The Long Tail: Powerlaw Primer

The Long Tail: Powerlaw Primer: "I'm re-reading Clay Shirky's excellent early work on powerlaws and am reminded that many people are still confused about what exactly a powerlaw is and under what circumstances it arises.

The first answer is easy: it's basically any curve that has a y=1/x sort of shape, like the chart on the right. You can find powerlaws practically anywhere you look, from biology to book sales. The Long Tail is a powerlaw that isn't cruelly cut off by bottlenecks in distribution such as limited shelf space and available channels.

The second answer is easy, too. Powerlaws come about when you have three conditions:

1. Variety
2. Inequality
3. Network effects (word of mouth, for example) to amplify the differences between them. "

If you aren't familiar with the concept of the long tail or power laws, this WIRED article is a must read. Then start keeping up with the Long Tail blog. This concept has huge implications for politics. Think about it.