Mapping the Internet, One Ping at a Time
Today on MIT’s Technology Review: someone has taken up the mighty task of mapping the internet. The idea here is not to promote any one thing as the be-all-end-all of the internet world in an arbitrary website popularity contest, but to examine the current structure of the internet for the sake of SCIENCE!
They have a few amazing diagrams (such as the one below) showing the overall structure of the internet in terms of the most critical and populated nodes moving outward to more isolated nodes. 
The overall basis of the study was to determine whether or not peer-to-peer networking - often labeled as a black sea of piracy and other vile activities - could actually assist in speeding up the internet for everyone. Keep an eye on The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America for a full article from the researchers about their progress so far.
In the meantime, for more information or to participate in the ongoing study of the internet and its structure, visit the DIMES project to read the full details of the on going project or to volunteer. The current map was built with the help of around 5,000 volunteers, and already the research team was able to identify 20% more of the connections that make up the internet than any previous study has, so you can just imagine what kind of progress can be made with more volunteers!
