Excellent article, and the illustrations do a fantastic job of visualizing your points.

I agree with your assertion, by the way. However, it does take something 'extra' (the "if you really want to spend money" part at the bottom) to make something into a total social phenomenon. That said, I still believe the magic sauce could be inventing something that is just so downright amazing (ex.: a perpetual motion machine) that people (and the news) must talk about it. That is the dream-stricken inventor in me, at least.