If a crowd stares up at nothing, will you look too?
Note on the drawing power of crowds of different size
Researchers had small crowds stand on a New York street staring up at a window, then counted how many passers-by looked up too.
Ig Nobel 2023
On a busy New York pavement, the team arranged groups of 1 to 15 people to stop and gaze up at a sixth-floor window, where nothing at all was happening. Hidden cameras filmed the passers-by.
The bigger the staring crowd, the more strangers stopped or glanced up to join in. Humans, it turns out, cannot resist a good mystery window.
If you want attention, just look up and wait.