Sharing news, making sense, saying thanks: patterns of talk on Twitter during the Queensland floods

Abstract: This paper examines the discursive aspects of Twitter communication during the floods in the summer of 2010–2011 in Queensland, Australia. Using a representative sample of communication associated with the #qldfloods hashtag on Twitter, we coded and analysed the patterns of communication. We focus on key phenomena in the use of social media in crisis communication: communal sense-making practices, the negotiation of participant roles, and digital convergence around shared events. Social media is used both as a crisis communication and emergency management tool, as well as a space for participants to engage in emotional exchanges and communication of distress.Authored by Frances Shaw, Jean Burgess, Kate Crawford and Axel Bruns

Young people and sexting in Australia: ethics, representation and the law

The Young People and Sexting in Australia report presents the findings of a qualitative study of young people’s understandings of, and responses to, current Australian laws, media and educational resources that address sexting. The project, led by Dr Kath Albury involved a review of both international local and academic research as well as popular media addressing sexting, and a review of educational resources for young people. Three focus groups were conducted with young people aged 16 and 17 in 2012, and a working paper based on those findings was then distributed to adult stakeholders in the fields of law enforcement, youth and children’s legal support, education, criminology, media and communications, youth work, youth health care, counseling and youth health promotion

Big Data and Due Process: Toward a Framework to Redress Predictive Privacy Harms

The rise of “Big Data” analytics in the private sector poses new challenges for privacy advocates. Through its reliance on existing data and predictive analysis to create detailed individual profiles, Big Data has exploded the scope of personally identifiable information (“PII”). It has also effectively marginalized regulatory schema by evading current privacy protections with its novel methodology. Furthermore, poor execution of Big Data methodology may create additional harms by rendering inaccurate profiles that nonetheless impact an individual’s life and livelihood. To respond to Big Data’s evolving practices, this Article examines several existing privacy regimes and explains why these approaches inadequately address current Big Data challenges. This Article then proposes a new approach to mitigating predictive privacy harms—that of a right to procedural data due process. Although current privacy regimes offer limited nominal due process-like mechanisms, a more rigorous framework is needed to address their shortcomings. By examining due process’s role in the Anglo-American legal system and building on previous scholarship about due process for public administrative computer systems, this Article argues that individuals affected by Big Data should have similar rights to those in the legal system with respect to how their personal data is used in such adjudications. Using these principles, this Article analogizes a system of regulation that would provide such rights against private Big Data actors

The Co-evolution of an Accessible but Secure Virtual Space for Collaborative Activities

This paper describes, analyses and interprets a research and development process taking place over several years concerning the evolution of a socio-technical system. By ‘sociotechnical system’ we mean a dynamic system that is socio-culturally situated and involves both human activity and technical elements. The system design, that is the focus of this research, brings together the human and technical dynamics of the intricate and highly engaging processes of effective collaboration. In particular, an investigation of the various integrated elements of the socio-technical system has provide us with the insight and confidence to build a virtual environment that actually supports innovative collaborative activitie

Promoting tertiary learning strategically to meet today\u27s multicultural student\u27s needs

Many of today\u27s metropolitan cities thrive on educating international students of diverse cultural backgrounds. However, most of these students struggle at two levels in their new environment, namely cultural and financial, and so require specific help in pursuing their educational goals. Tools are available to strategically develop people\u27s learning skills using modem information and communication technologies (ICT). This chapter focuses on the effects of an online tool used along with well structured roles to induce collaborative as well as individual learning. From an Activity Theory perspective our research indicates two main results of interest. First, increased attention to the dynamic of shared social interaction enabled by ICT results in deeper approaches to learning and greater satisfaction among the students who engage in the process. Second, to achieve an expanded learning role and greater independence among learners, particularly those from different cultural backgrounds, it is necessary to more explicitly define the rules and roles in the learning context than is usual in traditional teaching practice

Mathematical Representations in a Synchronous Online Mathematics Specialist Preparation Program

