Ubiquity: The New Science That is Changing the World: The New Science

Scientists have recently discovered a new law of nature. Its footprints are virtually everywhere - in the spread of forest fires, mass extinctions, traffic jams, earthquakes, stock-market fluctuations, the rise and fall of nations, and even trends in fashion, music and art. Wherever we look, the world is modelled on a simple template: like a steep pile of sand, it is poised on the brink of instability, with avalanches - in events, ideas or whatever - following a universal pattern of change. This remarkable discovery heralds what Mark Buchanan calls the new science of "ubiquity", a science whose secret lies in the stuff of the everyday world. This book documents the coming revolution by telling the story of the researchers' exploration of the law, their ingeneous work and unexpected insights. Mark Buchanan reveals how the principle of ubiquity will help us to manage, control and predict the future.