The document discusses how science and society are increasingly interconnected due to several trends, including 3 billion new internet users by 2020, 12 billion internet-connected devices by 2016, and the creation of 90% of the world's data in the last two years. Science is also expanding due to computational modeling, crowdsourced participation, and new types of large-scale data and analysis. This represents a new era of more open and collaborative scientific discovery that can help inform society and vice versa through our shared relationship with information and technology.

1. Science and Society
How can big-picture science thinking
help society and vice-versa?
Melanie Swan
m@melanieswan.com
January 9, 2014
Vieques, Puerto Rico
Slides: http://slideshare.net/LaBlogga

2. World-Shaping Science and Society Trends
January 9, 2014
FQXi
Image: http://www.sydmead.com
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3. 3 billion new Internet Users by 2020
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0
Impact: Majority of worldwide population starting to access
and self-enable with science and technology
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Source: Peter Diamandis, Singularity University, July 2013
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4. Global Population: Growing and Aging
January 9, 2014
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Source: UN Habitat – 2010
http://avondaleassetmanagement.blogspot.com/2012/05/japan-aging-population.html
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5. Human Urbanization: Living in Cities
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Over 50% worldwide population in 2008
5 billion in 2030 (estimated)
January 9, 2014
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Source: Copenhagen Pollution Levels, MIT Senseable City Lab
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6. Megacity
Growth
Rates
Megacity:
(>10 million
inhabitants
and
~2,000/km2
density)
January 9, 2014
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Source: Wikipedia
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7. Wireless Internet-of-Things (IOT)
Image credit: Cisco
January 9, 2014
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Source: Swan, M. Sensor Mania! The Internet of Things, Objective Metrics, and the
Quantified Self 2.0. J Sens Actuator Netw (2012) 1(3), 217-253.
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8. 12 billion Internet-connected devices 2016

Usual computing
gadgetry (e.g.;
smartphones) and
everyday objects: cars,
food, clothing,
appliances, buildings,
roads

Embedded chips in 5%
of human-constructed
objects (2012)1
January 9, 2014
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3 year doubling cycle
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/growth-in-the-internet-of-things-2013-10?IR=T
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Vinge, V. Who’s Afraid of First Movers? The Singularity Summit 2012
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9. Defining Trend of Current Era: Big Data
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Annual data creation in zettabytes (10007 bytes)
90% of the world’s data created in the last 2 years
2 year doubling cycle
January 9, 2014
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Source: Mary Meeker, Internet Trends, http://www.kpcb.com/insights/2013-internet-trends
http://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/white-papers/healthcare-leveraging-big-data-paper.pdf
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10. Expanded Concept of Conduct of Science
1.
Larger Scope of Activity
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Computational complement to every field
Theoretical
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Experimental
Observational
Computational
Applied
Discovery speed-ups due to modeling, simulation, and prediction
Shift from characterization to pro-active construction in tight
feedback loops enabling new fields: synthetic biology
January 9, 2014
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Source: Kido, Swan, et al. Systematic evaluation of personal genome services. Nature:
Journal of Human Genetics (2013) 58, 734–741.
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11. Expanded Concept of Conduct of Science
2. Larger Scale of Activity

Harnessing technology-driven crowd models
Institutional
Research
Crowdsourced
Participation
Citizen Science
Organized

Quantified Self
Data Analysis
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Peer Studies
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Data Competitions
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DIY Community
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Data Collection
Serious Gaming
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3D Bioprinting
Faster, lower-cost, orders-of-magnitude scale-up (permutation)
The crowd as big data processing nodes
January 9, 2014
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Source: Swan, M. Crowdsourced Health Research Studies. J Med Internet Res (2012)
14(2):e46.
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12. Information Connects Science and Society
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Wholly different relation to information
Formerly everything signal, now 99% noise
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Exception, variability, probability, patterns, prediction
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New kinds of information
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Longitudinal baseline measures, normal deviation patterns,
contingency adjustments, anomaly, emergence
Multiple data analysis paradigms: time, frequency, episode, cycle
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New kinds of models supplementing scientific method
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Machine learning, hierarchical representation, neural networks,
information visualization
January 9, 2014
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Source: Swan, M. The Quantified Self. Big Data (2013) 1(2): 85-99.
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13. Sense of Ourselves as Information
Generators
January 9, 2014
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14. Summary: Science and Society

New era of scientific discovery with a greatly
expanded range of possibilities due to big data,
computation, and crowd participation

Our attunement to technology as an enabling
background helps us see the possibilities for the true
meaningfulness of our being - Heidegger
January 9, 2014
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Source: Heidegger, M. The Question Concerning Technology (1954).
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15. Science and Society
Thank you!
Melanie Swan
m@melanieswan.com
January 9, 2014
Vieques, Puerto Rico
Slides: http://slideshare.net/LaBlogga