23:40, 3 June 2009 (Over 10 steps claimed). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

See also Wikipedia:Wiki Game, Wikipedia:Wiki-Link Game, Wikipedia:Wikington Crescent and Wikipedia:Wikirace.

There is a widespread hypothesis—Six degrees of separation—holding that any two people in the world are separated by a chain of no more than six acquaintances. It is perhaps a worthwhile task in studying the character of Wikipedia to see whether something similar obtains among its articles. Six Degrees of Wikipedia (popularized by Elan Gershoni) aims to be a compendium of the following things:

  • The items separated by the longest chains in the encyclopædia (especially where these are more than four links long). The shortest known chain between the two items should be specified. Generalisation over time, where possible, seems to produce the shortest chains. Failing this, try generalisation over space to reduce chain length.
  • The most intuitively remote items separated by short chains--chains of fewer than six articles, anyway. That is, these should be items that have no obvious connection but which, nonetheless, can be linked between very quickly. This is a much more subjective category, but should still be interesting; it may be enough to describe these as "interestingly" or "peculiarly" short chains.
  • Chains between two articles selected at random (using Special:Randompage).

Using date-to-date links (e.g. 1996 to 1993) is uninteresting and should be avoided.

Tampering with articles for the express reason of changing their degrees of separation is discouraged for the purposes of this project: we aim to clarify how Wikipedia is as it evolves, not to set forth that it should be more or less so. All the same, if this page brings to your attention a place where there just ought to be a link but isn't feel free to correct it (and to correct this page correspondingly).

We will accept only links between actual articles, not "Talk" pages. (If this approach fails to produce interesting connections, it might be worth restricting it in still further ways, like disallowing articles on years or decades, or anything else that might be "too" broad. For now we will not worry about these.) Make sure to specify the direction the chain runs in.

Seven Degree Chains

Six degree chains

Eight degree chains

Three degree chains

Long shortest chains

Over 10 steps claimed

Takes at most 7: Six, 6 (number), Natural number, Mathematics, Euclidean geometry, Angle, Degree (angle), Degree.
Takes at most 4: Six, 6 (number), polygon, degrees of freedom (physics and chemistry), Degree
Only takes 3 or 5, depending on direction. George W. Bush → MIT is 3 or 2. smurrayinchester(User), (Talk) 16:16, 5 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

There is, according to kate's tool, no path under 10 steps between these articles, however the return path, Vimes to Aliens is only 4 degrees - none of which are date related. Chrisboote

Aliens to Science fiction to Fantasy to List of fantasy authors to Discworld to Vimes (redirects to Samuel Vimes) CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 12:41, 20 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Aliens to Pinewood Studios to Buckinghamshire to Terry Pratchett to Vimes

There is, according to kate's tool, no path under 10 steps between these articles. Interesting. Bart133 t 23:30, 27 September 2005 (UTC) MooLatte is orphaned. Bart133 t 21:56, 30 September 2005 (UTC)[reply]

According to kate's tool, no paths under 10 steps exist between these two sets of articles. None are orphaned.

The only article-space link to ZZZ, List of all three letter acronyms, is orphaned. smurrayinchester(User), (Talk) 10:15, 4 February 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Shirt to Button to Plastic to General Electric to NBC Universal to Microsoft to Computer to Laptop Flora 03:23, 31 October 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Shirt to Button to Plastic to Silicon to Liquid crystal display to Laptop --White and unnerdy42 22:54, 3 November 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Pants to Clothing to Plastic to Silicon to Liquid crystal display to Laptop CambridgeBayWeather (Talk) 00:21, 26 December 2006 (UTC)[reply]
Homosexuality to Japan to Anime to Pokémon to Pikachu Army1987 18:54, 11 January 2007 (UTC)[reply]

8 steps claimed

Functional Requirements for Authority Records to Victor deGrazia


Mesencephalic duct to Surrey Central Station

Are You Being Served? to Ponte di Cerreto

Kenny Chesney to Brands Hatch

Cheetos to Church ball doesn't have any paths of ten or less.

7 steps claimed

111th Street (New York City Subway station) to Fiacha Cennfinnán


Archerfish to Santa Maria Rupes


Art (Myst) to Alien Tort Statute


Baluchitherium to Byzantian Empire

Gunpowder Plot to -ous

Klein Bottle to Puppies


List of consonants to Fiacha Cennfinnán


Monique Alexander to Surrey Central Station

Momo Hinamori to Andrea Gylfa


Mouth to Stearns (automobile)


Orphan to Erdos

Proof by verbosity to Rudraige (from: Chains between two random pages)

Rakata (Star Wars) to ESDP Rakata (Star Wars) to 2003 to Euro to E to EZ to List of acronyms and initialisms: E to ESDP

Watch Hill, RI to Gunung Kerinci - both mountains so doubly interesting.

