Network Science: Theory, Methods, and Applications Course Syllabus
Network Science: Theory, Methods, and Applications
GRAD 700R
Spring Semester, 2013
A pdf of the syllabus is available.
Over the last two decades there has been an explosion in the use of networks to describe a variety of phenomena, modeling areas as disparate as Greek archaeology to NCAA football and almost everything in between. In addition, network scientists are rapidly compiling new insights about networks themselves, for instance, showing commonalities of patterns of networks working at levels from global (transportation networks) to that of organizations (corporate networks) to that of people (social networks) to the cellular and molecular levels (protein networks).
Network science is a vast and rich topic, and thus we cannot hope to plumb its full depth in one semester. We aim to deal with topics of immediate interest to a team of Emory faculty who are using the tools of this discipline in their current research programs. Students will have the opportunity to explore areas of particular interest to them in their research projects.
Upon completion of this class, the successful student will be able to:
- define key concepts of network science;
- apply network science theory and methods to interpret problems in their area of interest in network terms; and
- manipulate and analyze network data pertaining to a problem of interest.
- Officially, Mondays and Wednesdays, 4 – 5:15 pm.
- Unofficially, Mondays and Wednesdays, 4:15 – 5:30 pm.
Class Organizer
Vicki Stover Hertzberg, Ph.D.
368 Grace Crum Rollins (GCR)
404-727-1881
vhertzb@emory.edu
Teacher's Assistant
Christina Mehta, MSPH
367 GCR
404-712-8405
Christina.mehta@emory.edu
Office Hours
- Dr. Hertzberg: TR 8 – 9 am; other hours by appointment
- Ms. Mehta: MW 2-4 pm; other hours by appointment
Students will be evaluated on the basis of several components, described below. Students will be expected to attend class and to participate. Homework and lab assignments will be given weekly and students must turn these in one week after assignment. There will be a class blog on which students will be expected to post twice during the semester. There will be a final project as well, with a poster presentation and term paper associated with it.
| Component | Weight | Basis of Evaluation |
|---|---|---|
| Class Participation | 6% | Thoughtfulness, originality, activity |
| Homework assignments | 24% | Correctness, quality of write-up |
| Lab assignments | 25% | Correctness, quality of write-up |
| Blog entries | 20% (2% for each post, 1% for each comment, 2% for inviting successful guest post) | Thoughtfulness, correctness, clarity |
| Final Project | 25% (5% for Milepost 1, 5% for Milepost 2, 15% for Poster presentation) | Results, conclusions, thoughtfulness, content, depth, visual aids, clarity |
There is no assigned textbook. Reading assignments will be made each week. However, many people feel better about having a textbook. Here are a few suggestions, two of which are free, and others that are not.
Free
- Introduction to Social Network Methods. Robert Hanneman and Mark Riddle.
- Network Science. Albert-László Barabási (only 4 chapters available)
Alternatives (for purchase):
- Networks: A Very Short Introduction. Guido Caldarelli & Michele Catanzano
- Networks, Crowds, and Markets. David Easley & Jon Kleinberg
- Social Network Analysis: Methods and Applications. Stanley Wasserman & Katherine Faust
- Social and Network Methods. Matthew Jackson
- The Structure of Complex Networks. Ernesto Estrada
- Social Networks and Health: Models, Methods, and Applications. Thomas Valente.
