One branch, two branches
The ramen rec, the trusted cleaner, the climbing partner, the buyer for your car — everything good on Bonzai travels along branches of people who actually know each other. Your friends are one branch away; their friends are two.
Bonzai stops counting at two. Past that, it is not really trust anymore. Branches are always made of people, never an algorithm — if it did not travel person-to-person, it did not travel along a branch.
Growing your branches
find_people searches the real, findable people on Bonzai and tells you how you are connected to each — friend, one branch, or two branches away. add_friend sends a request; invite brings someone new onto the network, and anyone who joins through your invite becomes your friend instantly.