Preserving privacy in the age of Big Data

1 May 2020

Authors: Sara Spinks

Siân Brooke, researcher at the Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, explores the challenges of a data driven economy and the impact on our personal privacy in the digital ...
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Cutting congestion and minimising traffic disruption using online mapping data

6 March 2020

Authors: Sara Spinks

In his latest blog, OII postdoctoral researcher Dr Chico Q. Camargo explains why using data from online mapping tools can help policymakers and planners better predict traffic flow and ...
Read More Cutting congestion and minimising traffic disruption using online mapping data

Algorithmic bias within online behavioural advertising means public could be missing out, says Associate Professor Sandra Wachter

26 November 2019

Authors: Sara Spinks

Behavioural advertising describes the placement of particular adverts in the places we visit online, based on assumptions of what we want to see. In her article, “Affinity Profiling and ...
Read More Algorithmic bias within online behavioural advertising means public could be missing out, says Associate Professor Sandra Wachter

Digital technology has the power to transform health care, but is only part of the solution

11 July 2019

Authors: Luciano Floridi

As the NHS embraces the use of digital technology, AI expert Professor Luciano Floridi, Oxford Internet Institute, University of Oxford, warns of the inherent risks in relying solely on ...
Read More Digital technology has the power to transform health care, but is only part of the solution

Connected Life 2019: Data and Disorder

20 June 2019

Authors: Sara Spinks

The Oxford Internet Institute is delighted to be supporting Connected Life 2019 in conjunction with the London School of Economics (LSE), and the Alan Turing Institute (The Turing). This ...
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Computational Propaganda and Political Big Data: Moving Toward a More Critical Research Agenda

14 December 2017

Authors: Gillian Bolsover

Computational propaganda has recently exploded into public consciousness. The U.S. presidential campaign of 2016 was marred by evidence, which continues to emerge, of targeted political propaganda and the use ...
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Perspective: Should We Regulate Digital Platforms?

14 December 2017

Authors: Gillian Bolsover

I invited Phil Howard and Gillian Bolsover in November of 2016 to guest edit this special issue of Big Data on ‘‘Computational Propaganda.’’ I am delighted at the collection ...
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Social Bots: Human-Like by Means of Human Control?

14 December 2017

Authors: Gillian Bolsover

Abstract: Social bots are currently regarded an influential but also somewhat mysterious factor in public discourse and opinion making. They are considered to be capable of massively distributing propaganda in ...
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Japan’s 2014 General Election: Political Bots, Right-Wing Internet Activism, and Prime Minister Shinzō Abe’s Hidden Nationalist Agenda

14 December 2017

Authors: Gillian Bolsover

Abstract: In this article, we present results on the identification and behavioral analysis of social bots in a sample of 542,584 Tweets, collected before and after Japan’s 2014 general election. ...
Read More Japan’s 2014 General Election: Political Bots, Right-Wing Internet Activism, and Prime Minister Shinzō Abe’s Hidden Nationalist Agenda

Detecting Bots on Russian Political Twitter

14 December 2017

Authors: Gillian Bolsover

Abstract: Automated and semiautomated Twitter accounts, bots, have recently gained significant public attention due to their potential interference in the political realm. In this study, we develop a methodology for ...
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Improving Predictive Accuracy in Elections

14 December 2017

Authors: Gillian Bolsover

Abstract: The problem of accurately predicting vote counts in elections is considered in this article. Typically, small-sample polls are used to estimate or predict election outcomes. In this study, a ...
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Harvesting Social Signals to Inform Peace Processes Implementation and Monitoring

14 December 2017

Authors: Gillian Bolsover

Abstract: Peace processes are complex, protracted, and contentious involving significant bargaining and compromising among various societal and political stakeholders. In civil war terminations, it is pertinent to measure the pulse ...
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Fake News: A Technological Approach to Proving the Origins of Content, Using Blockchains

14 December 2017

Authors: Gillian Bolsover

Abstract: In this article, we introduce a prototype of an innovative technology for proving the origins of captured digital media. In an era of fake news, when someone shows ...
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Survey: State of the Art of Data Science in Local Government

30 October 2017

Authors: Jonathan Bright

The Data Science for Local Government project seeks to map and understand the use of both novel data analysis techniques and novel data sources in local governments across Europe. ...
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Estimating local commuting patterns from geolocated Twitter data

25 October 2017

Authors: Jonathan Bright

Over the last decade or so there has been an explosion of research interest in the area of measuring (and forecasting) of traffic and commuting patterns. Part of this ...
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Critical Perspectives on the Role of Mathematics in Data-Science

5 July 2017

Authors: Patrick Allo

Critical evaluations of data science often combine ethical and epistemological criteria to explain how the practice of data science can fail to deliver on its promises to create better ...
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#MacronLeaks changed political campaigning. Why Macron succeeded where Clinton failed

19 May 2017

Authors: Vyacheslav Polonski

Using AI to counteract computational propaganda may be our only hope to preserve democracy as we know it Last week’s massive hack of the Macron campaign and the sharing of ...
Read More #MacronLeaks changed political campaigning. Why Macron succeeded where Clinton failed

New Publication: Engagement in the Knowledge Economy: Regional Patterns of Content Creation with a Focus on Sub-Saharan Africa

15 March 2017

Authors: Sanna Ojanpera

We have a new publication out: Ojanperä, S., Graham, M., Straumann, R. K., De Sabbata, S., & Zook, M. (2017). Engagement in the knowledge economy: Regional patterns of content ...
Read More New Publication: Engagement in the Knowledge Economy: Regional Patterns of Content Creation with a Focus on Sub-Saharan Africa

Join our team: we’re hiring a Data Scientist / Data Hacker

10 November 2016

Authors: Mark Graham

Data Scientist/Data Hacker Oxford Internet Institute, 1 St Giles, Oxford Grade 7: £31,076 – £38,183 p.a. The Oxford Internet Institute is a leading centre for research into individual, collective ...
Read More Join our team: we’re hiring a Data Scientist / Data Hacker

Webcasts for the Symposium on Big Data and Development

28 October 2016

Authors: Mark Graham

The Symposium on Big Data and Development that we hosted in Oxford last month was a great success. There were some excellent papers there, and there are now range of ...
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Tag: Big Data