Welcome to the Virtual Observatory for the Study of Online Networks (VOSON)
Advancing the Social Science of the Internet through new empirical research into online networks
(and associated e-Research tools).
The World Wide Web (WWW) has changed how humans interact; for some scholars, we now live in the "Age of the Network". As online populations grow and the quantity and quality of interactions improve with new technology, social scientists are developing new approaches for understanding the impact of online networks on social interaction and economic and political participation. The vastness and dynamic nature of the WWW poses research challenges relating to data storage, management and computation. E-Research technologies address these challenges, facilitating collaborative access by distributed researchers to methods and large-scale datasets. The Virtual Observatory for the Study of Online Networks (VOSON) Project, based at the Australian Demographic and Social Research Institute, The Australian National Univeristy, is conducting empirical social science research into online networks and developing e-Research tools to facilitate this research.
The VOSON System is web-based software incorporating web mining, data visualisation, and more traditional empirical social science methods (e.g. social network analysis, SNA). Web services facilitate access and sharing of distributed resources such as datasets, methods and computational cycles.
In August 2008, "Social Science of the Internet" was approved as a new specialisation in the ANU's Master of Social Research Degree. By undertaking this specialisation, students will gain a thorough understanding of the relevant theory and methods for conducting social science Internet research. The focus on social science (economics, political science and sociology) and quantitative research methods is what distinguishes the ANU's Master of Social Research (Social Science of the Internet). Internet Research/Internet Studies courses offered elsewhere typically approach the topic more from a media and communication studies perspective, or else emphasise legal/governance/regulation aspects of the Internet. read more...
7th July - Robert Ackland to present at the Oxford Internet Institute's Summer Doctoral Programme 2009 held at the Creative Industries Faculty at Queensland University of Technology (QUT).
25th May - Heather Booth, Robert Ackland and Tim Windsor receive an Australian Research Council Linkage Grant of $270,000 over four years for their project "The role of online social networks in successful ageing: benefitting from 'who you know' at older ages". read more...
27th April - Robert Ackland to present seminars in Republic of Korea World Class University project titled "Investigating Internet-Based Politics with E-Research Tools" (principal investigator: Assoc. Prof. Han Woo Park).
10th March - Robert Ackland invited to contribute to the Network of Interested Parties for the EU-funded eResearch 2020 Study. read more...
Learn More About VOSON:
- What's New?
- The latest information on the VOSON project can be found on the What's New? page.
- About VOSON
- The About VOSON page provides details on the research methods and software that underly VOSON.
- Papers/presentations
- VOSON-related papers and presentations are available for download on the Outputs page.
- Contacts
- More information on the people behind VOSON can be found on the Contacts page.