Modular gateway-ness connectivity and structural core organization in maritime network science.
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 32503974.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1038/s41467-020-16619-5 and PMC identifier 7275034.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Around 80% of global trade by volume is transported by sea, and thus the maritime transportation system is fundamental to the world economy. To better exploit new international shipping routes, we need to understand the current ones and their complex systems association with international trade. We investigate the structure of the global liner shipping network (GLSN), finding it is an economic small-world network with a trade-off between high transportation efficiency and low wiring cost. To enhance understanding of this trade-off, we examine the modular segregation of the GLSN; we study provincial-, connector-hub ports and propose the definition of gateway-hub ports, using three respective structural measures. The gateway-hub structural-core organization seems a salient property of the GLSN, which proves importantly associated to network integration and function in realizing the cargo transportation of international trade. This finding offers new insights into the GLSN's structural organization complexity and its relevance to international trade.