Instagram could predict the next top model at the upcoming New York Fashion Week, according to scientists from Indiana University.
The scientists used physical and professional information regarding fashion models, in addition to data collected from Instagram in the fall of last year, to create a formula that they are saying would be able to predict most of the popular new models who will appear on the runways of New York Fashion Week.
To be able to carry out the study, the scientists gathered the statistics of 400 models from Fashion Model Directory, which is a database of professional female models. Among the information that was tracked regarding the models include their eye color, hair color, height, waist, hip, dress and shoe size.
The researchers then looked at the agency that the models were working for, stating that models working for a top agency had almost ten times better chances of walking on the runway compared to other models coming from non-top agencies, if everything else was held equal.
After collecting the information, the team then focused on the Instagram accounts of the models, where they noted the number of posts that the models made, the likes that they received and how many comments have been made by other users on the accounts. They also noted whether the comments were mostly positive or negative.
"When we added the social information, we realized that we will be able to predict with above 80 percent accuracy whether a new face, a new model that just started ... would become popular, would run some top runway in the immediate future," said University of Southern California computer scientist Emilio Ferrara to CBS News. Ferrara was previously from Indiana University's School of Informatics and Computing.
To be able to test their formula on predicting who will be the most popular models, the team focused on 15 models that were only starting out in the fall/winter 2015 season of March. Popularity was defined as how many times a model walked the runway.
The results were impressive. Out of the eight models that researchers predicted would become the most popular, six of the models did. In addition, of the seven models that the team predicted would be least popular, six of the models did.
The scientists also found by looking at the accounts on Instagram of more established models that social media buzz could also help in predicting runway success for these models.
"Our analysis suggests that Instagram is as important as being cast by a top agency in terms of its ability to predict success on the runway," said Ferrara, adding that physical attributes by themselves do not translate into success.
Physical attributes, however, will help, as the study discovered that having a height of one inch taller compared to the average of the group about doubled the chances of the model in walking the runway, while those that have bigger hip, dress and shoe sizes lowered the model's chances.
