How does it work?
Where will all the people go? A start-up is analysing data from mobile phone providers. It uses principles from physics to direct marketing more precisely towards the relevant customers in the street. Text: Florian Fisch Infographic: ikonaut People are particles The behaviour of human crowds in some ways resembles that of quantum liquids composed of electrons or helium atoms. As Alberto Hernando de Castro from EPFL has observed, an individual’s decision might seem relatively independent, but the overall behaviour of large groups can be predicted with a high degree of accuracy.
Mobile phone data The start-up Sthar analyses data from mobile phone providers. Information on the location and socio-economic status of users is anonymised by aggregation. “We are interested in statistics, for instance in the 10 percent who are under 25 and go mountaineering on weekends, or the 15 percent who use the highway every day”, says founder Alberto Hernando de Castro. Using formulae from thermodynamics, he can then determine the statistically most probable location of such groups at a given time in the future.
Directing campaigners An app sold by Sthar helps political parties, NGOs and companies to channel their street campaigners to the most effective places at the right times. At a train station, for example, the target audience is probably too diluted, whereas other places might have fewer people, but more of the ‘right’ kind.
epid mobility emic Tracing epidemics and traffic Mobile antennae along the roads allow us to monitor traffic. This can help us to improve public transportation, and can provide information to the motorway operators. The same type of mobility analysis allows us to forecast the spread of infectious diseases such as cholera.
Horizons CC BY-NC