The paparazzi constant

We already know that there are many constants found in nature. Scientists have discovered values for e, g, π, c, and the list goes on. Alert the scientific journals because I have discovered yet another one, the paparazzi constant, p.

My visit to meet my nephew was the last bit of research I needed to complete my theory. While there, I noticed that my sister-in-law literally could not put down her camera. Despite being awake for only an hour or so total per day, baby T was the subject of at least 15 pictures per 24 hour period. In a way I felt a little weird about not taking that many pictures of B but it was not so long ago that my numbers were similar.

One of the few pictures I took on the trip but I simply had to document this monumental achievement.

When B was new and tiny, every moment felt magical and every day seemed so different from the one before. Certainly I needed to document every blink and burp! As the weeks and months passed, however, the rate of my photo snapping began to slowly decline. A cursory observation of my iPhoto library would suggest that I've simply started slacking in my photography but a keener scientific eye would find a pattern in the apparent chaos and this is where my theory comes in.


I've found that the amount of time elapsed between baby photos remains constant with respect to the total lifespan of one's child. The paparazzi constant, therefore, defines this consistent percentage. When a baby is just a day old, every second is such a huge chunk of their life up until that point that you feel it must be documented. By the time the child is a few weeks old, the seconds don't seem as important but the hours do. Presumably by the time they are a year or more parents become comfortable documenting their child's every marvelous achievement at daily or even weekly intervals. Although the photo rate slows it never ever tapers to zero, perish the thought! The number of photos taken appears to follow an exponential decay model...

P = 30 e^(-pt),

         where P = # of photos per day

p = paparazzi constant

t = age in days of baby

$$

Based on my research, I believe that the value of p is about .05. You can check the numbers yourself and we'll call that a peer review. I sit here awaiting the deluge of phone calls from publishers.
 

All you have to do to vote is click the banner! You can vote every day!