Formal Network Analysis Research Articles

Comparative analysis of course prerequisite networks for five Midwestern public institutions

We present the first formal network analysis of curricular networks for public institutions, focusing around five midwestern universities. As a first such study of public institutions, our analyses are primarily macroscopic in nature, observing patterns in the overall course prerequisite networks (CPNs) and Curriculum Graphs (CGs). An overarching objective is to better understand CPN variability and patterns across different institutions and how these patterns relate to curricular outcomes. In addition to computing well known network centrality measures to capture courses of importance in the CPNs studied, we have also formulated some newer methods with specific relevance to the curricular domains and corresponding graph types at hand. We have discovered that a new graph theoretic measure of node importance which we call reach, based on the well-known concept of reachability, is needed to more accurately express the critical nature of some introductory courses in a university. Another analytical novelty that we introduce and apply to the subject of CPNs is the Longest Paths Induced sub-Graph (LPIG) of the CPN, which yields information on relatively constrained programs and pathways. Finally, we have established a new connection between clustering of the CG and meta-majors at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE), providing clusterings of the other public institution CGs as useful heuristics of major groupings as well. This work is borne from collaboration between academic units and academic advising with hopes of practical benefits towards aiding student advising.

Enhancing EV Charging Station Reliability and RAS Safety

The surge in electric vehicle (EV) adoption prompts companies to prioritize dependable charging station designs, despite hurdles in maintaining consistency. A newly proposed design, featuring 36 ports, employs both uniform and non-uniform arrangements, subjected to rigorous testing with systems ranging from 50 to 350 kW. Failure rates are projected through meticulous assessments based on MILHDBK217F and MILHBK-338B standards, employing binomial distribution and cost analysis to gauge port reliability and overall station success rates. This innovative design not only bolsters voltage stability but also curtails maintenance expenses by bolstering port reliability.In the realm of robotics and autonomous systems (RAS), Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) demonstrates exceptional prowess but grapples with the risk of unsafe policies, potentially resulting in perilous decisions. To address this concern, a novel study introduces a reliability evaluation framework tailored for DRL-driven systems, leveraging formal neural network analysis. This framework adopts a two-tiered verification strategy: firstly, by assessing safety locally using reachability tools, and secondly, by aggregating local safety metrics across various tasks to evaluate global safety. Empirical validation validates the efficacy of this framework in fortifying the safety of RAS.

Coinage networks in fifth-century BCE Ionia

Abstract This article revisits ‘the problem of Classical Ionia’, the long-persisting idea put forward by John Manuel Cook in 1961 that Ionia experienced regional economic impoverishment in the fifth century BCE. By looking comprehensively at the dataset of coinage available from fifth-century Ionia, this article argues that there is actually significant evidence for regional networking in Classical Ionia, and that various communities, even if not continually emitting new coinages at all points in the fifth century, adopted various strategies for maintaining their economic reach and extending their network of trading partners. Formal network analysis is applied to the coinage dataset, taking the shared weight standards to which communities minted their coins as indicative of participation in common economic networks. The network patterns are tested against two other patterns, specifically the distribution of fifth-century Chian and Samian amphoras, and the pattern of Ionian-coin-containing hoards from within and beyond Ionia. Together, these patterns strengthen the case for a high-level Ionian economic resilience, offering a radically different position to Cook and reaffirming that continuing economic networking was crucial to the activities of fifth-century Ionian states.

Evaluating Reliability and Economics of EV Charging Configurations and Deep Reinforcement Learning in Robotics and Autonomy

Growing EV popularity drives companies to focus on reliable charging station designs despite challenges in maintaining reliability. A proposed 36-ported design combines uniform and non-uniform port arrangements, tested with 50-350 kW systems. Failure rates are estimated using MILHDBK217F and MILHBK-338B standards, assessing port reliability and station success rates through binomial distribution and cost analysis. This design improves voltage stability and reduces maintenance costs through enhanced port reliability. In robotics and autonomous systems, Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) excels but faces challenges from unsafe policies leading to hazardous decisions. This study introduces a reliability assessment framework for DRL-controlled systems, using formal neural network analysis. A two-level verification approach evaluates safety locally using reachability tools and globally by aggregating local safety metrics across tasks. Experimental validation confirms the framework's effectiveness in enhancing RAS safety.

