Herd behavior is a principled used to explain crowd movement. It was first discuss in W.D. Hamilton’s paper, Geometry For the Selfish Herd. The evolutionary biologist explained that an individual reduces danger or risk to his/herself by being as close as possible to the group that’s fleeing a particular event, person or place. Because of this, what seems like a unit acting in unison is actually unorganized behavior of individuals trying to protect themselves. This principle of biology is now commonly used to analyze a market crash by explaining investor sentiment.
Seed magazine has an interesting article that addresses how scientists look outside their science to understand relationships within.
Filed under: Art, Information, Science , Business and Science, Correlation, Herd Behavior, Interdisciplinary, Theoretical Inferrence, W.D. Hamilton
Ever roll through some sleepy burg and notice the townsfolk have painted each fire hydrant, recycling bin or park bench as its own work of art? That’s one thing… but how about a whole country? Only in Japan, where the same famously zany locals fascinated with sailor costumes and neon lights on dump trucks have done it yet again. Only this time, their attention has shifted to manhole covers. Yes, manhole covers.
