How can data analysts and computational social scientists convey data through narrative and reports geared toward general audiences or specific stakeholders? How can they convey those data through visuals geared toward non-scientists? This hands-on course provides students with the knowledge and skills needed to generate strong, data-driven communication. We will emphasize clear interpretation of data patterns, quantitative analyses, and statistical inferences, using precise and accessible la…
This course is the introduction to research methodologies in the social sciences. It is meant as a general survey of the most common methodological approaches to uncovering social phenomena, rather than a specialization in any one in particular. You will be instructed on the most common approaches to studying social phenomena as well as the best practices that social scientists commonly deploy to achieve their given research ends.
During this course, you will have first hand experience dev…
This course is the introduction to quantitative research methodologies in the social sciences, with a special emphasis on the sociological approaches to research topics. It is meant as a general survey of the most common methodological approaches to uncovering social phenomena with a quantitative lens, rather than a specialization in any one in particular. The course will also introduce students to the R statistical language for data management and analysis. This course is most appropriate fo…
This course is an introduction to the distribution of assets, opportunities and roles from both a theoretical level and a historical perspective. Throughout this course we will examine how various societies have distributed forms of wealth, power and prestige to its members and explain various theories regarding the roots of inequality and the social changes that propel or hamper its development. The course pays particular attention to the structure versus agency concept and highlights how va…
What is society? How can we understand it? What is the role of the individual in society, and how does society affect individual lives? This course introduces students to the field of sociology. By surveying social theory as well as empirical studies, students acquire what C. Wright Mills calls the "sociological imagination": the ability to think beyond our personal lives and to connect the experiences of individuals with large social structures.
This course is the natural successor to Programming Methodology and covers such advanced programming topics as recursion, algorithmic analysis, and data abstraction using the Python programming language. Programming Abstractions assumes that you already have familiarity with good programming style and software engineering issues (at the level of Programming Methodology), and that you can use this understanding as a foundation on which to tackle new topics in programming and data abstraction. …
This course is the introduction to quantitative research methodologies in the social sciences, with a special emphasis on the sociological approaches to research topics. It is meant as a general survey of the most common methodological approaches to uncovering social phenomena with a quantitative lens, rather than a specialization in any one in particular. The course will also introduce students to the R statistical language for data management and analysis. This course is most appropriate fo…
This course will primarily focus on the theoretical underpinnings and methodological foundations of social network analysis. The theoretical foundation of social network analysis in the realm of social sciences lies in the interdependencies among actors. The aim of this course is to comprehend the nature of these interdependencies and investigate the regularities within social systems. It will encompass the introduction of both the substantive and theoretical framework for social network anal…