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PUBLIC RELEASE DATE:

11-Dec-2014

Contact: Jim Maxwell jmaxwel2@kent.edu 330-672-8028 Kent State University @ksunews

The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded Kent State University a $300,000 grant for three College of Arts and Sciences faculty members to study how human dynamics across social media and social networks can be modeled. The grant is part of a $999,887 collaboration with San Diego State University and the University of Arkansas.

Professor Jay Lee and Assistant Professor Xinyue Ye of Kent State's Department of Geography and Associate Professor Ruoming Jin of Kent State's Department of Computer Science will use information diffusion, visualization and simulations to study the public responses to disaster warnings and alerts, as well as the public opinions of controversial social topics at the state or national level.

"The outcomes yielded from this research will assist in better designing and implementing disaster warnings and alerts as well as more efficient disseminating communications of political messages via social media and social networks," Ye said.

The researchers plan to collaborate with the San Diego Office of Emergency Services (OES) to create a prototype platform using social media to study how people respond and react to messages warning of inclement weather, earthquakes, wildfires, disease outbreaks and evacuation orders.

"The study may also allow government agencies to communicate more effectively to the public and be better prepared for both natural and human-made crises," Ye said.

Ye said that the government response to social issues, such as gun control, anti-vaccination movements and the threat of government shutdown, relies on the impact of online public opinion and public political debates.

The social media analytic tools developed by this group will be able to calculate how these messages are disseminated online and in social media and the outcomes of the referendum votes.

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Kent State researchers to study social media use during crises and disasters