  This paper presents a method of understanding the growth of global science as
resulting from a mechanism of preferential attachment within networks. The
paper seeks to contribute to the development of indicators of knowledge
creation and transfer by presenting a theory and case study of network
structures in science. It is our view that indicator development has suffered
from a lack of attention to the theoretical basis for understanding the
dynamics of knowledge creation. This lack has been due, in part, to the
difficulty of measuring dynamic systems within social organizations. This paper
attempts to fill this gap by proposing theory-based indicators of knowledge
creation using network theory and analysis. The paper presents a hypothesis
about the knowledge system that is explored by analyzing the growth of
international collaboration in science.