- Six Degrees: The Science of a Connected Age. Duncan Watts
- Linked: How Everything Is Connected to Everything Else, and What It Means. Albert-László Barabási
- Bursts: The Hidden Patterns Behind Everything We Do, from Your E-mail to Bloody Crusades. Albert-László Barabási
Written assignments must be double-spaced, single-sided, documents with font size of 12 or greater. Late assignments will not be accepted without prior arrangement. The files must be in PDF format. The naming convention is as follows:
- For Homework assignments: yourlastname_homeworkn.pdf
- For Mileposts: yourlastname_milepostn.pdf
- For Lab assignments: yourlastname_labn.pdf
| Date | What is Due Then? |
|---|---|
| *Blog posts are due at 6 pm on the assigned date. Blog comments are due at 11 pm on the assigned date. Homework, lab assignments, and mileposts must be uploaded to Blackboard by 6 pm on the date indicated. | |
| January 22 | Blog posts* (A-L); Blog Comments* (M-Z) |
| January 23 | Homework 1* |
| January 27 | Blog posts (M-Z); Blog Comments (A-L) |
| January 30 | Milepost 1* |
| February 3 | Blog posts (A-L); Blog Comments (M-Z) |
| February 4 | Lab 1* |
| February 10 | Blog posts (M-Z); Blog Comments (A-L) |
| February 11 | Lab 2 |
| February 17 | Blog posts (A-L); Blog Comments (M-Z) |
| February 18 | Lab 3 |
| February 24 | Blog posts (M-Z); Blog Comments (A-L) |
| February 25 | Lab 4 |
| March 3 | Blog posts (A-L); Blog Comments (M-Z) |
| March 4 | Lab 5 |
| March 17 | Blog posts (M-Z); Blog Comments (A-L) |
| March 20 | Milepost 2 |
| March 24 | Blog posts (A-L); Blog Comments (M-Z) |
| March 27 | Homework 2 |
| March 31 | Blog posts (M-Z); Blog Comments (A-L) |
| April 3 | Homework 3 |
| April 7 | Blog posts (A-L); Blog Comments (M-Z) |
| April 10 | Homework 4 |
| April 14 | Blog posts (M-Z); Blog Comments (A-L) |
| April 17 | Homework 5 |
| April 24 | Homework 6 |
| April 29 | Poster |
A Word about the Blog:
The purpose of the blog assignment is to stimulate a robust virtual discussion. Thus you are free to post and to comment more frequently than assigned. The blog assignments are due on Sunday evening so that everyone can read them prior to the class meetings on Monday and Wednesday.
Class Blog Posts:
Each week half of the students will be expected to post their reflections on the coming week’s readings, and half the students will be expected to comment on one or more of the current week’s posts. The next week the groups will alternate. Each blog post should be at least 250 words for undergraduate students, 400 words for graduate students. Posts should address the strengths and weaknesses of the readings and what further areas of investigation arise.
Class Blog Comments:
There is no word limit criterion for blog posts, but they are expected to be substantive. Thus rather than posting “I agree completely,” state why you agree. Posts are expected to be respectful. This does not mean that you cannot disagree with someone. Instead you should state your counterargument, rather than simply calling someone a knucklehead.
A Final Word about the Blog:
At least once in the semester you are expected to email one of the authors of the readings to invite her/him to comment on a blog post.
