International Debate

The US Professoriat and the Limits of Free Speech
Communication
May 9, 2018

The US Professoriat and the Limits of Free Speech

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A Remedy for Broken Science, Or an Attempt to Undercut It?
Higher Education Reform
May 8, 2018

A Remedy for Broken Science, Or an Attempt to Undercut It?

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Humans Broke the Internet. Understanding Them Better Might Help Fix It
Communication
April 20, 2018

Humans Broke the Internet. Understanding Them Better Might Help Fix It

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Facebook, SSRC Bravely Reinvigorate Research Collaboration
News
April 20, 2018

Facebook, SSRC Bravely Reinvigorate Research Collaboration

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March for Science II Set for This Saturday

March for Science II Set for This Saturday

“We do not merely react to the problems of today, we look forward, aspiring toward an inclusive, integrated vision for the future of science and science policy.” Dont miss out on the March for Science. At least 230 satellite marches around the world this year, with the main March for Science taking place in Washington, D.C. This Saturday, April 14th.

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Democracy Threatened When Census Undercounts Populations

Democracy Threatened When Census Undercounts Populations

The 2020 U.S. Census is still two years away, but experts and civil rights groups are already disputing the results. Professor Emily Merchant’s research on the international history of demography demonstrates that the question of how to equitably count the population is not new, nor is it unique to the United States.

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COSSA, Others Fear Fallout from Census Including Citizenship Question

COSSA, Others Fear Fallout from Census Including Citizenship Question

UPDATED: Many academic groups that use U.S Census data for research fear the negative effects of including a question about citizenship on the 2020 count. “Adding a new citizenship question to the 2020 Census would destroy any chance for an accurate count, discard years of careful research, and increase costs significantly,” wrote The Leadership Conference, an umbrella group.

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What Exactly is ‘Psychographics’?

What Exactly is ‘Psychographics’?

Cambridge Analytica’s approach to crunching social media data represents a step change in how analytics can today be used as a tool to generate insights – and to exert influence.

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Will Cambridge Analytica Hurt Legitimate Research?

Will Cambridge Analytica Hurt Legitimate Research?

It is right to believe that researchers and their employers value research integrity, says Annabel Latham. But instances where trust has been betrayed by an academic – even if it’s the case that data used for university research purposes wasn’t caught in the crossfire – will have a negative impact on whether participants will continue to trust researchers.

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Educational Reforms Still Have No Answer for School System

Educational Reforms Still Have No Answer for School System

The Gates Foundation is regrouping after its latest school improvement disappointment, but it’s not bowing out of the education reform business. As the philanthropic powerhouse led by Bill and Melinda Gates explained in their latest annual letter to the public, it ended its effort to overhaul teacher evaluation systems after determining that these efforts were failing to generate intended results.

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Interrogating Ethnography – and Coming Up with the Wrong Answers?

Interrogating Ethnography – and Coming Up with the Wrong Answers?

A recent critique of Alice Goffman’s influential 2014 book, “On the Run,” has, in effect, put ethnography conducted in the United states on trial. Here, our Robert Dingwall argues a case for the defense.

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How Do We Head Off the Collateral Damage of Big Data?

How Do We Head Off the Collateral Damage of Big Data?

Hamish Robertson and Joanne Travaglia argue that big data quantification is now not only a mechanism for extracting information but has become an idea with social and political power in its own right. The lack of critique of quantitative methods and their application contributes to the existing and potentially coercive power of digital information systems and their attendant methods, and enhances the potential for collateral damage.

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