I think the plan there was, that if I shade in enough of the background, the hidden hand which is holding that clump of grass will be revealed; tis us, entrained and entranced in an agreed-upon decision to trod, as a group, across the pasture for one reason or another, by our own free will, misguided as it may be.

I'm not familiar with the bystander effect, and that formula is new to me as well, but I can see how, logically, the world would improve were empathy to become more abundant.