Zonguldak to Matamata, New Zealand

5 steps claimed

Memphis Belle to Mousa Broch

RIAA to Evil


Cult to Kool-Aid

You Forgot It in People to Alzheimer's Disease

Moses to Don Mills, Ontario

1706 to Eagle-Vail, Colorado

Naked mole rat to Black hole

Leda Cosmides to Flint the Time Detective

Cargo cult to Conformation show

Directorate-General for Transport and Energy (European Commission) to Ong-Bak: Muay Thai Warrior

Ashvin to Antarctica does not have any paths less than 10.


Annals of the Four Masters to Great Wall of China

Way quicker: Annals of the Four Masters to Chronicle to History of China to Great Wall of China. Oren0 05:28, 28 August 2007 (UTC)[reply]

4 Steps claimed

Gsteig bei Gstaad to Khalid al-Azm

Development of the urinary and reproductive organs to Jesus

President to Vaginal intercourse

Wallpaper to Erectile dysfunction

Apple pie to Rock (geology)

Seven Layer Dip to Britney Spears

Long reverse path

Whereas Bog to Toilet is two steps, Toilet to Bog is 4 steps

Shortest "unnatural" chains

Where is the link to Star Trek on Natural Environment? Avraham 03:01, 2 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

(many obvious other chains from this e.g.:) Dick Cheney to George W. Bush to Osama bin Laden to Sunflower

Hannah Montana to Illinois to McDonald's to Ronald McDonald

Chains between two random pages

Charyyapadas to Broadstairs

Oatcake to Ukrainian I

The Payolas to Marvin Liebman

Kick to The Face

Adolphe Joseph Thomas Monticelli to Classical theory

Sobhuza II of Swaziland to Binnenalster

Vin Mariani to Capital virtues

Baltasar Carlos, Prince of Asturias to Saurodactylus

Hal Colebatch to Liard River

Cyber Team in Akihabara to Mount Carmel Cemetery

Sweet Polly Oliver to Committee of Public Safety

Velociraptor to Jewish services

Coenzyme Q to Rawlins, Wyoming

Gerald Posner to Michel Tremblay

Solna to Mohammad Abaee-Khorasani

Pokémon to Boston Molasses Disaster

Common Grackle to Ambassador Hotel

Ylistaro to Streptococcus pneumoniae

Julius Caesar to Rafael Cordero (educator)

Marsupial to Bridge

Frank Drake to Ramsey Island

Proof by verbosity to Rudraige

Walter Richard Parker to 85

Don Beebe to Haji Ali Dargah

Shoichi Nakagawa to Tallest buildings in Australia

Molson Coors to Chemical elements named after places

Clarkefreak 22:25, 8 August 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Hollycombe Steam Collection to Tithonus

Clarkefreak 03:39, 18 August 2005 (UTC)[reply]

Crawford Notch to Ferdinand von Saar

Visualization (cam) to Defeated nominees to the U.S. Supreme Court

ad nauseum to Coyville, Kansas in six steps:

Back to The Future

List of names of the official languages of the European Union in the official languages respectively to GoldenEye (song)

Zoe Stark to Port Everglades

Blue Nile Falls to John Norquist

Venice Commission to Dahntay Jones

Principality of Capua to Grant Waite

HMAS Brisbane (D 41) to Medical University of Lublin

Fish to Growth hormone


Ashvin to Antarctica does not have any paths less than 10.

Antarctica to Snow Patrol does not have any paths less than 10.

Bowling for Dollars to Essex County, Ontario

Bowling for Dollars to WJW to Essex County, Ontario

Caboose (Red vs. Blue) to Heterochromia

Foreign relations of Cameroon to Baktykozha Izmukhambetov Foreign relations of Cameroon > United Nations > United Nations member states > Kazakhstan > Nursultan Nazarbayev > Baktykozha Izmukhambetov SalaSkan 01:48, 3 June 2007 (UTC)[reply]

Qwilfish to University of Indonesia

Rei Ayanami to Crime & Punishment

Maund to Chapare River

Northern Qi to P.H.U.Q.

River Deben to Earth Is Room Enough

William Elfving to Emergency (Philippine TV program)

Piano Sonata in E-flat major, D. 568 (Schubert) to William Coffey

PikachuJohn Madden

Counterfeit banknote detection pen to Juryszewo.

Nikki Coghill to Dedicated (Lemar)

See also