Networks, Data, and Society (NERDS)

Ane at Kortdage
2023-11-01 - 2023-11-02
Kvalitetsanalyser af de danske cykelstidata
Ane Rahbek Vierø

Danmark kaldes ofte for en “cykelnation“, men afspejler det sig også i vores cykeldata? Mange ønsker i dag at arbejde mere strategisk med udbygningen af cykelinfrastruktur – herunder at gøre brug af GIS-analyser af de nuværende cykelforhold – men de tilgængelige data er ofte af varierende eller ukendt kvalitet, hvilket sår tvivl om anvendeligheden af data og analyser.
Indlægget vil præsentere highlights fra en landsdækkende analyse af kvaliteten af cykelinfrastruktur byggende på GeoDanmark- og OpenStreetMap-data. Analysen er baseret på en nyt open-source værktøj udviklet til formålet. I præsentation vil vi give eksempler på, hvordan man kan bruge kvalitetsanalyser til at forstå muligheder og begrænsninger i egne cykeldata, og komme med ideer til, hvordan kvalitetsanalyser kan understøtte anvendelsen af crowdsourcede datasæt.
Godkendte Abstracts

Arianna at Complex Networks 2023
2023-11-28 - 2023-11-30
The 12th International Conference on Complex Networks and their Applications, Menton (French Riviera), 28-30 November 2023
Extended abstract 1 (poster): Tell Me Who You Are and I Will Predict Your Vulnerability to Political Persuasion Techniques w. Lucio La Cava and Alessia Antelmi
Given the evolving role of social media in political communication and the strategic use of these platforms by politicians to shape public opinion, research has commonly focused on investigating computational propaganda as a means for automated information diffusion. Focusing on a less explored yet promising line, we aim to assess political persuasion in digital contexts by introducing a computational framework that combines Natural Language Processing and Network Science methods to investigate the linkage between persuasion techniques on social media and personality traits of online political audiences. Our final goal is to enhance public awareness of political tactics and encourage critical thinking in response to the online spread of political information.
Extended abstract 2 (lighting talk, awarded as Best Lightning Talk): Finding Hidden Swingers in the 2022 Italian Elections Twitter Discourse w. Lucio La Cava and Alessia Antelmi
The volume of the Italian online political discourse on social media has recently increased, but the coverage level does not compare with other Countries such as the US. Nonetheless, researchers focused on studying polarization and homophily concerning political debates or investigating the role of populism in online engagement. In this research landscape, the analysis of political preference shifts through social media remains to be explored. We aim to bridge this gap by examining the Twitter discourse during the 2022 Italian general elections, with a specific emphasis on political “swingers”. In particular, our findings indicate a stable political discourse in Italy, yet they also uncover a growing presence of political swingers willing to shift their support to significantly different factions.

Roberta's Keynote at the CHR 2023
2023-12-07 11:00 - 12:30 (Europe/Copenhagen) | ÉCOLE POUR L’INFORMATIQUE ET LES TECHNIQUES AVANCÉES, Paris, France
Roberta gave a keynote talk at the Computational Humanities Research Conference 2023 (CHR 2023). The conference is held in Paris, 6-8 December 2023. Roberta’s gave an online keynote talk, entitled “Quantifying the dynamics of impact in science and art”.

Arianna at NetSciX24
2024-01-22 - 2024-01-25
NetSciX24, Venice (Italy), 22-25 January 2024 https://netscix2024.netscisociety.org/
Extended abstract (regular talk): The Storm Within: Hurricanes and Socio-Political Leaning in Climate Change Group Behavior w. Luca Maria Aiello
Climate change is a pressing global crisis marked by a surge in extreme weather events, requiring societal responses and mitigation efforts. Focusing on the significant events of the 2022 Atlantic Hurricane season, we scrutinize their impact on climate change-related group behavior on Reddit. By investigating topical discussion groups, categorizing them based on socio-political leaning, and analyzing their responses to climate change discourse, our study aims to illuminate how extreme climate events influence engagement across diverse socio-political spectra. This examination contributes valuable insights into the dynamic interplay between climate crises and online discourse, offering a nuanced perspective for effective climate communication and intervention strategies.