| Date | Presenter(s) | Details |
|---|---|---|
| 1/14 | Vicki Hertzberg | Course Intro; Network Science – A Brief HistoryDescriptionProfessor Hertzberg will give a brief history of network science, highlighting the parallel developments in the fields of mathematics, physics, and sociology. Professor Gould will give an overview of the basic concepts of networks, establishing common vocabulary. Reading
|
| Ron Gould | Basic Concepts | |
| 1/16 | Michele Benzi | The Network SpectrumDescriptionIn this lecture we will cover the notions of subgraph centrality and communicability, both of which have found widespread use in the analysis of complex networks. The main underlying idea is to exploit the fact that in real-world networks, there are many routes between two nodes besides the shortest path. Taking this into account results in more robust and effective means to rank the centrality of nodes and to measure the flow of information between nodes. From the mathematical point of view, these metrics can be expressed in terms of functions of the adjacency matrix (or of the graph Laplacian) associated with the network. In turn, these can be described using spectral graph theory, i.e., in terms of the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the various graph matrices. These concepts have been successfully applied to the study of protein-protein interaction networks and in the analysis of social conflicts. Other potential applications include the spreading of rumors, or fads, in social networks as well as the spreading of viruses over computer networks. Reading
|
| 1/21 | MLK Day – NO CLASS | |
| 1/23 | M. Grigni | Network Structure and FormationDescriptionProfessor will continue the discussion of fundamental network structures, such as betweenness and homophily. He will give particular attention to the algorithmic problem of partitioning such networks. Reading
|
| 1/28 | Lab 1 | Intro to Gephi |
| 1/30 | Stefan Boettcher | TBN |
| 2/4 | Lab 2 | Gephi 2 |
| 2/6 | Sandra Blakely | Networks in the Greek and Roman World WorldDescriptionNetwork analysis is both promising and problematic for archaeological research in the Greek and Roman world. The promise is the correlation to the intellectual models and the lived experience of our objects of study. Plato referred to the cultures of the ancient Mediterranean as frogs around a pond; behind his metaphor was a historical reality of geographically scattered groups who relied on long-distance networks for economic, political and military success. The challenge is the data at our disposal, which are preserved only partially and often in extremely fragmentary condition, as well as the variations in the critical application of network analysis. We will review several of these applications, and then consider how network analysis may be brought to the Mystery cult of the Great Gods of Samothrace. Reading
|
| 2/11 | Lab 3 | Gephi 3 |
| 2/13 | TBA | |
| 2/18 | Lab 4 | Gephi 4 |
| 2/20 | Mike Prietula | TBN |
| 2/25 | Lab 5 | Gephi 5 |
| 2/27 | Monica Capra | Complex Networks in EconomicsDescriptionNot surprisingly, recent theoretical and methodological advances in Complex Networks have impacted how we model and analyze economic interactions. There are applications of Complex Networks to a variety of areas in economics including Industrial Organization, Information Economics, International Trade, Finance, and Labor Economics. Yet, the area that may be most impacted by these new theories and methods is Development Economics. In this session, Professor Capra will present an overview of the main applications of Complex Networks in economics, emphasizing how CN has impacted how we see economic development. Reading
|
| 3/4 | David Davis | TBN |
| 3/6 | Roberto Franzosi | TBN |
| 3/11 | Spring Break – NO CLASS | |
| 3/13 | Spring Break – NO CLASS | |
| 3/18 | A. Veneziani | TBN |
| 3/20 | Brad Pearce | Application of network analysis software and web-based databanks in molecular pathophysiology researchDescriptionHuman disease typically involves disruption of molecular networks as opposed to isolated abnormalities in an individual gene or protein. Advances in “-omics” technologies holds the promise to measure molecular differences between individual people, and discern underlying pathways of disease causation. However, this requires bioinformatic approaches to elucidate complex multilevel interactions between molecules, cells, and tissues. We will overview web-based software designed to facilitate this understanding, and work-through examples with one of these tools using data from a case-control study. Reading
|
| 3/25 | Ned Waller | TBN |
| 3/27 | Doug Lowery | Interpersonal Social Contacts in the ED |
| 4/1 | Gonzalo Vazquez | TBN |
| 4/3 | Lance Waller | Adding geographic location to network analysis: Examples from veterinary outbreaksDescriptionSocial networks provide a powerful way to assess contacts between infectious and susceptible individuals and influence the subsequent spread of infection. However, social interactions also occur in geographic space. In this session, we will explore how spatial locations can influence network analyses. The three papers explore this with respect to infectious disease in animals and illustrate how to incorporate geographic and social distance in attempts to control the spread of an outbreak. Reading
|
| 4/8 | Hannah Cooper | TBN |
| 4/10 | Ralph DiClemente | TBN |
| 4/15 | Julia Painter | TBN |
| 4/17 | Claire Sterk | TBN |
| 4/22 | Solveig Argeseanu | Friendships, health, and health behaviors |
| 4/24 | Vicki Hertzberg | More on Interpersonal Contacts |
| 4/29 | Student Groups | TBN |