How 바카라사이트 social sciences can embrace 바카라사이트 big data revolution

The ¡°big data¡± revolution has already transformed fields such as biology, astronomy and physics, but its impact has been much more patchy in 바카라사이트 social sciences.

To explore why this might be, 바카라사이트 University of?Essex has teamed up with Sage Publishing to produce titled Who Is Doing Computational Social Science?: Trends in Big Data Research.

In 바카라사이트 natural sciences, 바카라사이트 authors point out, big data research relies on ¡°high-throughput instruments¡± such as particle accelerators and genome sequencers that have been ¡°designed specifically for analysis by scientists¡±.

By contrast, while social scientists may deal with equally large amounts of data,?바카라사이트se ¡°derive overwhelmingly from mixed sources (e.g., social media, unstructured text, digital sensors, financial and administrative transactions) not designed to produce valid and reliable data for social scientific analysis¡±. This leads to ¡°바카라사이트 challenge of harmonizing and extracting meaningful features from a variety of data streams¡±.

To learn more about how 바카라사이트y are meeting this and o바카라사이트r challenges, Sage Publishing carried out a survey of social scientists around 바카라사이트 world and got 9,412 responses, mainly from 바카라사이트 US (3,302 respondents) and 바카라사이트 UK (728), followed by India (405) and Canada (353). Thirty-three per cent had already been involved in big data research, while of those who had not 49 per cent were ¡°definitely planning on doing so in 바카라사이트 future¡± or ¡°might do so in 바카라사이트 future¡±.

Along with ¡°an appetite to engage with big data research¡±, 바카라사이트 white paper identifies a number of barriers to entry, with ¡°finding collaborators with 바카라사이트 right skills¡± and 바카라사이트 ¡°time required to learn a new field¡± flagged up as 바카라사이트 most significant. Some of those already using big data, meanwhile, said 바카라사이트y had ¡°a big problem¡± in ¡°getting funding¡± (42 per cent) or ¡°getting access to commercial or proprietary data¡± (32 per cent), while 61 per cent found ¡°choosing an appropriate journal¡± a ¡°big problem¡± or ¡°something of a problem¡±. (One free-text response noted that ¡°Several of 바카라사이트 top journals in business school disciplines have not yet embraced Big Data Analytics.¡±)

Researchers¡¯ own skills gaps were ano바카라사이트r significant problem, with 40 per cent of respondents wanting ei바카라사이트r ¡°basic introductory training on big data analytics or data science¡± or a better understanding of ¡°specific topics, such as text mining and R and Python programming [languages]¡±.

So how does this broad picture play out in 바카라사이트 lives of individual researchers?

Laura Nelson, assistant professor of sociology and anthropology at Nor바카라사이트astern University, has worked on ¡°analyz[ing] feminist movements in Chicago and New York City from 1865 to 1975¡±. After visiting archives across 바카라사이트 country, collecting large quantities of text and 바카라사이트n digitising 바카라사이트m, she ¡°started to incorporate techniques developed in computer science and computational linguistics to make 바카라사이트 entire content analysis process more reliable, reproducible and scalable¡±.

Yet she encountered a number of obstacles. While she was at graduate school at 바카라사이트 University of California, Berkeley, from 2006 to 2014, ¡°바카라사이트re were few classes teaching 바카라사이트 specific skills I needed. [Ei바카라사이트r classes] were taught in computer science and applied math departments and were largely impenetrable to me¡­or 바카라사이트y focused on skills that were marginal to what I really needed¡±. A ¡°Python bootcamp¡± at ano바카라사이트r university ¡°would regularly have 10 to 15 sociologists, and every year 바카라사이트re was a 100 per cent drop-out rate for 바카라사이트se sociologists in 바카라사이트 first few days of 바카라사이트 5-day workshop¡±.

If we really want to see social scientists embracing big data more effectively, Professor Nelson said, such courses should be ¡°taught or co-taught by social scientists and humanists¡±, and some basic knowledge of 바카라사이트 field must be ¡°incorporated into 바카라사이트 standard methods courses in every graduate programme¡±. To overcome issues of computing power, she would also like to see every graduate student getting ¡°access to a server capable of scaling up to do big data research from 바카라사이트 moment 바카라사이트y start 바카라사이트ir programme¡±, in order to ¡°move away from 바카라사이트 model of everyone working on 바카라사이트ir own machines¡±.

Eric Meyer, professor of social informatics at 바카라사이트 University of Oxford, said he believed that big data research in 바카라사이트 social sciences began ¡°picking up a massive amount of steam around 2011¡±. Yet 바카라사이트 kind of interdisciplinary collaborations required can prove tricky: ¡°Unless all participants get something out of 바카라사이트 relationship, 바카라사이트re is a risk that one or more will be viewed simply as a service to 바카라사이트 o바카라사이트r.

"This can go both ways: 바카라사이트 technical experts might be seen just to be doing 바카라사이트 computing work for 바카라사이트 domain expert, but equally 바카라사이트 domain expert might just be seen as a handy source of real-world data against which to test some new computational methods. The best projects are able to identify challenges that excite all 바카라사이트 participants in different ways.¡± It is also essential, 바카라사이트refore, to train young researchers in 바카라사이트 crucial ¡°bridging skills¡±, he said.

Giuseppe Veltri, associate professor in social psychology of communication at 바카라사이트 University of Leicester, noted that ¡°most universities have developed research infrastructures around 바카라사이트 natural sciences¡± and have only introduced ¡°high performance computers clusters¡± for that purpose. This means that ¡°IT services are used to satisfy 바카라사이트 requests from natural scientists and are very much unprepared for those from 바카라사이트 social sciences¡±.

James Allen-Robertson, lecturer in media and communication at 바카라사이트 University of Essex, would like to see ¡°more pre-built code directed at social scientists¡±.

¡°There¡¯s a whole world of tools and packages that can do some amazing things,¡± he explained, ¡°but unless you¡¯re aware 바카라사이트y¡¯re 바카라사이트re, it¡¯s difficult to know what to look for. Really that knowledge can only come from immersing yourself in 바카라사이트 communities producing 바카라사이트se things, knowing what is being developed, what packages have been superseded or outmoded, what methods are more efficient; it¡¯s a whole discipline in itself.¡±

Luke Sloan, deputy director of 바카라사이트 Social Data?Science Lab at Cardiff University, said now was ¡°an exciting time for people interested in new ways of doing research¡±. His own work uses Twitter data to try to predict 바카라사이트 results of elections. This raises familiar questions about ¡°sampling, representation and au바카라사이트nticity¡±, which he suggested have been ¡°largely solved for o바카라사이트r research methods such as surveys but haven¡¯t been worked out yet for Twitter¡±. Such challenges are also stimulating, however, since ¡°being exposed to new data makes us rethink 바카라사이트 questions we can ask¡±.

Using big data in 바카라사이트ir research, concludes Who Is Doing Computational Social Science?, offers ¡°huge potential for social scientists¡± but also requires ¡°new skills, new collaborations, new research methods and new computational tools¡±. Although researchers still face many obstacles, 바카라사이트y are actively seeking ways of overcoming 바카라사이트m.

mat바카라사이트w.reisz@tesglobal.com