Maths Meets Myths: Network Investigations of Ancient Narratives
arXiv:1511.08513 · doi:10.1088/1742-6596/681/1/012002
Abstract
Three years ago, we initiated a programme of research in which ideas and tools from statistical physics and network theory were applied to the field of comparative mythology. The eclecticism of the work, together with the perspectives it delivered, led to widespread media coverage and academic discussion. Here we review some aspects of the project, contextualised with a brief history of the long relationship between science and the humanities. We focus in particular on an Irish epic, summarising some of the outcomes of our quantitative investigation. We also describe the emergence of a new sub-discipline and our hopes for its future.
Presented at the International Conference on Computer Simulation in Physics and Beyond in Moscow, 2015. The Proceedings will appear in Journal of Physics: Conference Series (JPCS)
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Cited by in corpus (4)
- Network analysis of the Kyiv bylyny cycle -- east Slavic epic narratives
- Network analysis of verbal communications in the novel The Master and Margarita by M.A.Bulgakov
- Interconnected Kingdoms: Comparing 'A Song of Ice and Fire' Adaptations Across Media Using Complex Networks
- Female representation across mythologies