Spatial Development of Towns and Their Potential in Strengthening Rural-Urban Linkages in Kabupaten Semarang

Contemporary urbanization process in Indonesia has been entering a regional-based process, which is indicated by the expansion of existing cities and the emergence of small towns in hinterland areas. Semarang Regency is a nonurban district that become hinterland area that is affected by urban extension from Semarang City. The urbanization process in Semarang Regency is characterized by the emergence of towns as urban areas on the outskirts of. This research aims to analyze the development of towns in Semarang Regency using GIS assistance and analyzing their potential in strengthening rural-urban linkages. In addition to GIS method, this research employs descriptive qualitative method. Data collected through document and literature review, which is enriched by primary data collection through observation and interviews. The analysis used descriptive qualitative analysis. To strengthen the argument, analysis is assisted by using scalogram, ISM, LQ, and spatial analysis in the form of network analysis. There are many towns developed in Semarang Regency that tend to be concentrated in the north-west area, adjacent to Semarang City. The development of these towns is supported by the development of public service facilities. In addition to be the public service centers, the towns have potential roles as, processing and marketing centers. However, there is only one town, Bandungan, which has the roles as a center for marketing and public services. Therefore, the regency needs to have facilities development in many towns in order to strengthen the towns’ roles in strengthening rural-urban linkages in the region.

Reconstructing Mesolithic social networks on the Iberian Peninsula using ornaments

Archaeologists have been reconstructing interactions amongst hunter-gatherer populations for a long time. These exchanges are materialised in the movements of raw materials and symbolic objects which are found far from their original sources. Social network, i.e. the structure constituted by these interactions, is a well-established concept in archaeology that is used to address the connectivity of hunter-gatherer populations. The heuristic potential of formal network analysis, however, has been scarcely exploited in prehistoric hunter-gatherer archaeology. Here, social network analysis is used to analyse the interactions amongst hunter-gatherers on the Iberian Peninsula in the Early and Late Mesolithic (10,200 to 7600 cal BP). We used ornaments to explore social interaction and constructed one network per phase of the Iberian Mesolithic. We applied a three-steps analysis: First, we characterised the overall structure of the networks. Second, we performed centrality analysis to uncover the most relevant nodes. Finally, we conducted an exploratory analysis of the networks’ spatial characteristics. No significant differences were found between the overall network topology of the Early and Late Mesolithic. This suggests that the interaction patterns amongst human groups did not change significantly at a peninsular scale. Moreover, the spatial analysis showed that most interactions between human groups took place over distances under 300 km, but that specific ornament types like Columbella rustica were distributed over more extensive distances. Our findings suggest that Iberian Mesolithic social networks were maintained through a period of environmental, demographic and cultural transformation and that interactions took place at different scales of social integration.

Stability and Change in Potting Communities across Mesopotamia from the Early Ubaid to Late Chalcolithic 1

Abstract. In this work we examine developments in ceramic use through the Ubaid and Late Chalcolithic 1 periods in Greater Mesopotamia. Our paper is a heuristic study of ceramic assemblages across the period from 5300 to 4200 BCE. This period roughly corresponds to the Ubaid 3 and 4, and Late Chalcolithic 1. We explore the periods that correspond to the spread and dissolution of what has been referred to as the Ubaid interaction sphere. This is carried out through analysis of the development of ceramic assemblages across an area that covers southern and northern Mesopotamia including northern Syria and Iraq and southeastern Turkey. The goal is to understand the strength and directionality of interactions between sites across the Ubaid/LC1 transition, and how the use of ceramics may have changed over time. To do this we use Principal Component Analysis and Formal Network Analysis to analyze ceramic assemblages belonging to 72 different sites from the selected time period. This approach helps us explore the strengths of connections within potting industries across three time-slices roughly corresponding to the Ubaid 3, Ubaid 4, and Late Chalcolithic 1. Our results show that rather than a complete and sudden breakdown of communication networks from the Ubaid to the LC1 there was a gradual disintegration of the network that started during Ubaid 4 and continued into LC1.

To Study the Impact of Social Network Analysis on Social Media Marketing Using Graph Theory

Marketing requires an understanding of relationships and current research has progressed much beyond the simple dyadic relationships to look at how social media networks influence the behavior of customers. Social media's power is fascinating as a seemingly inconsequential figure emerges from the ruins and attracts tens of thousands, if not millions, of followers and thus providing an average individual a huge platform to interact with the rest of the world. Academics have used Network theory and formal network analysis approaches to harvest the large pool of social media influencers available on the internet. The goal of this paper is to use various graph theory algorithms to portray the impact of social network analysis on internet marketing, with a primary focus on social media influencers, and to illustrate a variety of network measurements ideas that may be employed in social media management research that takes into account the enormous social media communication network.

