Investing in Penn’s data science ecosystem

Led by the School of Engineering and Applied Science, Penn's IDEAS initiative builds upon the steadily gathering momentum of its data-centric research. The Warren Center for Network & Data Sciences has been a major catalyst for this type of work, generating foundational research on ethical algorithms and data privacy.

• Computer and Information Science
• Electrical and Systems Engineering
• Physics and Astronomy

University professorship for Konrad Kording

Konrad Kording, who holds joint appointments in the Department of Neuroscience in the Perelman School of Medicine and the Department of Bioengineering in the School of Engineering and Applied Science, will become the Nathan Francis Mossell University Professor.

• Bioengineering
• Neuroscience

Anita L. Allen explains why Facebook’s decision to shut down its facial-recognition system is good for privacy rights

Earlier this month, Facebook announced that it was shutting down its Face Recognition system and will delete more than a billion people’s individual facial-recognition templates. Penn Law spoke with Anita L. Allen about her insights on Facebook’s decision and what may have prompted it.

• Law
• Philosophy

What Big Data Reveals About Online Extremism

Homa Hosseinmardi and her colleagues at Duncan Watts' Computational Social Science Lab studied browsing data from 300,000 Americans to gain insights into how online radicalization occurs — and to help develop solutions.

• Communication
• Computer and Information Science
• Operations Information and Decisions

One Person, Many Needs: How Customer Centricity Has Changed

In a recent workshop, Eric Bradlow encouraged firms to think beyond the old-school definition of Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) — a metric that captures the worth of the entire relationship between firm and consumer. He said the modern definition of CLV includes how a single customer’s needs change over time.

• Economics
• Education
• Marketing
• Statistics

Social Media Bots May Appear Human, but Their Similar Personalities Give Them Away

Social bots, or automated social media accounts that pose as genuine people, have infiltrated all manner of discussions, including conversations about consequential topics, such as the COVID-19 pandemic. A new study from Lyle Ungar and collaborators gives a closer look at how these bots disguise themselves.

• Computer and Information Science

School of Arts & Sciences Launches New Initiative in Data Driven Discovery

The School of Arts & Sciences has announced the establishment of a new Data Driven Discovery (DDD) Initiative, which will act as a hub for data science education and research across the School. Bhuvnesh Jain will serve as one the initiative’s inaugural co-directors.

Clinician peer networks remove race and gender bias

A recent study published in Nature Communications offers striking evidence that network science can be used to remove race and gender bias in clinical settings. The research, led by Damon Centola, offers an effective new way to ensure safer, more equitable health care for women and minorities through managing clinician peer networks.

• Communication
• Sociology

Machine Learning Improved Greece’s Border Screening for COVID-19

Travel in Greece was safer in the summer of 2020, thanks to a new approach to COVID-19 border screening developed by Hamsa Bastani and collaborators. A new study in Nature demonstrates how Eva—a machine-learning system using up-to-date data on incoming travelers and their COVID-19 test results—helped Greece open for tourism.

• Operations Information and Decisions

Ezekiel Dixon-Román on the Facebook whistleblower

In a Senate hearing earlier this month, former Facebook project manager Frances Haugen testified against the tech giant, saying that the company “put profits before people.” Penn Today spoke with Ezekiel Dixon-Róman about the significance of Haugen’s evidence and what it could mean for the future.

• Social Policy