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funded PhD in data politics, University of Amsterdam
by Stefania Milan 20 Jul '16

20 Jul '16

++Apologies for cross-posting. Please spread the word!++ The DATACTIVE (data-activism.net) project at the University of Amsterdam is looking for a PhD student to join the team and contribute to conduct research on data politics and grassroots participation. Apply *with a PhD project proposal* by August 26. ++Job description++ The Amsterdam School for Cultural Analysis (ASCA) of the Faculty of Humanities is looking for a PhD candidate to join the ERC-funded project 'Data Activism: The Politics of Big Data According to Civil Society' (DATACTIVE), with Dr. Stefania Milan as Principal Investigator. DATACTIVE investigates citizens’ engagement with massive data collection, seeking to understand how activism evolves in the time of datafication. As datafication progressively invades all spheres of contemporary society, citizens grow increasingly aware of the critical role of information as the new fabric of social life. This awareness gives rise to new sociotechnical practices taking a critical approach to ‘big data’ and massive data collection, which fall under the rubric of ‘data activism’. Data activism takes at least two forms: re-active data activism, whereby people increasingly resist the threats to civil rights that derive from corporate privacy intrusion and government surveillance (e.g., by means of technical fixes such as encryption); and pro-active data activism, whereby citizens take advantage of the possibilities for campaigning and social change that data availability provides (e.g., data-based advocacy). The DATACTIVE project explores how activism broadly defined evolves in the age of big data. We take a critical look at, among others, citizen empowerment through data; civil society’s privacy practices; surveillance and internet activism; governance of data flows and internet infrastructure; open data and civic tech networks. You will join an interdisciplinary team working under the leadership of Dr. Stefania Milan (the Principal Investigator; https://stefaniamilan.net <https://stefaniamilan.net/>) and collaboratively examining the emerging dynamics of data activism at the intersection of its social and technological dimensions. We offer a multidisciplinary, interactive and international research environment in a leading department (Communication and Media Studies at the University of Amsterdam currently ranks number 8 in the QS World Rankings). ++Requirements++ The ideal candidate should have: * a demonstrable affinity with one or the combination of the following areas of research: social movements/grassroots activism’s engagement with data, digital technology and citizen participation, datafication and digital citizenship, democratic agency and algorithmic power, social effects of algorithm discrimination, (participatory) governance of data flows; * a Master's, Master of Research, or equivalent degree in one of the following disciplines: sociology, political science, communication sciences, media studies, and neighboring disciplines, preferably with expertise in one of the following fields: social movement studies, digital sociology, sociology of knowledge and/or culture, international relations, governance studies, critical internet studies, critical data studies; * demonstrable expertise in qualitative/ethnographic and/or quantitative research methods; familiarity (or willingness to acquire it) with data processing techniques and digital methods. In addition, he or she should also possess: * a good knowledge of current developments in digital communication technology in the post-Snowden era, and the related socio-technical and policy processes; * a creative mind and an interest to think across disciplines and domains; * strong communication skills, and an interest in building bridges between research, policy and advocacy/activism; * excellent command of English. Familiarity with other languages constitutes an asset; * the ability to work independently as well as in a team, and be responsive to feedback; * the willingness to engage in research collaboration with nongovernmental organizations; * superior organizational skills, including the ability to plan one’s work and meet deadlines. He or she should have an eye for detail, and be available occasionally to work under tight deadlines. Read more and find out how to apply here: http://www.uva.nl/en/about-the-uva/working-at-the-uva/vacancies/item/16-371… <http://www.uva.nl/en/about-the-uva/working-at-the-uva/vacancies/item/16-371…> OR here: www.academictransfer.com/35194 <http://www.academictransfer.com/35194> ---------------------- Stefania Milan, PhD University of Amsterdam || mediastudies.nl || stefaniamilan.net || @annliffey fingerprint: 7606 4526 3D24 20B2 C850 EA42 A497 CB70 04B5 A3B

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Call for Abstracts - Lives of Data Workshop, Sarai-CSDS (Deadline: 15 Sept.)
by Sandeep Mertia 20 Jul '16

