Tactics and Tallies: A Study of the 2016 U.S. Presidential Campaign Using Twitter 'Likes'

We propose a framework to measure, evaluate, and rank campaign effectiveness in the ongoing 2016 U.S. presidential election. Using Twitter data collected from Sept. 2015 to Jan. 2016, we first uncover the tweeting tactics of the candidates and second, using negative binomial regression and exploiting the variations in 'likes,' we evaluate the effectiveness of these tactics. Thirdly, we rank the candidates' campaign tactics by calculating the conditional expectation of their generated 'likes.' We show that while Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio put much weight on President Obama, this tactic is not being well received by their supporters. We demonstrate that Hillary Clinton's tactic of linking herself to President Obama resonates well with her supporters but the same is not true for Bernie Sanders. In addition, we show that Donald Trump is a major topic for all the other candidates and that the women issue is equally emphasized in Sanders' campaign as in Clinton's. Finally, we suggest two ways that politicians can use the feedback mechanism in social media to improve their campaign: (1) use feedback from social media to improve campaign tactics within social media; (2) prototype policies and test the public response from the social media.Comment: ICWSM 2017 - News and Public Opinion Worksho

The Role of r-Modes in Pulsar Spindown, Pulsar Timing and Gravitational Waves

Pulsars are fast spinning neutron stars that lose their rotational energy via various processes such as gravitational and magnetic radiation, particle acceleration and mass loss processes. This dissipation can be quantified by a spin-down equation that measures the rate of change of the frequency as a function of the rotational frequency itself. We explore the pulsar spin-down and consider the spin-down equation upto the seventh order in frequency. This seventh order term accounts for energy loss due to the gravitational radiation caused by a current type quadrupole in the pulsar due to r-modes. We derive the rotational frequency due to the r-modes and find a solution in terms of the Lambert function. We also present an analytic exact solution for the period from the spindown equation and numerically verify this for the Crab pulsar. This analysis will be relevant for the detection of continuous gravitational waves by 3G ground based and space based gravitational wave detectors

The Role of rr-Modes in Pulsar Spindown, Pulsar Timing and Gravitational Waves

Pulsars are fast spinning neutron stars that lose their rotational energy via various processes such as gravitational and magnetic radiation, particle acceleration and mass loss processes. This dissipation can be quantified by a spin-down equation that measures the rate of change of the frequency as a function of the rotational frequency itself. We explore the pulsar spin-down and consider the spin-down equation upto the seventh order in frequency. This seventh order term accounts for energy loss due to the gravitational radiation caused by a current type quadrupole in the pulsar due to $r$-modes. We derive the rotational frequency due to the $r$-modes and find a solution in terms of the Lambert function. We also present an analytic exact solution for the period from the spindown equation and numerically verify this for the Crab pulsar. This analysis will be relevant for the detection of continuous gravitational waves by 3G ground based and space based gravitational wave detectors