Science: Gang Bangers Mimic Hyenas

Jeffrey Brantingham, UCLA anthropologist, uses statistics to study crime.   Jeff's using the Lotka-Volterra equation to predict gangsta fight locations.

The equation was worked out in the 1920s by Alfred Lotka and Vito Volterra who studied the territorial tauntings of Hyenas.

The theory says competing species claim territories with  perpendicular boundaries halfway between rival areas.

Jeff  computed the 563 gangsta killings between 1999 and 2002. The proximity to the statistical boundary point was 58.2% 1000 feet, 83.1% 2000 feet, and 97.7% 5000 feet  - just as the model predicted.

The result proves gangs behave like Hyenas.  The difference being Hyenas kill for food.  Gangtas kill for thrill.  Which are the real animals?