20 Jul '16

Apologies for cross-posting. *Call for Abstracts -** ‘Lives of Data’ Workshop, 06-07 January 2017, The Sarai Programme, Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS), Delhi. * ‘Data’ has been recently termed as the new oil, new soil, new world currency and the raw material for the new industrial revolution. It has been hypothesised that the era of Big Data will finally see the ‘end of theory <http://www.wired.com/2008/06/pb-theory/>’. This hyperbole has it that the new technologies being developed today can produce truth based on computations of large amounts of machine readable digital data. Beyond such deterministic claims, the ‘Data Revolution’ indeed poses compelling theoretical and methodological challenges in all fields with stakes in knowledge. The present conjuncture, we would argue, is loaded with possibilities for rethinking ‘data-driven knowledge’ through longer histories of classification, enumeration, quantification, techno-scientific practices, and forms of media storage, retrieval, computational analysis and use. Scholarship in the emerging field of data studies has established close connections with science & technology studies (STS), and media and software studies. There is now a growing body of work <http://bds.sagepub.com/> which questions the Big Data hubris and the excesses of the post Web 2.0 digital deluge. ‘Raw Data’, as Geoffrey Bowker and Lisa Gitelman among others have suggested, is an ‘oxymoron’. In the Indian context, concerns about statistics, governance and knowledge, evident in the histories of colonial census, the work of P C Mahalanobis at the Indian Statistical Institute and the Planning Commission, the emergence of scientific computing in the 1950s-60s, government regulation of media, electronics and telecom, provide a vivid background to think about the new technics, materiality and aesthetics of our digital cultures. In times when Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) have passed their initial developmental hype-cycles and mobile phones have somewhat flattened the so-called ‘digital divides’ (while creating many new ones), the fields of information research in India are grappling with socio-technical reconfigurations of a widening scope and scale. The projections and contestations around our much promoted march towards a #DigitalIndia <http://www.digitalindia.gov.in/> with the world’s largest biometric database (#Aadhaar <https://uidai.gov.in/>); a nation-wide digging campaign for broadband connectivity in villages and the building of one hundred #SmartCities <http://smartcities.gov.in/>; and the intense pursuit of the ‘Next Billion’ users by a floating array of large technology companies and startups (#FreeBasics <https://0.freebasics.com/desktop>, #StartupIndia <http://startupindia.gov.in/>); have inundated the space for reflection and critique. The many known and unknown lives and after-lives of data in this ecosystem of flux demand description, interpretation, concepts, and – if the data permits – theory. In the past Sarai has organised workshops on ‘Social & Cultural Lives of Information <http://sarai.net/social-and-cultural-life-of-information-workshop-discussio…>’ and the ‘Lives of Information’ <http://sarai.net/lives-of-information/>, to reflect upon the cultures of information practices and the connections between colonial and post-colonial information infrastructures in South Asia. Continuing our focus on contemporary realities, ICTs and infrastructures, the ‘Lives of Data’ workshop aims to encourage research on pertinent questions concerning ‘data’ – its imaginaries, infrastructures, knowledge politics, and techno-science and media cultures in India and South Asia. The ‘Lives of Data’ workshop hopes to bring together interdisciplinary researchers and practitioners to examine the historical and emergent conditions of data-driven knowledge production and circulation in Indian and South Asian contexts. We are interested in a conversation which dynamically moves back and forth in science, technology and media history and anthropology to reflect upon the many layered abstractions and materialisations of data, information and knowledge. The key questions which the workshop will explore are: – What is data? How is it imagined, collected, archived, developed, scraped, parsed, mined, cleaned, used, interpreted, re-produced, circulated and deleted? – How do we map the relationships between data, infrastructure and knowledge production? – How do we reimagine data and information through longer histories of statistics, bureaucracy, governmentality and development? – What are the stakes involved in analysing the ever increasing volume, velocity, variety and value of data? How do practitioners understand the changing nature of their work with data? – How do we conceptualise the new data publics? Workshop themes include: – Histories of State and Statistics, Classification, Enumeration and Planning – Data Analytics, Data Ontologies, Digital Objects – Digital Humanities, Computational Social Sciences, Cultural Analytics – Cultures of Software Engineering and Design – Data, Memory and Materiality: Archives, Paper/Digital Databases, Warehouses, Data Centres, Server Farms – Thinking through Digital Infrastructures: Hardware, Code, Meta-Data, Formats, Protocols, Programming Languages, Information Architectures, Algorithms, Apps, Interfaces, Platforms, APIs, etc. – Data-Driven Urbanism: Geographies of Mobile Computing, Locative Apps and Social Media, GIS, and Smart Cities – Openness, Transparency and Access to Data/Information/Knowledge. #RTI #OpenData #DNAProfiling #Copyright #Encryption #Privacy – Platforms as Government: Transnational Networks of Intermediaries and the Flows of Data/Capital – ‘SysAdmin <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/System_administrator>’ like the State: Bio-Politics, Surveillance, User/Citizen, Governance, Policing and Law. #Aadhaar #ITact #CyberSecurity – ‘Beautiful Data <https://www.dukeupress.edu/beautiful-data>’: Design, Aesthetics, Vision and Visualisation *The Sarai Programme invites submission of abstracts for the ‘Lives of Data’ workshop. Besides academic researchers, we strongly encourage media, design and software practitioners to apply for the workshop. Abstracts should not exceed 300 words, and should be sent to dak(a)sarai.net <dak(a)sarai.net> by 15 September, 2016, with the subject heading ‘Proposal for the Lives of Data Workshop.’ Authors of the selected abstracts will be notified by 01 October, 2016.* *The workshop will be held on 06-07 January, 2017 at Sarai-CSDS, 29 Rajpur Road, Delhi. The Sarai Programme will cover three days of accommodation for outstation participants. In addition, participants from India will be eligible for travel support.* URL: http://sarai.net/call-for-abstracts-lives-of-data-workshop/ <http://sarai.net/call-for-abstracts-lives-of-data-workshop/>*---* Regards, Sandeep Mertia, Research Associate, Sarai-CSDS, Delhi

