After hearing about the applications of big data for better ads, song recommendations and social media analysis, nothing makes me happier than hearing about technologists coming together with non-profits to use data to fight human trafficking. Read more »
A look at which types of trending topics can be captured in Twitter data, the important ways they can be characterized, and the key distinguishing features of trends. Read more »
Why is privacy so hard? Sociologist Danah Boyd, who specializes in the way people use online social networks, says in the latest issue of MIT’s Technology Review it’s because “the way privacy is encoded into software doesn’t match the way we handle it in real life.” Read more »
Is the rise of Facebook partly a result of “white flight” away from MySpace? That’s the argument made by sociologist Danah Boyd in a chapter from a recent book based on her research into how teens use social networks, but her case is far from convincing. Read more »
The push to free up more public information and make government more transparent is one of the primary goals of the “Government 2.0″ movement. But sociologist Danah Boyd warned attendees at the recent Gov 2.0 conference that there is a downside to all this new transparency. Read more »
Android is the hot smartphone platform currently, and that means the competition has it squarely in its sites. HTC has been the target for Apple and Microsoft, but Android is the definite victim. The Microsoft agreement HTC signed may have a long-term affect on Android. Read more »
Google, to its credit, is rolling with the punches thrown in response to its Buzz launch. Members of the product team spoke on an inside-the-scenes panel at SXSW today, facing industry-wide criticism as well as cutting attacks over privacy issues from keynoter & researcher Danah Boyd. Read more »
