The COVID-19 pandemic didn't just bring health worries; it also sparked a surge in wild theories. Some of these theories made people doubt vaccines. Experts found a link between these false stories and the use of online social platforms. These platforms are like big social clubs. They don't just let people share info; they also make it easy for false stories to spre...
Europe is full of experts talking about biodiversity. They have lots of data on how biodiversity is doing, where it's going, and what can be done about it. But there's a problem. All this knowledge isn't always getting to the people who make the rules. The EU has a big plan to fix this by 2030. They want to get everyone talking and working together better. This...
In the 13th century, the inquisition in Bologna relied heavily on people ratting each other out. Testimonies were key to these trials, and who people chose to incriminate wasn't always straightforward. Several factors played a role: the social circles of the accused, the choices made by investigators, the pressure on witnesses, and personal decisions to favor some o...
With China aiming for a greener future, the spotlight is on making farming cleaner. This study looked at 268 cities in China, checking how well they cut carbon emissions in agriculture from 2001 to 2022. By using social network analysis and tweaking a gravity model, researchers found interesting patterns. For one, the efficiency of cities in cutting farm carbon emiss...
Imagine trying to figure out who's calling the shots in your neighborhood's COVID-19 response. That's what researchers did in Texas, using a social network approach to spotlight influential community organizations. They picked three regions—Houston/Harris County, Cameron County, and Northeast Texas—to see how these groups' connections and structures affect their impa...
You might think religion brings people together, right? Well, it can, but it can also do the opposite. Just like we've seen with racial segregation, religious segregation is a big deal. It can lead to misunderstandings, cultural clashes, and even violence. But how much do we really know about this? Not much, actually. A study on Weibo, China's version of Twitter, loo...