NERDS at D3A
2024-02-01 - 2024-02-02
https://d3aconference.dk/program/
SESSION #3 – AN INTERDISCIPLINARY DIVE INTO CLIMATE IT
ROOM: Sal G
The climate emergency is a multidimensional and wicked problem that requires a range of responses at various scales (local, regional, national, and planetary). Whether the issue of concern is renewable energy and carbon reduction, biodiversity loss, transport, agriculture, the circular economy, mitigation and adaptation, or more desirable economies, IT plays a central role. This seminar engages with the intersection between climate and digital technologies from different disciplinary perspectives to highlight how this intersection is multilayered and fraught with tension.
Our first speaker will show how data-driven analysis can help urban planners design better infrastructure for active mobility like cycling. By addressing active mobility infrastructure from a system-wide and strategic angle, data science can identify shortcomings in, for example, cycling accessibility and help build more sustainable cities. In this talk they will present how network science can guide investments in cycling infrastructure, introduce the importance of incorporating subjective perceptions when quantifying bikeability, and finally discuss the limitations and criticism of bicycle network research.
Our second speaker will add to this perspective by looking at applications of spatiotemporal data analysis and forecasting in topics related to sustainability. Connecting to the previous talk, the speaker will give examples of data gaps in last mile logistics and how prediction models can have a positive impact on the efficiency and sustainability of delivery systems. Secondly, she will discuss spatiotemporal data processing in the use case of renewable energy, particularly wind power prediction. The speaker will discuss new machine learning approaches that leverage location information to predict wind power output and the associated costs of running more complex large models.
Finally, the third speaker will present a framing of the overall session by asking ‘what is meant by “Climate IT”?’ And discuss this concept in relation to related discussions of ’twin transition’. The paper will consequently turn to what we legitimately can expect and demand of the role of IT in green transitions and processes of sustainability. After these three short talks, there will be room for discussion with input from the audience.
Overall, the panel aims to explore the tense relations between digital technologies and climate change. On the one hand, it highlights the ways in which these technologies can create the fact-based, large-scale knowledge that can equip us to tackle the very complex problems our societies are faced with. On the other hand, the panel also critically engages with how the revolutionary promises made by digital technologies often make us gloss over their growing climate impact. Together, the different perspectives enable us to gain a deeper and more nuanced understanding of how to address arguably the most pressing challenge of our times, the climate emergency.
Format
Seminar with three short talks for questions and discussion.
Theme
The role of digital technologies in addressing societal challenges
Target Audience
The session is meant for anyone with an interest in climate change, both academics from different disciplaines and IT professionals.
There is no maximun number of participants for the session.
Organizers

Ane Rahbeck Vierø, Ph.D. Fellow, Department of Computer Science, IT University of Copenhagen
Maria Sinziiana Astefanoai, Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science, IT University of Copenhagen
Steffen Dalsgaard, Professor at the Department of Business IT, Head of Center for Climate IT, IT University of Copenhagen

Data Science Seminar with Paul Smaldino
2025-09-24 12:30 - 13:15 | ITU, 3F07, Kaj Munks Vej 11, Copenhagen, 2300, Denmark
Title: Why Use An Evolutionary Perspective To Study Culture?
Abstract: Theodosius Dobzhansky famously wrote in 1973, “Nothing in biology makes sense except in light of evolution.” Biology is, of course, the study of living things. Humans are living things. Therefore, to study humans is to engage in biology. Yet, despite the prominent of Darwinian theory in the study of non-human animals, there is still widespread resistance to an evolutionary mindset when studying humans. Much of this is understandable. In the 1970s, Darwinian theory had little to say about human behavior and culture. Contributions from “social Darwinism” were racist and misguided, while evolutionary psychology has largely failed to capture the richness of the human experience. I will discuss an expanded view of evolutionary systems, including gene-culture coevolution and modern theories of cultural evolution, that show us why an evolutionary perspective offers much to the study of human cognition, behavior, and culture. I will highlight some of my own work in this area, focusing on formal models of identity, social learning, and collective problem-solving.
Biography
Paul Smaldino is a Professor of Cognitive and Information Science and a member of the Quantitative and Systems Biology graduate group at University of California Merced, and an external professor at the Santa Fe Institute. Smaldino studies how behaviors emerge and evolve under social, cultural, or ecological pressures, often through the lens of mathematical and numerical modeling of social behavior and complex systems. Smaldino has degrees in physics and psychology and draws on this interdisciplinary background in his research.
Information for non-ITU participants: To enter the building (which is located in DR Byen), meet Jonas Juul here at 12:20 pm. He will let you in. Get in touch by writing Jonas Juul an email (see his website.)
