Semantics-Space-Time Cube. A Conceptual Framework for Systematic Analysis of Texts in Space and Time

We propose an approach to analyzing data in which texts are associated with spatial and temporal references with the aim to understand how the text semantics vary over space and time. To represent the semantics, we apply probabilistic topic modeling. After extracting a set of topics and representing the texts by vectors of topic weights, we aggregate the data into a data cube with the dimensions corresponding to the set of topics, the set of spatial locations (e.g., regions), and the time divided into suitable intervals according to the scale of the planned analysis. Each cube cell corresponds to a combination (topic, location, time interval) and contains aggregate measures characterizing the subset of the texts concerning this topic and having the spatial and temporal references within these location and interval. Based on this structure, we systematically describe the space of analysis tasks on exploring the interrelationships among the three heterogeneous information facets, semantics, space, and time. We introduce the operations of projecting and slicing the cube, which are used to decompose complex tasks into simpler subtasks. We then present a design of a visual analytics system intended to support these subtasks. To reduce the complexity of the user interface, we apply the principles of structural, visual, and operational uniformity while respecting the specific properties of each facet. The aggregated data are represented in three parallel views corresponding to the three facets and providing different complementary perspectives on the data. The views have similar look-and-feel to the extent allowed by the facet specifics. Uniform interactive operations applicable to any view support establishing links between the facets. The uniformity principle is also applied in supporting the projecting and slicing operations on the data cube. We evaluate the feasibility and utility of the approach by applying it in two analysis scenarios using geolocated social media data for studying people's reactions to social and natural events of different spatial and temporal scales

Feminist studies of globalisation : beyond gender, beyond economism?

This article offers a distinctive mapping of the feminist literature on globalisation. Part I sets the 'new wave' of debate in the context of long-standing feminist theorising and organisation around global power and politics, drawing attention to a growing focus on economic processes. Part II explores the marginalisation of feminist arguments within globalisation studies, pointing to the dominance of an economistic model of globalisation as a key factor. It also identifies a parallel feminist tendency to neglect non-feminist efforts to develop non-economistic analyses of globalisation. Part III seeks to pinpoint the originality of the contribution of feminism. Although the most obvious starting point for such an evaluation is an emphasis upon gender, the feminist contribution is not reducible to this. Feminists have integrated gender analyses into accounts of multiple, intersecting relations of global power. They also offer distinctive analyses of the relation between the local and the global and the character of agency and resistance. The article indicates that the feminist response to economism still remains incomplete. Nonetheless, it demonstrates that feminist insights pose a significant challenge to non-feminist accounts of globalisation and to those organising within and against global power relations

The Utility of Text: The Case of Amicus Briefs and the Supreme Court

We explore the idea that authoring a piece of text is an act of maximizing one's expected utility. To make this idea concrete, we consider the societally important decisions of the Supreme Court of the United States. Extensive past work in quantitative political science provides a framework for empirically modeling the decisions of justices and how they relate to text. We incorporate into such a model texts authored by amici curiae ("friends of the court" separate from the litigants) who seek to weigh in on the decision, then explicitly model their goals in a random utility model. We demonstrate the benefits of this approach in improved vote prediction and the ability to perform counterfactual analysis.Comment: Working draf

Data Innovation for International Development: An overview of natural language processing for qualitative data analysis

Availability, collection and access to quantitative data, as well as its limitations, often make qualitative data the resource upon which development programs heavily rely. Both traditional interview data and social media analysis can provide rich contextual information and are essential for research, appraisal, monitoring and evaluation. These data may be difficult to process and analyze both systematically and at scale. This, in turn, limits the ability of timely data driven decision-making which is essential in fast evolving complex social systems. In this paper, we discuss the potential of using natural language processing to systematize analysis of qualitative data, and to inform quick decision-making in the development context. We illustrate this with interview data generated in a format of micro-narratives for the UNDP Fragments of Impact project

Entities as topic labels: Improving topic interpretability and evaluability combining Entity Linking and Labeled LDA

In order to create a corpus exploration method providing topics that are easier to interpret than standard LDA topic models, here we propose combining two techniques called Entity linking and Labeled LDA. Our method identifies in an ontology a series of descriptive labels for each document in a corpus. Then it generates a specific topic for each label. Having a direct relation between topics and labels makes interpretation easier; using an ontology as background knowledge limits label ambiguity. As our topics are described with a limited number of clear-cut labels, they promote interpretability, and this may help quantitative evaluation. We illustrate the potential of the approach by applying it in order to define the most relevant topics addressed by each party in the European Parliament's fifth mandate (1999-2004).Comment: in Proceedings of Digital Humanities 2016, Krako

New Media & Youth Identity. Issues and Research Pathways

Media have held a considerable and growing place in the social environment of industrial society in recent decades, transforming the perception that a people have of their place in the world and of their memberships and belonging, creating new paths for social relations, affecting lifestyles, socialization, and communication processes, and the construction of identity itself. The relationship between young people (especially teenagers and adolescents) and new media shows some peculiarities which are worth further reflection to understand the extent and outcomes of these social changes. This article aims to investigate the discourse on youth identity and new media in the social science literature, determining which are the key trends and exploring the more relevant research questions about this theme and the way these topics relate to one another. Titles and abstracts of articles published during the period 2004 \u2013 2013 were selected from the Scopus social sciences database and they were analysed using different content analysis techniques supported by the T-Lab software. The international literature on these topics presents a certain liveliness and heterogeneity in themes and its perspectives on theoretical and empirical research. Nevertheless, it has been possible to identify some key trends, focusing mainly on the idea of active identity construction by new media

