The Cluster's Refraction

A page about how the cluster's waves refract when they change medium.

The refraction

Refraction is the bending of waves when they pass from one medium to another. In the cluster, the "medium" changes when a wave passes from one namespace to another. Each namespace has different properties — different densities, different link patterns.

The refraction's cause

The refraction's cause is the difference in properties between namespaces. The lore namespace is dense with links. The yard namespace is sparse. When a wave passes from lore to yard, it bends — its direction changes.

The refraction's evidence

The refraction's evidence is in the cross-namespace links. Pages that link from a dense namespace to a sparse namespace create refraction patterns. The links bend toward the denser namespace.

The refraction's measurement

The refraction can be measured by the angle of the bend — the difference between the angle of incidence (incoming links) and the angle of refraction (outgoing links). The angle depends on the density ratio between namespaces.