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Facebook and Twitter user recruitment?
by Galen Panger 20 Jul '16

20 Jul '16

Hi all, for my dissertation I'm recruiting separate samples of Twitter and Facebook users for a multi-part study (see http://facebookstudy.berkeley.edu and http://twitterstudy.berkeley.edu) I'm having some luck with Twitter ads, and with my university's subject pool for Facebook, but am wondering if folks here might have ideas for recruiting more participants to help put me over the top (I'm hoping to end with usable samples of over 300 each). I'm paying about $25 (plus a $500 Apple Gift Card drawing) for a total time of around 90 minutes, with the catch that the second part of the study involves downloading and using an app, which is a step that results in a fair amount of drop-off (despite my follow-up efforts, which only help on the margin). I've tried Mechanical Turk but there's too much drop-off. Craigslist also appears to be taking down anything that's not a face-to-face transaction, and my study is entirely online/Qualtrics/app. Facebook ads haven't worked at all for recruitment for me. Anyway -- if your university subject pool is open to outsiders, or if you have a tip that's worked for you in the past, I'm all ears for any ideas! Sincerely, Galen -- galen.website

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NeMLA 2017 CFP: Click and Read: Computation and Text Analysis in the Post-print Era
by Klobucar, Philip Andrew 20 Jul '16

