Automatically assembling a full census of an academic field

The composition of the scientific workforce shapes the direction of scientific research, directly through the selection of questions to investigate, and indirectly through its influence on the training of future scientists. In most fields, however, complete census information is difficult to obtain, complicating efforts to study workforce dynamics and the effects of policy. This is particularly true in computer science, which lacks a single, all-encompassing directory or professional organization. A full census of computer science would serve many purposes, not the least of which is a better understanding of the trends and causes of unequal representation in computing. Previous academic census efforts have relied on narrow or biased samples, or on professional society membership rolls. A full census can be constructed directly from online departmental faculty directories, but doing so by hand is prohibitively expensive and time-consuming. Here, we introduce a topical web crawler for automating the collection of faculty information from web-based department rosters, and demonstrate the resulting system on the 205 PhD-granting computer science departments in the U.S. and Canada. This method constructs a complete census of the field within a few minutes, and achieves over 99% precision and recall. We conclude by comparing the resulting 2017 census to a hand-curated 2011 census to quantify turnover and retention in computer science, in general and for female faculty in particular, demonstrating the types of analysis made possible by automated census construction.Comment: 11 pages, 6 figures, 2 table

On the Need for Reform of the H-1B Non-Immigrant Work Visa in Computer-Related Occupations

The H-1B program authorizes non-immigrant visas under which skilled foreign workers may be employed in the U.S., typically in computer-related positions. Congress greatly expanded the program in 1998 and then again in 2000, in response to heavy pressure from industry, which claimed a desperate software labor shortage. After presenting an overview of the H-1B program in Parts II and III, the Article will show in Part IV that these shortage claims are not supported by the data. Part V will then show that the industry\u27s motivation for hiring H-lBs is primarily a desire for cheap, compliant labor. The Article then discusses the adverse impacts of the H-1B program on various segments of the American computer-related labor force in Part VI, and presents proposals for reforms in Part VII

Design studies in Canada?

Dans ce bref article, nous traçons l’histoire de l’enseignement du design au Canada pendant les quarante dernières années et la comparons avec celle au Royaume-Uni, où l’on a assisté à une croissance significative des études du design et des programmes d’histoire du design. Nous soutenons qu’il est impératif de créer de nouveaux programmes d’études du design au Canada afin, d’une part, de renforcer l’éducation pratique en design et, de l’autre, de retenir les jeunes chercheurs et chercheures

Artificial Intelligence Index Report 2023 - HAI

Le ‘Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence (HAI, Stanford University) annonce la publication de son rapport annuel « Artificial Intelligence Index Report 2023″ qui rassemble et visualise les tendances relatives à l’intelligence artificielle

Gender Balance in Computer Science: How do Women View the Transition into a PhD?

A doctoral degree is a fundamental step towards academia, but one that not many women take. It is one of the key stages of the so-called ‘leaky pipeline’ that exists in Computer Science, and results in a lack of female faculty that might serve as role models for younger women in the field. Previous studies have touched on the elements that influence attrition and retention rates in Computer Science courses, as well as in the industry itself. However, the transition from a master’s degree to a doctoral degree requires further attention. With this dissertation, our goal was to understand the reason not many women go on to pursue a PhD in this area, and explore the emerging themes in an effort to attain useful data that might be used to ’patch’ this leak of women from academia. This was weighed against the alternative path of leaving academia for industry, and through a series of interviews - conducted and analysed according to the Socio-Technical Grounded Theory methodology - we gauged the common reasons women choose not to persist in their studies. This led us to nine core themes which hold major relevance to women in the path of academia, and to the topics of confidence and security, which tie all of these together and may be an essential clue towards making Computer Science PhDs more appealing to women. With these findings, we hope to help build the much-needed critical mass of women in Computer Science that will go on to balance the scales when it comes to gender in the field.Um doutoramento é um passo fundamental na progressão académica, mas um que muitas mulheres não dão. É uma das etapas chave da conhecida ’leaky pipeline’ que existe em Engenharia Informática e que resulta numa falta de docentes e investigadoras, as quais poderiam servir como modelos para mulheres mais jovens dentro da área. Estudos anteriores abordaram os elementos que influenciam o atrito no percurso de mulheres e suas taxas de rentenção, tanto em cursos de Engenharia Informática, como na própria indústria. No entanto, a transição do mestrado para um doutoramento requer mais estudo e atenção. Com esta dissertação, o nosso objetivo foi compreender as razões por que não há muitas mulheres a seguir um PhD nesta área, e explorar os temas emergentes num esforço para obter dados úteis para remendar esta fuga na pipeline académica. Estes dados foram ponderados contra o caminho alternativo de deixar o ambiente académico em favor da indústria, e através de uma série de entrevistas - conduzidas e analisadas de acordo com a metodologia de Socio-Technical Grounded Theory - aferimos as razões mais comuns pelas quais estas mulheres escolhem, ou não, persistir nos seus estudos. Isto levou-nos a nove temas centrais com grande relevância para as mulheres no caminho académico, e aos temas da confiança e segurança, que ligam todos eles e podem ser uma pista essencial para tornar os doutoramentos em Informática mais apelativos para as mulheres. Com estas descobertas, esperamos contribuir para a construção da necessária massa crítica de mulheres em Engenharia Informática, que poderá equilibrar a balança no que toca à igualdade de género nesta área

