Podcast Summary: "An App That Can Save Lives"

LSE: Public lectures and events | January 24, 2013
Chair/Host: LSE Film and Audio Team
Speakers:

• Professor Eve Mitleton-Kelly (Founder, LSE Complexity Research Programme)
• Dr. Paul Lukowicz (Scientific Lead, Socionical Project; German Research Center for AI)
• Nestor Alfonso Santa Maria (Lead, Business Resilience, City of London Corporation)

Episode Overview

This episode covers the development, testing, and implications of a mobile app designed to aid emergency evacuation and crowd management. The discussion is anchored in the EU-funded Socionical project and explores the intersection of complexity science, policymaking, and practical implementation during large public events in London and beyond. The speakers address technological possibilities, societal impact, lessons from past emergencies, ethical considerations, and real-world trials—including during the London Lord Mayor’s Show and the 2012 Olympics.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Socionical Project and Context ([03:16])

• Aim: Explore how ambient intelligence and complexity theory can facilitate crowd evacuation and traffic management during emergencies.
  • Main focus: Use smartphones as participatory sensors for real-time data collection and distribution.
• Complexity Theory Application:
  • Solve “intractable” social problems by viewing emergencies as multidimensional, dynamic systems.
  • Emphasis on “creation of new order” (distinguishes complex from simply complicated systems).
  • Collaboration with policymakers to improve practical contingency plans.
  • Quote: “Communication was absolutely key and at the heart of both incidents [7/7 and 9/11] ... unfortunately in both cases, it was not what it could have been or should have been.” (Prof. Mitleton-Kelly, [06:40])
• Pilot Deployments:
  • Trials at Lord Mayor’s Show (2011, 2012), the 2012 Olympics, West End Live, and City of Westminster.

2. App Features and Operational Trials ([10:40])

• User Benefits:
  • Event-specific information: transport updates, float locations, historical points, emergency facility locations.
  • Augmented-reality-style info: hold up your phone to identify floats in real time.
• For Organizers/Emergency Services:
  • Real-time heat map of crowd density, color-coded to show congestion in specific locations.
  • Provides live situational awareness, crucial during visual-obscured events (e.g., fireworks when CCTV is less effective).
  • Can send location-targeted advice (not broadcast to all users): “location-specific advice.”
    • Ethical controls: App active only during event, clear user info, explicit consent, anonymized data, rigorous European Commission and internal ethics oversight.
  • Feedback loops: Surveys and interviews post-event to refine understanding of crowd behavior (e.g., identification of problematic exit barriers not apparent from data alone).
  • Quote: "It’s one of those pieces of kit that you do not realize its true potential until you actually use it." (Anonymous policymaker, [15:55])

3. Crowd Behavior & Communication Challenges ([17:08])

• Findings from Trials and Surveys:
  • 70% would consult an app for advice in an emergency; most would check their phone after reaching safety.
  • Trust in information is key: authoritative sources and consistency with physical experience are essential for compliance.
  • Peer communication still important; many would share official messaging by word-of-mouth or social media.
  • After-event analysis revealed misplacement of physical barriers via user interviews, highlighting the need for supplementing quantitative data with qualitative insights.
  • Key theme repeated: “Effective and timely communication” is always the primary challenge.

4. Multiple Emergency Planning Contexts ([25:25])

• Malta: Island-wide disasters (e.g., flash floods). Need for real-time updates on people’s locations, infrastructure, and demographics.
• Munich: Event-based planning, e.g., Oktoberfest. Not using standard formulas—crowd movement varies by event type and configuration.
• London:
  • City-scale mass evacuation challenges (resource allocation for rare events) and interdependent transport infrastructure (integrated risk management).
  • The value of location-based alerts and strategic resource allocation is emphasized.

5. Scientific & Technical Perspectives ([30:48])

• Dr. Paul Lukowicz:
  • The “blurring” of digital and physical worlds: mobile devices capture real-world events in real time (“digital shadow”).
  • Mobile phones as multi-sensor platforms—GPS, motion, sound, Bluetooth—can provide live information about crowd motion, density, and potentially mood (screams, calm).
  • Crowd density estimation can be improved by Bluetooth ‘scanning’ (as trialed at Munich Oktoberfest).
  • The “situated” nature of targeted messaging: emergencies require tailored advice (e.g., specific exit routes).
  • Privacy and ethics: Emphasis on user consent and data anonymization is critical.
  • Notable quote: "The real world and the digital world are increasingly interweaved ... The exact location of about half of humanity is known at any given point of time..." ([32:45])

6. Practitioner/Policy Perspective ([46:08])

• Nestor Santa Maria:
  • Outlined City of London’s multi-layered infrastructure and duties: from supporting emergency services and businesses to recovery planning.
  • Current communication systems:
    • “Bump-proof” bins with information screens, SMS alerts, area-wide messaging, public address (“shout at people”), and social media.
  • What the app adds:
    • Geographic targeting, peer-to-peer (“Wildfire”) messaging if networks fail, richer after-action debrief from app users’ feedback.
    • Improved situational awareness: not just static census data, but real-time crowd dynamics, time-shifting movement patterns, and higher-fidelity resource deployment.
    • Urban planning potential: integrating crowd movement data into safer city design.
  • Notable quote: “At minute, it’s very difficult for us to understand how the community sees our work during an emergency ... app could help facilitate that.” ([54:52])

Memorable Moments & Quotes

• "It’s not like most apps that broadcast the information to everyone … it can actually send it very specifically to those with a device in a particular location." (Prof. Mitleton-Kelly, [13:42])
• "If the information was reliable and consistent with what I am experiencing, I would take it." ([18:38])
• "You could … see if people are screaming in fear or if you’re in a lecture or something like this. This is data you can get from a standard mobile phone." (Dr. Lukowicz, [36:25])
• "Patterns of interaction, the flow of information … technology fundamentally changes that." (Dr. Lukowicz, [44:00])
• "It could have very different ramifications … if you could see how the population behaves not only on a day-to-day basis, but during an incident." (Santa Maria, [57:49])

Q&A Highlights

Privacy & Consent ([63:27], [69:21])

• Concerns about surveillance, anonymity, and user rights discussed.
• Participatory sensing model: users opt-in to sending data; can use the app for information without transmitting their own.
• Sound and movement data processed in ways that prevent personal identification.

Reliance on Communication Networks ([65:20])

• Questions raised about resilience: what if mobile networks fail (e.g., 7/7)?
• The app’s “wildfire” peer-to-peer messaging in development allows for some communications via ad-hoc WiFi networking.

Sharing & Scalability ([66:54], [72:03])

• The project includes ten countries; aims to provide lessons and share data.
• Ongoing collaboration with “Smarter Cities” initiatives and city authorities globally, including Brazil, Singapore, New York, and Paris.

Deployment and Effectiveness ([79:39], [87:53])

• The app is designed for both research and practical utility.
• Used in actual multi-agency coordination rooms to directly influence dispatch during events.
• Effectiveness increases with collaboration and feedback.

Funding & Future ([80:21], [86:36])

• €5 million EU funding plus €2 million in partner contributions.
• Moving forward: continuation via spin-off company; Brazil Olympics and other global deployments envisioned.

Timeline of Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment/Content | |-----------|----------------------------------------------| | 00:00 | Introduction of speakers and event purpose | | 03:16 | Prof. Mitleton-Kelly: project context & trials| | 17:08 | User behavior & communication challenges | | 25:25 | Emergency contexts: Malta, Munich, London | | 30:48 | Dr. Lukowicz: tech & science behind the app | | 46:08 | Santa Maria: policy/practice in emergencies | | 63:01 | Audience Q&A begins | | 69:21 | Addressing surveillance & ethical issues | | 72:03 | International sharing & city-scale use | | 78:12 | Qs on app access, end-user focus, logistics | | 80:21 | Funding, project future, Olympics potential | | 86:36 | Wrap-up: onward research and commercialization|

Language and Tone

The panelists maintain an earnest, conversational, and solution-oriented academic tone, balanced with real-world anecdotes and openness to audience concerns. They acknowledge both the transformative promise of digital-crowd technologies and the complex ethical, logistical, and practical challenges that must be addressed.

Conclusion

The Socionical app and associated research demonstrate the potential of mobile technology, guided by complexity science, to materially improve emergency communication, crowd management, and city planning. The project is at the crossroads of research and practical policy, setting a template for future "smart city" applications where data, ethics, and human behavior intersect.

For More Information:
The work was due to be published (Springer, 2013) and continues under a spin-off company and international research partnerships.
If you are interested in collaborating, especially in a city context or major event, the panel welcomes further contact.