What is the Pentagon Pizza Theory?
The theory suggests that unusual pizza delivery activity near the Pentagon could indicate late-night government operations. The idea gained attention after reports that pizza deliveries spiked before major events like the 1990 Kuwait invasion.
How is the Pizza Index calculated?
The index compares current activity at monitored locations to their typical activity for that time. A score of 100 = normal. Higher scores indicate increased activity relative to baseline patterns.
Where does the data come from?
We use publicly available Google Maps "Popular Times" data, which shows how busy a location is compared to typical patterns. This is OSINT (Open Source Intelligence) — no private data is accessed.
What do the status levels mean?
NORMAL (Index <120): Activity within expected range.
ELEVATED (120-149): Noticeably busier than usual.
HIGH (≥150): Significant spike — something may be happening.
How often is data updated?
Live data refreshes every 30 seconds. If live scraping fails, we fall back to estimated data based on historical patterns. The "Data Source" indicator shows current data freshness.
Is this actual intelligence?
No. This is a novelty/educational project for entertainment. While the underlying theory is historically interesting, this tracker should not be used for any serious decision-making.
What locations are monitored?
We track 5 pizza restaurants within 1.5 miles of the Pentagon in Arlington, VA. These were selected based on proximity and known popularity with Pentagon personnel.
What does "vs usual" mean on location cards?
It shows how current activity compares to typical activity for that specific time. +20% means 20% busier than normal; -15% means 15% quieter than expected.