Universities are implementing more online courses (Yamagata-Lynch, 2014). However, instructors may feel a sense of trepidation in transitioning a mathematics class to a synchronous online platform because they do not want to compromise quality pedagogy (Herrington et al., 2001) for the convenience of an online environment (Wills, 2021). Some courses have successfully transitioned to a synchronous online environment while maintaining rich discussion and student collaboration (Baker & Hjalmarson, 2019); however, mathematics content courses include the additional challenge of incorporating problem solving with multiple representations. This paper focuses on how mathematical representations emerge in a synchronous online course for mathematics specialists

Young people, social media, social network sites and sexual health communication in Australia: ‘this is funny, you should watch it

Social media and social network sites (SNS) are an evolving area for sexual health communication with young people. They present opportunities and challenges for sexual health professionals and young people alike, such as learning through interactivity and addressing concerns about privacy. In this article, we present and discuss the findings from six rural and urban focus groups with young people in Australia about the use of social media and SNS for sexual health communication. We discuss a number of issues related to the use of social media and SNS for sexual health communication, such as concerns about bullying, privacy, and the stigma attached to sexual health

Social media and its impact on crisis communication: Case studies of Twitter use in emergency management in Australia and New Zealand

There is a growing awareness worldwide of the significance of social media to communication in times of both natural and human-created disasters and crises. While the media have long been used as a means of broadcasting messages to communities in times of crisis – bushfires, floods, earthquakes etc. – the significance of social media in enabling many-to-many communication through ubiquitous networked computing and mobile media devices is becoming increasingly important in the fields of disaster and emergency management. This paper undertakes an analysis of the uses made of social media during two recent natural disasters: the January 2011 floods in Brisbane and South-East Queensland in Australia, and the February 2011 earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is part of a wider project being undertaken by a research team based at the Queensland University of Technology in Brisbane, Australia, that is working with the Queensland Department of Community Safety (DCS) and the EIDOS Institute, and funded by the Australian Research Council (ARC) through its Linkages program. The project combines large-scale, quantitative social media tracking and analysis techniques with qualitative cultural analysis of communication efforts by citizens and officials, to enable both emergency management authorities and news media organisations to develop, implement, and evaluate new social media strategies for emergency communication

Az adatrengeteg kínos kérdései : Vitaindító egy kulturális, műszaki és tudományos jelenségről

Elközelgett a Big Data, az adatrengeteg kora. A számítástudósok, fizikusok, közgazdászok, matematikusok, politológusok, bioinformatikusok, szociológusok és más tudósok fennszóval követelik, hogy az embereket, dolgokat és ezek kapcsolatait leíró, folyvást termelődő hatalmas adatmennyiséggel dolgozhassanak. Fontos kérdések formálódnak meg. Hozzásegít-e az adatrengeteg kereshetősége az eszközök, szolgáltatások és közjavak javításához, vagy inkább a magántitoksértés és a tolakodó marketing új hullámát vezeti be? Megkönnyíti-e az adatok elemzése az online közösségek és politikai mozgalmak megértését, vagy a tiltakozók lenyomozását és a szólásjog elnyomását szolgálja majd? Átalakítja-e az emberi kommunikáció és kultúra kutatásának mai módszereit, vagy inkább beszűkíti a vizsgálható témák skáláját, magát a „kutatás” fogalmát definiálva újra? Véleményünk szerint az adatrengeteg szociotechnológiai jelenségének előretörése kapcsán kritikus vizsgálatnak kell alávetni e jelenség előfeltevéseit és előítéleteit. Cikkünk hat provokatív tézist tartalmaz, amelyekkel diszkussziót kívánunk indítani az adatrengeteg különböző aspektusairól: e technológia, elemzés és mitológia összjátékából kisarjadó kulturális, műszaki és tudományos jelenségről, amely terjedelmes retorikát gerjeszt mind utópikus, mind disztópikus hangvételben