FADS, fashions and dramatic shifts in public opinion all appear to follow a physical law: one of the laws of magnetism.
Quentin Michard of the School of Industrial Physics and Chemistry in Paris and Jean-Philippe Bouchaud of the Atomic Energy Commission in Saclay, France, were trying to explain three social trends: plummeting European birth rates in the late 20th century, the rapid adoption of cellphones in Europe in the 1990s and the way people clapping at a concert suddenly stop doing so. In each case, they theorised, individuals not only have their own preferences, but also tend to imitate others.…
