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The Girl in the Window – The story of a feral child

Three years ago the Plant City police found a girl lying in her roach-infested room, naked except for an oberflowing diaper. The child. pale and skeletal, communicated only through grunts. She was almost 7 years old.

There are few documented cases of actual feral children, but the ones that have been found have settled the nature versus nurture debate. Children possess the potential to do all the wonderful things that humans are capable of, but they need healthy interaction with adults in order to realize that potential. Some psychologists have suggested that half of our psychological development occurs by the age of six. Children like Danielle will probably never be able to acquire a complete set of language skills and she will probably need some kind of living assistance the rest of her life. Her story is heart breaking enough, but those that are curious about this tragic phenomenon can read some more case studies here.

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When it comes to some people I was hoping for more, Proof! Just six degrees of separation between us

But yesterday researchers announced the theory was right – nearly. By studying billions of electronic messages, they worked out that any two strangers are, on average, distanced by precisely 6.6 degrees of separation. In other words, putting fractions to one side, you are linked by a string of seven or fewer acquaintances to Madonna, the Dalai Lama and the Queen. The news will come as no surprise to film buffs who for years have been playing the parlour game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, in which they link other actors to Bacon in six films or fewer.

I’m not quite sure about Microsoft’s methodology, but in the same article they site a study done using snail mail back in 1969 that showed the letter writers were separated by 6.2 degrees of separation. If you have a FaceBook page your separation is measured in bandwidth and is inversely proportional to your spare time.

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