Networks and Technology

How has technology changed networks?

• A lot!
• “Civilization” technologies allowed for larger groups
• Books create cross-temporal knowledge networks

The impacts of internet technology

• Early adopters were optimistic
  • Tech could connect everyone
  • We would understand/appreciate each other through interaction

The dark side has become much more apparent

• Bots
  • Put people in “unearned” network positions
• Echo chambers
• Mis/disinformation

But also some important benefits

• Finding people with niche interests
• Support groups for those who are different
  • More autonomy over who is “in” your network
• Niche information
• Opportunity to communicate/collaborate without networks

Technology has huge implications for network research

• Social media has made large-scale human networks visible
  • Degree distributions
  • Network paths (six degrees of separation)
  • Communication patterns
  • Information and belief diffusion

Social science is being reshaped by online data

• We can look at thousands or millions of people
• Starting to answer questions like:
  • When do people change their minds?
  • Why do people choose to cooperate?
  • What predicts participating in a new group?
• We can finally see global networks instead of just small portions

But, there are some important caveats

• Technology doesn’t only record interactions, it shapes them
  • Is this true of people, or true of Facebook/Reddit/Twitter?
• Human systems respond to observation and evolve
• Much is unobserved
  • These are often “thin slices”
  • In what other ways are people communicating?
  • What other technologies or circumstances shape their behavior?

Those who understand networks have an advantage

• Advertisers, activists, and politicians who understand network principles like homophily, clustering, and complex contagion will see their messages spread farther and faster.