A recent article in the Los Angeles Times, Stopping Crime Before it Starts (link to article?), explores the practice that sophisticated analysis of data can sometimes tell law enforcement where criminals are headed. The notion, known as ‘predictive policing’ uses computer analysis of information about previous crimes to predict when and where future crimes will occur. The LAPD has positioned itself at the center of the predictive policing universe, teaming up with UCLA, where researchers are studying the ways criminals behave in urban settings.