Nodes and Noodles
Weblog of Richard Spindler, Computer-Stuff, Developer-Links, Notes,
It seems as if I am not the only one considering the concept of connecting image processing nodes in a graph as a good idea, see this in development screenshot of the MathMap Plugin for the Gimp:
This would then actually implement the filters as chains… Proposal from the GIMP UI brainstorm. 
PS.: If you are really cool, then you call the connectors in a node graph “noodles”. 