Distinction, Trajectory, Aromatherapy as Capital Distribution on AgroTourism Destinations Bukit Waruwangi, Serang-Banten

Agrotourism and ecotourism immediately became a trend when the Covid-19 pandemic began to increase and social activity restrictions took effect. This particular market requires the foresight of tourism actors and local governments to provide an open interaction space for residents. This article aims to explain how the postmodern approach with its vision of empowerment is used in agro-tourism destination brands by finding typical behavior in its operations. Using the capital and distinction terminology of Pierre Bourdieu, this study uses a mixed-method approach in the form of network analysis in social media (Youtube, Instagram, and online media coverage) to obtain quantitative data. At the same time, in-depth interviews and observation explored qualitative data. The results show that data on all social media platforms showed positive sentiment. Meanwhile, the results of in-depth interviews show how visitors are willing to take the difficult path to get the essential experiences conveyed in their social media accounts. Data observations also provide an overview of herbal plants cultivation as a way of land use and reflect the habits of residents involved in this agrotourism operation. Thus, the location is the cultural capital, while the natural scenery is Bukit Waruwangi (BWW) symbolic capital as an agro-tourism destination. The voluntary testimonials of visitors in social media accounts are proof of BWW's extensive and networked social capital. While cultivating aromatherapy as a natural product beneficial for health, it is BWW's distinction to differentiate itself in the competitive arena. Aromatherapy and essential oil products are the trajectories of plants that are closely related to palliative medicine in the context of Indonesian culture.

Caste Capital on Twitter: A Formal Network Analysis of Caste Relations among Indian Politicians

Twitter is increasingly important for political outreach and networking around the world. While electoral politics and social relations in India are heavily organized by caste, a broader rhetoric of castelessness among upper-caste politicians has led to the eschewing of caste publicly to appear strategically secular. This has rendered caste dynamics more implicit than explicit. Social media, often cited as a tool for inclusion, offers a unique look into the networks of covert exclusion. Our study analyzes three structural properties of the Twitter network of Members of Parliament in India - influence, bridging capital, and mutual connectivity, to understand how caste manifests as social capital in the information economy. Our results show that those higher in the caste hierarchy are structurally poised for higher social capital through higher influence, incoming bridging capital, and higher propensity for mutual connections with other MPs in the network. Our study offers a methodological window into these invisible relations to show how structural advantages of Brahmanical supremacy are being co-produced and stabilized on social media at the highest level of politics.

Investigating the transmission risk of infectious disease outbreaks through the Aotearoa Co-incidence Network (ACN): a population-based study

SummaryBackgroundThe emergence and re-emergence of infectious diseases presents a significant challenge to public health and broader society. This study utilises novel nationwide data to calculate the transmission risk and potential inequity of infectious disease outbreaks through use of network analysis.MethodsNationwide employment and education microdata (∼4.7 million individuals in Aotearoa New Zealand) were used to develop the Aotearoa Co-incidence Network (ACN). The ACN considers connections generated when individuals are employed at the same workplaces or enrolled at the same schools. Through forms of network analysis, connections between geospatial areas can be established and provide proxy measures of infectious disease transmission risk. The ACN was also overlayed with nationwide population vulnerability data based on the number of older adults (>65 years) and individuals with long-term health conditions.FindingsWe identify areas that have both high potential transmission risk (i.e., highly connected) and high vulnerability to infectious diseases. Community detection identified geographic boundaries that can be relevant to the application of regional restrictions for limiting infectious disease transmission.InterpretationIntegrating novel network science and geospatial analytics provides a simple way to study infectious disease transmission risk and population vulnerability to outbreaks. Our replicable method has utility for researchers globally with access to such data. It can help inform equitable preparation for, and responses to infectious disease outbreaks.FundingThis project was funded by the Health Research Council of New Zealand (20/1442) and from the NZ Government via Ministry for Business Innovation and Employment and Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet.

Towards a reliable smart city through formal verification and network analysis

With the immense increase of population density, many challenges facing organizations and governments. Thus, it has become mandatory to turn up our cities to be intelligent by introducing IoT and smart grids to build smart buildings, smart communication technologies, smart healthcare systems, smart transportation, etc. Smart cities guarantee the healthy living of indoor inhabitants by sensing, processing and controlling all possible indoor–outdoor measures. In this paper, we develop a framework that systematically builds a reliable and secure Smart City Model (SCM) to be integrated then exploited by the building information model (BIM). SCM encloses both physical and digital models which highlight smart buildings in particular. First, the proposed solution identifies and models SCM components including their appropriate architectures that are responsible for communication, extension, information flow, and protection. To ensure SCM functional and security requirements, we develop a sound hybrid approach that relies on formal methods and network analysis. Uppaal model checker is used to verify the satisfiability of the smart city requirements whereas Cooja is deployed to simulate the connectivity and the communication coverage of the developed SCM. The obtained results, in Uppaal, showed that the different implemented scenarios are satisfying the functional correctness and security policies. Moreover, the simulation through Cooja showed that how different obstacles and positions of nodes affect the communication coverage and the energy consumption regarding the deployed nodes. Experimentally, the effectiveness of the developed framework has been shown through practical scenarios that are difficult to model and analyze.