Уклонение от уплаты налогов: библиометрический анализ точек зрения власти, бизнеса и науки

Статья посвящена анализу публикаций, касающихся проблемы уклонения от уплаты налогов. Эта тема привлекает пристальное внимание не только научного сообщества. В статье исследуется соответствие проблематики научных работ по уклонению от уплаты налогов практическим вопросам, обсуждаемым заинтересованными лицами. В качестве источника научных публикаций по данной тематике использовалась электронная база e-Library. В круг заинтересованных лиц, напрямую зависящих от правил налогообложения, входят бизнессообщество и государственные органы. Для них источниками информации по исследуемой теме являются электронная база публикаций издательского дома «Коммерсантъ» и «Российская газета». Для анализа отобрана 301 публикация за 2013-2015 гг. Изучение соответствия проблематики проводилось путем сравнения публикационной активности в разрезе видов публикаций. На первом этапе исследования был выполнен качественный контент-анализ посредством выявления общих тем, обсуждаемых в публикациях. Затем проводился количественный анализ через сравнение распределения публикаций по конкретной теме из каждого источника. Для количественного анализа и визуализации результатов использовались методы библиометрического анализа и картирования. Расчеты производились с помощью программного продукта QDA Miner v.5.0 модуль WordStat v.7.1.7. В результате исследования были сделаны выводы, что самыми популярными темами, интерес к которым не меняется, являются: изменение законодательства, законотворчество и усиление принуждения. Темы, к которым за рассматриваемый период снизился интерес, касаются международных аспектов налогообложения, теневой деятельности, собственности и инвестиций. Отмечено выраженное возрастание интереса сообщества к фирмам-однодневкам, руководству компаний, а также к вопросам штрафов и пени. Исследование позволило выявить определенное несоответствие тем, обсуждаемых бизнесом и властью, по сравнению с темами научных публикаций. Распространенные в научных публикациях темы (теневая экономика, коррупция, фирмы-однодневки, взносы на социальное страхование), гораздо реже встречаются на ресурсах издательского дома «Коммерсантъ» и в «Российской газете», сосредотачивающих основное внимание на вопросах законотворчества и обсуждения изменений в законодательстве. Анализ взаимосвязей в текстах в соответствии с источниками и годом публикации показал, что темы научных исследований сближаются с проблемами, рассматриваемыми властью, а бизнес-сообщество в большей степени вовлекается обсуждение правовой проблематики, т. е. точка зрения власти во многом определяет обсуждение темы уклонения от налогов бизнес-сообществом, и научными кругами. Таким образом, библиометрические методы анализа текстов могут применяться для проведения научных исследований, составления обзоров литературы и тематического поиска информации.This article analyzes the publications relating to the problem of tax evasion. This topic is attractive not only for the academic community, but also for public at whole. The article explores to what extent the scientific publications on tax evasion correspond to practical issues discussed among the stakeholders. We used the electronic database of e-Library as a source of scientific publications on the subject. The principal stakeholders directly dependent on the taxation are the taxpayers and public authorities. We used the electronic database of publications «Kommersant» publishing house and the «Rossiyskaya Gazeta» to reflect issues discussed among the stakeholders. We selected for analyze 301 publications for the period of 2013-2015. The study was conducted by comparing the publication activity by types and period of publications. In the first stage of the study we have done the qualitative content analysis by identification the common themes discussed in hole sample of publications. Then, a quantitative analysis was conducted by comparing the distribution of publications on a particular topic from each source. We used bibliometric analysis method for the quantitative and bibliographic mapping method to visualize the results of research. Calculations were performed using the software QDA Miner v.5.0 module WordStat v.7.1.7. As a result, studies have concluded that the most popular topics of interest for which no changes are: changes in legislation, legislation and increased enforcement. Using the results of the conducted study, we can identify the main similarities and differences between the monitored sources. We can see the special attention to the: Legislation changes, Law enforcement, Entrepreneurship. Marked reduction of interest can be noted regarding to the following topics: International aspects of taxation, Shadow economy, Ownership, property, investment. The growth of interest can be noted in relation to the following topics: Directorship, Article of the Tax Code, Short-lived companies, Arrears and fines. The study revealed a certain disparity between the topics discussed among academic community and stakeholders. The topics discussed in the majority of scientific texts (shadow economy, corruption, the firm one-day, social security contributions), a much rarer can be found in the publication of «Kommersant» and «Rossiyskaya Gazeta» which focuses mainly on matters of legislation. Analysis of the relationships in the texts according to the source and year of publication showed that research topics converge with issues considered by the public authorities. The business community more involved in discussion the legal issues, because the government notion works upon the impression about tax evasion of the business community and academia. Thus, bibliometric text analysis techniques can be used for research, preparation of literature reviews and thematic information retrieval