Towards a Global Core Value System in Doctoral Education

Recent decades have seen an explosion in doctoral education worldwide. Increased potential for diverse employment has generated greater interest, with cultural, political and environmental tensions focusing the attention of new creative, responsible scholars. Towards a Global Core Value System in Doctoral Education provides an evaluation of changes and reforms in doctoral education since 2000. Recognising the diversity of academic cultures and institutional systems worldwide, the book advocates for a core value system to overcome inequalities in access to doctoral education and the provision of knowledge. Building on in-depth perspectives of scholars and young researchers from more than 25 countries, the chapters focus on the structures and quality assurance models of doctoral education, supervision, and funding from an institutional and comparative perspective. The book examines capacity building in the era of globalisation, global labour market developments for doctoral graduates, and explores the ethical challenges and political contestations that may manifest in the process of pursuing a PhD. Experts and early career researchers in the Global North and South collaborated in interdisciplinary and intergenerational teams to develop guidelines for doctoral education. They learned from each other about how to act courageously within a complex global context. The resulting recommendations and reflections are an invitation to reflect on the frames and conditions of doctoral education today

Towards a Global Core Value System in Doctoral Education

Recent decades have seen an explosion in doctoral education worldwide. Increased potential for diverse employment has generated greater interest, with cultural, political and environmental tensions focusing the attention of new creative, responsible scholars. Towards a Global Core Value System in Doctoral Education provides an evaluation of changes and reforms in doctoral education since 2000. Recognising the diversity of academic cultures and institutional systems worldwide, the book advocates for a core value system to overcome inequalities in access to doctoral education and the provision of knowledge. Building on in-depth perspectives of scholars and young researchers from more than 25 countries, the chapters focus on the structures and quality assurance models of doctoral education, supervision, and funding from an institutional and comparative perspective. The book examines capacity building in the era of globalisation, global labour market developments for doctoral graduates, and explores the ethical challenges and political contestations that may manifest in the process of pursuing a PhD. Experts and early career researchers in the Global North and South collaborated in interdisciplinary and intergenerational teams to develop guidelines for doctoral education. They learned from each other about how to act courageously within a complex global context. The resulting recommendations and reflections are an invitation to reflect on the frames and conditions of doctoral education today

Towards a Global Core Value System in Doctoral Education

Recent decades have seen an explosion in doctoral education worldwide. Increased potential for diverse employment has generated greater interest, with cultural, political and environmental tensions focusing the attention of new creative, responsible scholars. Towards a Global Core Value System in Doctoral Education provides an evaluation of changes and reforms in doctoral education since 2000. Recognising the diversity of academic cultures and institutional systems worldwide, the book advocates for a core value system to overcome inequalities in access to doctoral education and the provision of knowledge. Building on in-depth perspectives of scholars and young researchers from more than 25 countries, the chapters focus on the structures and quality assurance models of doctoral education, supervision, and funding from an institutional and comparative perspective. The book examines capacity building in the era of globalisation, global labour market developments for doctoral graduates, and explores the ethical challenges and political contestations that may manifest in the process of pursuing a PhD. Experts and early career researchers in the Global North and South collaborated in interdisciplinary and intergenerational teams to develop guidelines for doctoral education. They learned from each other about how to act courageously within a complex global context. The resulting recommendations and reflections are an invitation to reflect on the frames and conditions of doctoral education today