Social media and smartphone app use predicts maintenance of physical activity during Covid-19 enforced isolation in psychiatric outpatients.

There is growing concern that the social and physical distancing measures implemented in response to the Covid-19 pandemic may negatively impact health in other areas, via both decreased physical activity and increased social isolation. Here, we investigated whether increased engagement with digital social tools may help mitigate effects of enforced isolation on physical activity and mood, in a naturalistic study of at-risk individuals. Passively sensed smartphone app use and actigraphy data were collected from a group of psychiatric outpatients before and during imposition of strict Covid-19 lockdown measures. Data were analysed using Gaussian graphical models: a form of network analysis which gives insight into the predictive relationships between measures across timepoints. Within-individuals, we found evidence of a positive predictive path between digital social engagement, general smartphone use, and physical activity—selectively under lockdown conditions (N = 127 individual users, M = 6201 daily observations). Further, we observed a positive relationship between social media use and total daily steps across individuals during (but not prior to) lockdown. Although there are important limitations on the validity of drawing causal conclusions from observational data, a plausible explanation for our findings is that, during lockdown, individuals use their smartphones to access social support, which may help guard against negative effects of in-person social deprivation and other pandemic-related stress. Importantly, passive monitoring of smartphone app usage is low burden and non-intrusive. Given appropriate consent, this could help identify people who are failing to engage in usual patterns of digital social interaction, providing a route to early intervention.

Structuring the Interstitial Space of Global Financing Partnerships for Sustainable Development: A Network Analysis

ABSTRACT In this article, we theorise global financing partnerships as a ‘space between fields’ that is generated and structured by the relationships between the actors mobilised into partnership boards from different fields. We investigate the structuring of the space of partnerships through a formal network analysis of a new dataset of 188 board members of 10 global financing partnerships across climate change, education, health and nutrition. Individual board members are analysed with reference to their home organisation and sector, the boards on which they serve, and salient issue areas. Centrality and ERGM analyses reveal that, in contrast to the policy narrative of inclusive and egalitarian partnering, donors (from states, international organisations and private sector) are systematically privileged in the structuring of this partnership space. We identify network mechanisms through which systematic biases in partnership relations perpetuate existing hierarchies, and introduce the concept of ‘relational practices’ that could counter these mechanisms. Combining a theorisation of partnerships as spaces between fields with network concepts provides a distinct theoretical basis for elucidating the structuring of partnership spaces at the macro-level, through the analysis of individuals’ connections at the micro-level and inter-organisational ties at the meso-level.

The Structure of Coordination: Transatlantic Policy Networks and the Mobilization of Business and Civil Society

AbstractExternal policy networks resolve two collective action problems in EU external relations: engaging nonstate actors from the EU and its partner countries in transnational policymaking and converting this engagement to feedback for policymakers. We use formal network analysis to understand the relationship between network structure and collective action by transnational nonstate actors. Our empirical focus is on the Transatlantic Business Council and the Transatlantic Consumer Dialogue networks, which engage business and consumer advocacy organizations in transatlantic economic policymaking. We find that both are highly centralized around EU and US government institutions, with relatively low, but rising, levels of interaction among nonstate organizations. This structure helps increase engagement by giving organizations opportunities to interact with government institutions, learn from their peers, and, for some, to exercise power. It also helps EU and US institutions harness policy feedback, especially from nonstate actors that have frequent interactions with their peers.

In the eye of the beholder: Meaning and structure of informal status in women's and men's prisons*

AbstractApplying an abductive mixed‐methods approach, we investigate the informal status systems in three women's prison units (across two prisons) and one men's prison unit. Qualitative analyses suggest “old head” narratives—where age, time in prison, sociability, and prison wisdom confer unit status—are prevalent across all four contexts. Perceptions of maternal “caregivers” and manipulative “bullies,” however, are found only in the three women's units. The qualitative findings inform formal network analyses by differentiating “positive,” “neutral,” and “negative” status nominations, with “negative” ties primarily absent from the men's unit. Within the women's units, network analyses find that high‐status women are likely to receive both positive and negative peer nominations, such that evaluations depend on who is doing the evaluating. Comparing the women's and men's networks, the correlates of positive and neutral ties are generally the same and center on covariates of age, getting along with others, race, and religion. Overall, the study points to important similarities and differences in status across the gendered prison contexts, while demonstrating how a sequential mixed‐methods design can illuminate both the meaning and the structure of prison informal organization.

