All of the applications above are predicated on a source of data about attention-focus in a given community. One may attempt to acquire data on some organism communities by direct observation. In human communities, self-reporting and communication-traffic analysis may also be useful particularly for data on short-term changes in attention-focus. A possible self-reporting strategy might for instance involve experience-sampling\cite{Hektner2007} by selecting a layer from 1 to 6 on your phone, when the occasional request comes in.
Related references:
Joel M. Hektner, Jennifer A. Schmidt, and M. Csikszentmihalyi (2007) Experience Sampling Method: Measuring the Quality of Everyday Life (Thousand Oaks: Sage Publishing) google.