Information Networks - Fall 2011
Office: 019 SLIS
Office Phone: 812-856-4182
Office Hours: By appointment.
Introduction
Networks have become pervasive in modern life. We use them to describe and understand, among other things, the human brain, disease transmission, social connections, and the Internet. But what is a network? What types of networks exist? Why are they interesting and what can they tell us? This course provides an introduction to the major theories, methods, models, findings, applications and tools regarding networks. This "science of networks" includes perspectives from various fields, such as computer and information science, sociology, mathematics, physics and biology.
In this course we will survey historical and theoretical foundations of network studies, introduce basic concepts in network theory, discuss metrics and models, use software tools to experiment with real-world network data, and study specific applications of network approaches in different information-related phenomena.
Students will learn how to gather and analyze network data and interpret the results. NodeXL, Pajek and Network Workbench will be used for data gathering and analysis.
Upcoming Class