TY - BOOK AU - Kucharski,Adam TI - The rules of contagion: why things spread - and why they stop SN - 9781541674318 AV - HM1033 .K83 2020 PY - 2020/// CY - New York PB - Basic Books KW - Contagion (Social psychology) KW - Mathematical models KW - Popular works KW - Social networks KW - Research KW - Epidemics KW - Psychology, Social KW - Information Dissemination KW - Infections KW - Social Media KW - Models, Theoretical KW - Popular Work KW - local KW - fast KW - Print books N1 - "First published in Great Britain in 2020 by Profile Books, Ltd."--Title page verso; Includes bibliographical references and index; A theory of happenings -- Panics and pandemics -- The measure of friendship -- Something in the air -- Going viral -- How to own the internet -- Tracking outbreaks -- A spot of trouble N2 - A deadly virus suddenly explodes into the population. A political movement gathers pace, and then quickly vanishes. An idea takes off like wildfire, changing our world forever. We live in a world that's more interconnected than ever before. Our lives are shaped by outbreaks - of disease, of misinformation, even of violence - that appear, spread and fade away with bewildering speed. To understand them, we need to learn the hidden laws that govern them. From 'superspreaders' who might spark a pandemic or bring down a financial system to the social dynamics that make loneliness catch on, The Rules of Contagion offers compelling insights into human behaviour and explains how we can get better at predicting what happens next. Along the way, Adam Kucharski explores how innovations spread through friendship networks, what links computer viruses with folk stories - and why the most useful predictions aren't necessarily the ones that come true ER -