Social phenomena: from data analysis to models

摘要

Composed of two parts, "Social Behavior Under Normal Conditions" and "Social Behavior Under Stress," it is really unique and interesting as a data analysis book titled like a classical social science book. In addition to the introductory chapter, there are seven chapters in the first part and four chapters in the second part. Each chapter (except the last) is written by a team from various disciplines. As an example, the authors of the second chapter, "Modeling and Understanding Intrinsic Characteristics of Human Mobility," are from systems engineering, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab, and civil and environmental engineering. On the other hand, the authors of chapter 7, "The Contagion of Prosocial Behavior and the Emergence of Voluntary-Contribution Communities," are from sociology and information systems departments. This makes it more like a reference book rather than a book to be read in one sitting, expecting coherent comprehension of a single topic. This is also the strength of the book, to be potentially utilized by scientists from many disciplines who are interested in data analysis and modeling.