Fall 2023
3 credits
Munindar P. SinghThis course surveys the field of social computing, introducing its key concepts, paradigms, and techniques. Specific topics are selected from the following list: social media and social network analytics, sociological underpinnings, crowdsourcing and surveys, human computation, social mobilization, human decision making, voting theory, judgment aggregation, prediction markets, economic mechanisms, incentives, organizational modeling, argumentation, contracts, norms, mobility and social context, sociotechnical systems, and software engineering with and for social computing. This course incorporates ideas from diverse disciplines [including sociology, psychology, law, economics, political science, logic, statistics, philosophy, business] to provide essential background for future computer science careers in industry and research.
This course is self-contained, and gives the essential background for social computing. The course provides an introduction to the rich variety of social computing applications, some already popular and some emerging. It identifies the key concepts underlying such applications highlighting the main paradigms of social computing.
This course understands social computing in a broad sense. In this conception, people and organizations are social entities and social computing arises from the interplay between computing on the one hand and social relationships among social entities on the other hand. Specifically, this course considers how (1) social relationships and individual preferences can be modeled, represented, and reasoned about through computing technology and (2) how interactions among social entities can be incorporated into computations as a basis for solving problems. This course surveys the key paradigms exhibited by applications of social computing. It identifies concepts for modeling and realizing social computing applications.
This course is being offered in two editions, as CSC 455 and CSC 555. All the requirements of CSC 455 apply to CSC 555. In addition, CSC 555 students must produce a term paper describing a research topic related to the course.
The research topic could be an elaboration of the main project you work on, a review of the literature on specific aspect of social computing, or your original contributions. There will be opportunities to discuss the term paper (including a brief proposal and draft versions) with me.
My hope is that this project or paper will eventually be of use to you in some additional way, e.g., in your thesis or dissertation, or your PhD written prelim. Please discuss any potential overlap of your paper with your other work with me and the other faculty members concerned. Also, report the overlap within your project proposal and final report.
The course is self-contained. The main informal prerequisite is maturity in thinking about subtle concepts, such as might be gained through experience with conceptual modeling in databases or software.
From long experience, I have discovered that the material in CSC 226 is essential for my courses. Here is a (partial) list of topics that will be assumed: elementary set theory, relations, partial orders, functions, concept of a theorem, propositional logic, and predicate logic.
I recommend you brush up on these topics if you aren't comfortable with them. These topics are covered in CSC 226: Applied Discrete Mathematics. You may review Chapters 1 to 6 from the following book, which is sometimes used as the CSC 226 textbook:
Upon completion of this course, students will be able to do the following.
I will assign +/- grades.
| Component | 555 campus | 555 EOL | 455 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exams | 30 | 35 | 30 |
| Programming | 55 | 55 | 55 |
| Homework | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Class participation | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Message-board participation | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| Term paper for CSC 555 | 10 | 10 | NA |
| Total | 110 | 110 | 100 |
The following programming assignments jointly add up to the programming component of the course grade in the above table. The weights of the assignments are based on their expected complexity. I may change the weights as the semester progresses.
| Assignment | Weight |
|---|---|
| P1: Social analytics | 20 |
| P2: Social application | 20 |
| Project report (R0) | 10 |
| Project report (R1) | 10 |
| Project report (R2) | 0 |
| Project report (R3) | 40 |
Note that report R2 is optional and has zero points. You can submit it at your discretion if you want to receive early comments on your work.
CSC 555 students must submit a term paper worth approximately 9% of the total grade for them. A general-purpose rubric for term papers is here. However, if you base your term paper on the same topic as your semester project, you can submit it merely by extending your final project report by two pages. The project-based option will turn out to be far less work for you, in general.
| Range | Grade |
|---|---|
| 98 ≤ Total | A+ |
| 92 ≤ Total < 98 | A |
| 90 ≤ Total < 92 | A- |
| 88 ≤ Total < 90 | B+ |
| 82 ≤ Total < 88 | B |
| 80 ≤ Total < 82 | B- |
| 78 ≤ Total < 80 | C+ |
| 72 ≤ Total < 78 | C |
| 70 ≤ Total < 72 | C- |
| 68 ≤ Total < 70 | D+ |
| 62 ≤ Total < 68 | D |
| 60 ≤ Total < 62 | D- |
| Total < 60 | F |
The University's regulation on grades and grade point average is available here NCSU REG 02.50.03.
The University's requirements for obtaining a grade of Satisfactory in the case the course is taken for S/U (Credit Only or Pass/Fail). Information about credit-only courses can be available here NCSU REG 02.50.03.
An S (satisfactory grade) requires performance equivalent to C- or better. Otherwise, the grade will be U (no credit grade).
The tentative course schedule is here. The schedule provides the projected schedule of readings, assignments, quizzes, and tests.
Please note that one homework is due during the last week of the semester.
Please note that we will hold final project demonstrations during the last week of the semester. The tentative schedule shows a larger time range than we will use—we will narrow it down later. Each project team will get a 10 to 15-minute slot. Demos may be held over Zoom or in person, based on logistical constraints (and for online students).
The demo schedule will be finalized later; once we determine the available slots, we will collect student preferences and assign slots on a first-come first-serve basis, though with adjustments for some conflicts within the same week.
The following are the main topics of this course. The tentative schedule indicates the estimated number of class days for each topic.
None.
The following materials will be used in this course.
Attendance is mandatory. You don't need to give an explanation for skipping up to three classes. You could lose points for participation if you skip too many classes or attend but do not participate adequately.
Academic integrity is not negotiable. Every piece of work except the project is required to be completed individually.
Review the Code of Student Conduct: NCSU POL11.35.01 and the Pack Pledge.
Violations of academic integrity will be handled in accordance with the Student Discipline Procedures (NCSU REG 11.35.02).
Reasonable accommodations will be made for students with verifiable disabilities. In order to take advantage of available accommodations, students must register with the Disability Resource Office at Holmes Hall, Suite 304, 2751 Cates Avenue, Campus Box 7509, 919-515-7653. For more information on NC State's policy on working with students with disabilities, please see the Academic Accommodations for Students with Disabilities Regulation (NCSU REG 02.20.01).
Online course components include Moodle, Zoom, Google Suite, Google Groups, WordPress, Panopto, Gradescope, and possibly Piazza. Lectures will be recorded and made available on Panopto to current students and future viewers. If you wish to avoid being recorded, please let me know and we can discuss options with the recording team.
We may use plagiarism-detection software tools to review your deliverables. These tools may include iThenticate, MOSS, and others.
Students may be required to disclose personally identifiable information to other students in the course, via digital tools, such as email or web-postings, where relevant to the course. Examples include online discussions of class topics, and posting of student coursework. All students are expected to respect the privacy of each other by not sharing or using such information outside the course.
Students are responsible for reviewing the NC State University Policies, Rules, and Regulations (PRRs) which pertain to their course rights and responsibilities, including those referenced both below and above in this syllabus: