Washington, Feb 24 (IANS) Sophisticated math and science can be used to understand urban crime patterns, research says. Anthropologist Jeffrey Brantingham works with the Los Angeles Police Department to analyse crime patterns by studying hunter-gatherers in Northern Tibet.

'Criminal offenders are essentially hunter-gatherers; they forage for opportunities to commit crimes,' said Brantingham, associate professor of anthropology at the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA).

'The behaviours that a hunter-gatherer uses to choose a wildebeest versus a gazelle are the same calculations a criminal uses to choose a Honda versus a Lexus,' he added.

Brantingham has been working for years with Andrea Bertozzi, UCLA professor of maths, to apply sophisticated math to urban crime patterns.

With their colleagues, they have built a mathematical model that allows them to analyse different types of criminal 'hotspots' - areas where many crimes occur, at least for a time. They believe their findings apply not only to Los Angeles but to cities worldwide.

Bertozzi presented her findings at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in San Diego, says a UCLA release.

They will appear as the cover feature in the March 2 issue of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).