Social Network Analysis

3 units

This course looks at social networks and markets through the eyes of a computer scientist. We will look at questions including, Why are acquaintances rather than friends more likely to get us job opportunities? and, Why do the rich get richer? We begin by studying graph theory (allowing us to study the structure) and game theory (allowing us to study the interactions) of social networks and market behavior at the introductory level. Among other topics, we will study auctions, epidemics, and the structure of the Internet (including web searches). This course examines the intersection of computer science, economics, sociology, and applied mathematics.