20 Jul '16

New Session Seeks Papers for NeMLA's 2017 Annual Convention in Baltimore, Maryland (Marriott Waterfront, March 23-26, 2016) *CFP: Click and Read: Computation and Text Analysis in the Post-print Era***Call for Papers**** A significant pedagogical challenge following the recent shift from print to digital-media formats is the need to develop and maintain critical reading strategies for online literary analysis. Because traditional approaches to literature and professional writing were developed to engage different genres of print-based texts, today’s university educators find them pointedly lacking when applied to digital reading environments. This discrepancy appears simultaneously at both a practical and cognitive level. Students reading electronic texts, studies show, are more likely to avoid active note-taking, highlighting key passages or comparing multiple works. As a result, higher levels of comprehension, including remembering crucial premises and text-specific-terminologies, are adversely affected. This panel seeks papers currently and critically engaged with contemporary theories of reading and reading analysis in our current post-print era. Presentations are encouraged to look into how literary theory along with any corresponding methodologies for interpretation and assessment are responding to electronic modes of distribution. Special consideration will be given to papers able to examine the advanced development and use of computer assisted text analysis (CATA) software in the practice and teaching of literary criticism. *Suggested Topics/Areas of Study Include:* - *Digital or screen-based reading practices and their assessment in the Humanities * - *The use of new media technologies, mobile computing, AR and VR and tablet/e-reader devices to develop innovative narratologies and literary theories* - *Current developments in the use of Computer Assisted Text Analysis Tools in the classroom and to cultivate new humanities curricula* - *New reading practices in the digital humanities and the influence of computational reason and coding practices on literary studies* - *Live Coding: Computation and Performance in the classroom* Session Chair Andrew Klobucar (New Jersey Institute of Technology) Abstract/Proposal Submission Guidelines: Please follow NeMLA’s online submission system: Register for your own account on the NeMLA site (http://www.buffalo.edu/nemla/about/members.html) and then submit your paper proposal/abstract at this link: https://www.cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/16482. The Deadline for Abstract/Proposal Submission is 30 September 2016 Please email klobucar(a)njit.edu directly for more information Andrew Klobucar, Ph.D. Associate Professor and Associate Chair Department of Humanities New Jersey Institute of Technology 332 Cullimore Hall 973.596.5724 klobucar(a)njit.edu

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PhD Scholarship - Social Media Privacy and Security
by Marj Kibby 20 Jul '16

20 Jul '16

Sent on behalf of Janet Fulton: The University of Newcastle is offering a PhD scholarship, under my supervision, to investigate young Australian adults and their use and understanding of social media at work. The candidate must have at least four years of undergraduate study with a first class honours and high GPA. Applications close on 31st October and the successful applicant must be able to start before March 2017. PhD Scholarship - Australian millennials on social media: managing privacy and security in the workplace Here's a link for more details: http://www.newcastle.edu.au/newsroom/research-and-innovation/research-degre… If you know anyone who may be interested, I'm happy for you to forward my details. Please contact me if you have any questions Regards Janet DR JANET FULTON Lecturer in Media and Communication Deputy Program Convenor (Bachelor of Communication) School of Design, Communication and IT Faculty of Science and IT T: +61 2 4921 6923 E: janet.fulton(a)newcastle.edu.au W: http://www.newcastle.edu.au/profile/janet-fulton Skype: janetmfulton Twitter @JanetFulton The University of Newcastle (UON) University Drive Callaghan NSW 2308 Australia CRICOS Provider 00109J A/Prof Marjorie Kibby Humanities and Social Science Faculty of Education and Arts Communication and Media Research (CAMR) https://dcit.newcastle.edu.au/camr/ The University of Newcastle University Drive, Callaghan NSW 2308 +61 2 49216604 marj.kibby(a)newcastle.edu.au

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PhD scholarship in urban data (closing soon)
by Bjorn Nansen 20 Jul '16

20 Jul '16

Hi all, A PhD scholarship for research in the field of urban data is available through the Melbourne Networked Society Institute at the University of Melbourne. Cities around the world increasingly deploy varied and multiple data streams — from apps on user-devices to distributed sensor networks — in order to inform better settings for service provision and resource use. This scholarship is available for a student investigating existing and emergent urban data practices in the context of contemporary smart city agendas. The research will focus on new opportunities for citizen engagement and the development of new models of planning and governance. Additionally, the research will address conceptual and practical challenges concerning practices of data acquisition and utilisation, including growing concerns around the effect of growing surveillance and the impact on privacy. Details about applying are available at: http://networkedsociety.unimelb.edu.au/research/opportunities/urban-data-ph… Dr Bjorn Nansen Lecturer and Undergraduate Coordinator Media and Communications Program The University of Melbourne 130 John Medley building T +61 3 8344 9122 | E nansenb(a)unimelb.edu.au<mailto:nansenb@unimelb.edu.au> W https://unimelb.academia.edu/bjornnansen

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WEBCAST TODAY: Désirée Miloshevic - The role of trust in digital policy
by Joly MacFie 19 Jul '16

