Interesting. But real Flash Crowds should be more spontaneous.

Probably need teleporters to really make that happen. Or at least omnipresent wireless hi-techery.

I've seen mention of flash crowd-like phenomena (or is that phenomenons?) arising as people send text messages telling of something noteworthy happening. Not quite as swift as Niven's crowds, but hey. And here in Europe, at least the Northern and Northwestern parts, cellphones have an amazing market penetration. (It's when you see, not only first-graders, but winos and bag ladies with cellphones, and when they give you $50 and a brand-spanking-new 'phone to sign up for a nine-month subscription that you realize quite how ubiquitous they are.)

You're right, Laramie. Flash Crowds -should- be more spontaneous. And they -will- be, when most people have location-aware devices. Then at any time in any place, you'll be able to instantly contact nearby potential co-conspirators (however you choose to define them) and point them to a specific location for a specific activity. Most of the legwork of organizing (recruiting participants, organizing times, giving directions, etc.) will disappear as the computers take over the drudgery.

(By the way, for lots of good juicy projected scenarios and lofty tinkering along these lines, check out headmap.org. Tell em I sent ya!)

Text messages are the key to modern flash crowds, for sure. But the chap you link to is so gloriously naive, as he explains that the mobs he's creating will never become disrespectful, no matter how large they get. Mmm.

Perhaps he was not being entirely sincere...

And the point is... what? Because it can be done?

(I guess I'm just a boring old stick in the mud.)

The point? To play with the emergent properties of a system, I suppose.

The point? To play with the emergent properties of a system, I suppose.

oh, ok, perhaps I was being humour-impaired. It was morning, after all.