内容简介
"The best way to understand the dramatic transformation ofunknown books into bestsellers, or the rise of teenage smoking, orthe phenomena of word of mouth or any number of the othermysterious changes that mark everyday life," writes MalcolmGladwell, "is to think of them as epidemics. Ideas and products andmessages and behaviors spread just like viruses do." Althoughanyone familiar with the theory of memetics will recognize thisconcept, Gladwell's The Tipping Point has quite a few interestingtwists on the subject.For example, Paul Revere was able togalvanize the forces of resistance so effectively in part becausehe was what Gladwell calls a "Connector": he knew just abouteverybody, particularly the revolutionary leaders in each of thetowns that he rode through. But Revere "wasn't just the man withthe biggest Rolodex in colonial Boston," he was also a "Maven" whogathered extensive information about the British. He knew what wasgoing on and he knew exactly whom to tell. The phenomenon continuesto this day--think of how often you've received information in ane-mail message that had been forwarded at least half a dozen timesbefore reaching you.Gladwell develops these and other concepts(such as the "stickiness" of ideas or the effect of population sizeon information dispersal) through simple, clear explanations andentertainingly illustrative anecdotes, such as comparing thepedagogical methods of Sesame Street and Blue's Clues, orexplaining why it would be even easier to play Six Degrees of KevinBacon with the actor Rod Steiger. Although some readers may findthe transitional passages between chapters hold their hands alittle too tightly, and Gladwell's closing invocation of thepossibilities of social engineering sketchy, even chilling, TheTipping Point is one of the most effective books on science for ageneral audience in ages. It seems inevitable that "tipping point,"like "future shock" or "chaos theory," will soon become one ofthose ideas that everybody knows--or at least knows by name. --RonHogan