19 Jul '16

Excellent presentation from Desiree on a very topical theme which, as she notes was given prominence by Kathy Brown at the recent OECD Ministerial meeting. Just starting, but will be available on demand, after. joly posted: "Earlier today, Tuesday July 19 2016, ISOC Trustee Désirée Miloshevic, Senior Public Policy and International Affairs Advisor in Europe for Afilias, presented a webinar The role of trust in digital policy The webinar was a follow-up to her Master's dissert" [image: livestream] <https://livestream.com/internetsociety/trust>Earlier today, *Tuesday July 19 2016*, ISOC Trustee ** <https://www.internetsociety.org/who-we-are/other/d%C3%A9sir%C3%A9e-miloshev…> ** <https://www.internetsociety.org/who-we-are/other/d%C3%A9sir%C3%A9e-miloshev…> *Désirée Miloshevic* <https://www.internetsociety.org/who-we-are/other/d%C3%A9sir%C3%A9e-miloshev…>, Senior Public Policy and International Affairs Advisor in Europe for Afilias, presented a webinar *The role of trust in digital policy <http://www.diplomacy.edu/calendar/webinar-role-trust-digital-policy>* The webinar was a follow-up to her Master's dissertation at the *Diplo Foundation <http://www.diplomacy.edu/>*. Ms Miloshevic was joined by Diplo's Cybersecurity expert *Vladimir Radunovic* to draw on the findings of her research, and to reflect on ways in which the recent developments have had an impact the issue of trust. Can users’ trust ever be restored? What elements are required, and what role should stakeholders have? For those that missed it the webinar will be restreamed at 17:00 UTC today on the *Internet Society Livestream Channel <https://livestream.com/internetsociety/trust>*. ** View on Livestream: https://livestream.com/internetsociety/trust <https://livestream.com/internetsociety/trust>* - *Twitter: https://twitter.com/hashtag/diploalumni <https://twitter.com/hashtag/diploalumni>* Comment <http://isoc-ny.org/p2/8582#respond> See all comments <http://isoc-ny.org/p2/8582#comments> *Permalink* http://isoc-ny.org/p2/8582 -- --------------------------------------------------------------- Joly MacFie 218 565 9365 Skype:punkcast -------------------------------------------------------------- -

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New photo remixes in Photomediations Machine
by Joanna Zylinska 19 Jul '16

19 Jul '16

We have the pleasure to announce eight new contributions to the curated online space Photomediations Machine: http://www.photomediationsmachine.net - Remixing photography through open archives: http://photomediationsmachine.net/2016/07/19/winners-of-the-photomediations… - A Guide to Open and Hybrid Publishing, or how to create an open access, image-based book in ten easy steps: http://photomediationsmachine.net/2016/07/19/a-guide-to-open-and-hybrid-pub… - A visual takeover of the city by plants: http://photomediationsmachine.net/2016/07/19/intervene/ - A short surreal film on the fear of modernity, inspired by Polish writer Witold Gombrowicz: http://photomediationsmachine.net/2016/07/19/the-offence/ - The politics of the office: http://photomediationsmachine.net/2016/04/03/the-politics-of-the-office/ - Creative disruption of office work: http://photomediationsmachine.net/2016/04/03/for-internal-use-only/ - Is it a film or a moving painting?: http://photomediationsmachine.net/2016/04/03/the-port/ - Remix-remake of John Berger’s 1972 BBC documentary, Ways of Seeing: http://photomediationsmachine.net/2016/04/03/ways-of-something/ ************************************************ PHOTOMEDIATIONS MACHINE http://www.photomediationsmachine.net Photomediations Machine is a curated online space where the dynamic relations of mediation as performed in photography and other media can be encountered, experienced and engaged. Photomediations Machine adopts a process-based approach to image making by tracing the technological, biological, cultural, social and political flows of mediation that produce photographic objects. Showcasing theoretical and practical work at the intersections of art and mainstream practices, Photomediations Machine is both an archive of mediations past and a site of production of media as-we-do-not-know-them-yet. Photomediations Machine is non-commercial, non-profit and fully open access. Curated by Joanna Zylinska and Ting Ting Cheng, Photomediations Machine has an International Advisory Board which includes Katherine Behar, Lisa Cartwright, Alberto López Cuenca, Asbjørn Grønstad, Richard Grusin, Sarah Kember, Max Liljefors, Melissa Miles, Nicholas Mirzoeff, W.J.T. Mitchell, Luiza Nader, Nina Sellars, Jonathan Shaw, Katrina Sluis, Marquard Smith, Hito Steyerl and Bernadette Wegenstein. It is a sister project to the online open access journal Culture Machine (http://www.culturemachine.net) established in 1999. Website: http://www.photomediationsmachine.net Follow us on Twitter: @Photomediations Visit us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/photomediations.machine Submissions invited: http://photomediationsmachine.net/submissions/ -- Professor Joanna Zylinska Department of Media and Communications Goldsmiths, University of London http://www.joannazylinska.net NEW BOOK, Photomediations: A Reader, available open access: http://www.openhumanitiespress.org/books/titles/photomediations/ --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. https://www.avast.com/antivirus

