Dr. Yu-Ru Lin, assistant professor in the School of Information Sciences and Intelligent Systems Program (ISP), has recently awarded two research grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF).
Dr. Lin's project "DAPPR: Diffusion Analytics for Public Policy Research" was awarded by NSF's Data Infrastructure Program. This grant will support Dr. Lin's research for understanding the iterative processes of policy-making. Particularly, the project will investigate cutting-edge methods of text and network analysis, as well as visual analytics, in order to track how the developments of public policies across the states in the U.S. have influence on one another. In collaboration with researchers from the Pennsylvania State University, University of Iowa, and several other research institutions across the country, the team will develop both data and computational methods that address the most pressing limitations to the study of policy diffusion networks.
The project "Collective Sense Making Following a Terrorist Attack: The Immediate and Long-Term Impact on Public Resilience" under the direction of Dr. Lin was awarded by NSF's Infrastructure Management & Extreme Events (IMEE) Program. Dr. Lin and her group will be using this award to investigate the impacts of the mass outpouring of reaction and information sharing on social media in response to terrorist events. Particularly, the project will analyze the public's immediate social and emotional reactions to the attacks as well as longer-term changes in their communication behavior. This research will contribute to both improving responses to specific terrorist attacks as well as enhancing public understanding of the specific means through which terrorism wields social influence.