Meaningful Measures in a Data-Driven World

1 Course Unit

Knowledge cannot proceed without observing and measuring. And knowledge is necessary to transform society. Today we can observe a larger share of behaviors, from the individual to the collective, thanks to improvements in our measurement instruments. But extracting scientific meaning from data, and connecting that meaning with insights and applications, is still a challenge. To translate quantification into a meaningful understanding of human and social behavior we need to critically evaluate the management, use, and interpretation of social data. In this seminar we will discuss different forms of data representation and the conceptual, computational, and ethical challenges these data create. We will also discuss how measurement informs models and simulated realities (e.g., digital twins, AI-personas) and the strengths and risks of using those models as objects of study. 1 Course Unit