"Broken Windows" Theory Supported

The "broken windows" theory says in a neighborhood where buildings have broken windows, people are more likely to behave criminally. Law enforcement has embraced the idea - hitting petty crime hard to curb serious crime (e.g. NYC used it to justify a zero tolerance approach to squeegeeing of car windows ... and crime did go down).

Scientists have found empirical evidence to support these findings. They found that cyclists who parked their bikes near a graffiti covered wall were 2x more likely to litter than if parked near the same wall after it was painted clean.

Arts and Cops

NYC's Museum of Modern Art (MOMA) is introducing a method to improve police officers vision - through, well, art.

The class first began as a 3-hour "Art of Perception" presentation to help medical students improve their visual acuity. After realizing that police are often put in situations requiring split-second decision making based on body language and environmental cues.

Because everything in a painting has some significance, the art class helps police officers refine an eye already trained to pick up on hidden clues and also to scrutinize their surroundings - something that has not always been done in the past and has led to huge delays in solving certain cases.