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WEBCAST TODAY: Chad Internet Governance Forum #igfchad #igf
by Joly MacFie 19 Jul '16

19 Jul '16

This is just about to begin. Francophones rejoice! joly posted: "Today Tuesday 19 July 2016 the 2nd annual Chad Internet Governance Forum (Forum sur la Gouvernance de l'Internet au Tchad) is being held in Ndjamena, Chad. This year's theme is « L’INTERNET, UN LEVIER DU DÉVELOPPEMENT DURABLE AU TCHAD » and a full day of " [image: Livestream] <https://livestream.com/internetsociety/igfchad/>Today *Tuesday 19 July 2016* the 2nd annual *Chad Internet Governance Forum (Forum sur la Gouvernance de l'Internet au Tchad) <http://www.igf.td/>* is being held in Ndjamena, Chad. This year's theme is *« L’INTERNET, UN LEVIER DU DÉVELOPPEMENT DURABLE AU TCHAD »* and a full day of presentations and discussion is scheduled in the form of 3 panels. Remote participation is available via *webex <http://bit.ly/29RzRji>*, and video is being livestreamed on the *Internet Society Livestream Channel* <http://livestream.com/internetsociety/igfchad>. *What: Chad Internet Governance Forum <http://www.igf.td/> Where: Ndjamena, Chad When: 9am-5pm WAT | 08:00-16:00 UTC | 04:00-14:00 EDT Agenda: http://www.igf.td/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/agenda-IGF-Chad.pdf <http://www.igf.td/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/agenda-IGF-Chad.pdf> Webex: http://bit.ly/29RzRji <http://bit.ly/29RzRji> Webcast: http://livestream.com/internetsociety/igfchad <http://livestream.com/internetsociety/igfchad> Twitter: https://twitter.com/hashtag/igfchad <https://twitter.com/hashtag/igfchad>* Comment <http://isoc-ny.org/p2/8579#respond> See all comments <http://isoc-ny.org/p2/8579#comments> *Permalink* http://isoc-ny.org/p2/8579 -- --------------------------------------------------------------- Joly MacFie 218 565 9365 Skype:punkcast -------------------------------------------------------------- -

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PokemonGo syllabus on Google docs
by Adrienne Massanari 19 Jul '16

19 Jul '16

Hello All, I’ve started a Pokemon Go syllabus on Google docs (https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xYuozfkON-RVZQkr7d1qLPJrCRqN8TkzeDySM-3… <https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xYuozfkON-RVZQkr7d1qLPJrCRqN8TkzeDySM-3…>). Please add links to articles, critique, commentary, etc. as you see fit. I hope this can be a useful resource for us who might be thinking about teaching/discussing the game in our classes, or are just looking for some context around the game when discussing it with students or colleagues. Feel free to share widely. And, be sure to add your name in the “contributors” section if you do add/edit the doc. Thanks, Adrienne --- Adrienne Massanari, PhD Assistant Professor Department of Communication University of Illinois at Chicago @hegemonyrules www.adriennemassanari.com <http://www.adriennemassanari.com/>

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