Using policy network analysis to understand ideological convergence and change in educational subsystems

In recent years, education policy scholars have begun to utilize social network concepts and methods to describe contemporary policy changes across P-16 levels. While many insights have emerged from this growing literature base, we argue that a more formal network approach rooted in policy network analysis (PNA) is needed to fulfill its conceptual and analytical ambitions. Policy network analysis integrates concepts from social network analysis with theoretical assumptions developed in the field of political science. Toward this end, we first argue that a more rigorous treatment of policy beliefs is needed to analyze the impact of ideas on the policy agenda. Existing literature on the ideological dimensions of market-based reform movements tends to define them largely within the bounds of neo-liberalism and thus far has failed to systematically explain how policy beliefs emerge and converge in this context. Second, we contend that previous work has generally lacked theoretical grounding in formal policy network analysis (PNA). Although there are clear links between the concepts and findings in traditional PNA literature and educational research – particularly the use of networked governance as a concept for understanding the interconnectedness of educational reform networks – a more diligent application of PNA theory and methods would enable educational policy scholars to gain deeper insights into the explanatory processes of policy change. We pay particular attention to the usefulness of these approaches for examining two-mode network data and for modeling ideological policy change.

Challenges and Solutions for Non-Timber Forest Product Businesses in Finland–An Application of the SODA Analysis

This study aims to present a holistic image of the strategic development needs and potential solutions within the Finnish non-timber forest product (NTFP) business sector and demonstrate a new hybrid methodology for collaborative strategy formulation. The perceived challenges and solutions were collected with the 635 group-working method in a nationwide series of NTFP actor workshops. The analysis applied the Strategic Option Development and Analysis (SODA) approach and the formal network analysis. Business actors emphasised two complex and interrelated aims of development at the core of the business activity: (1) to improve the profitability of the NTFP business and (2) to facilitate the growth of the sector. The present bottleneck is perceived in the raw material acquisition and productising, and many wider development themes, such as business logic and sustainability, received little attention.

Network Ethnography in Journalism Studies: A Mixed-Method Approach to Studying Media Ecologies

ABSTRACTThis article details a mixed-method technique called network ethnography, coined (though not invented) by Philip Howard in 2002, as it is applied to two cases documenting media ecologies in journalism studies. We map the news information flows – its influences, power dynamics, and obstacles – in Philadelphia, PA, and Madison, WI. The mix of locational sampling, formal network analysis, and triangulated news community ethnographies allow for multiple levels of investigation at the micro-meso-macro tiers of local community. Despite some significant logistical limitations, the method can be scaled according to resources and represents a robust tool for the complex work of journalism studies – especially those exploring news media ecologies, rather than single media organizations – in a digital age.

Cutting the Network, Knotting the Line: a Linaeological Approach to Network Analysis

Network methods have seen a rapid rise in archaeology in recent years. There are still concerns regarding how well formal networks are able to effectively model local interaction. These are often present in the so-called qualitative network approaches—studies that tend to be based on close readings of relations between entities and the way they form dynamic networks of agents. Such studies have demonstrated the value in scrutinizing the way in which relations might be acted on in practice, and how that might differ from expected results. But rarely do such studies produce network data of the kind analyzed by formal network analytical methods. Formal approaches, on the other hand, blur the specificity of individual relations and trade much of their specificity for the ability to make general statements about relations across large datasets. More generally, the modality of the relation/edge is a crucial way in which formal network analysis differs from other prevalent relational approaches popular in archaeology today, where the substantivity of individual relations is paramount. Such relations are often seen as starting points for subsequent hybridizations that radically alter, if only temporarily, the structure of their respective networks. I argue that a key step in allowing networks to reformulate from initial, data-driven network schemata is the introduction of a more symmetrical agency between the node and the edge. In this article, I discuss how ethnographic sources can be used to achieve this for archaeological survey data. I use assemblage theory as a framework to explore the potential the edge has to offer archaeological network modelling. While assemblage theory is helpful for this purpose, the lack of a computational formality to assemblage theory immediately places it at odds with network science. As a complement, I will also employ the computational ontology CIDOC-CRM to more explicitly articulate the character of links between nodes in archaeological networks. The paper will end by suggesting a method of network modelling which integrates the line as a key source of agency. As a nod to Ingold’s call for an increased emphasis on the line, I call this approach network linaeology.