using social media for ecosystem observations: practical approaches, analyses and how-to tips for...

Jeremiah  Osborne-­‐Gowey,  Feather  River  Consul:ng,  @JeremiahOsGo  Mary  Fuka,  EnPhysica  LLC,  @MzPhyz  Daniel  Fuka,  Dept.  of  Biological  Systems  Engineering,  Virginia  Tech,  M.  Todd  Walter,  Biological  and  Environmental  Engineering,  Cornell  University  Zachary  Easton,  Dept.  of  Biological  Systems  Engineering,  Virginia  Tech  

Using  Social  Media  for  Ecosystem    ObservaJons  

PracJcal  Approaches,  Resources    And  Tips  for  ScienJsts  and  Resource  Managers  

Big  data,  small  tools,  huge  insights  

• Lots  of  free  data  out  there,  waiJng  

• Free  tools  to  help    

Digital  Age  

InformaJon  processing  

Digital  Age  

Interconnected  networks  

DisJll  to  relevant  data.  Find  paOerns.  

InformaJon  Overload?  

‘Big  data’  black  hole  

‘Big  data’  black  hole  

InformaJon  fire  hose  

‘Big  data’    black  hole  

InformaJon  fire  hose  

‘Big  data’    black  hole  

InformaJon  fire  hose  

It’s  not  informaJon  overload.    It’s  filter  failure.  ~Clay  Shirky  @cshirky  

Twi>er  ❧  What are you

doing? ~140chars

Twi>er  ❧  What are you

doing? ~140chars ❧  1 Billion+ total

users, 255 million monthly active users

❧  50 million tweets sent every day

❧  46% of users tweet 1+ times a day

❧  19% of all adults online are on Twitter

Twi>er  ❧  What are you

doing? ~140chars ❧  1 Billion+ total

users, 255 million monthly active users

❧  50 million tweets sent every day

❧  46% of users tweet 1+ times a day

❧  19% of all adults online are on Twitter

Twi>er  ❧  What are you

doing? ~140chars ❧  1 Billion+ total

users, 255 million monthly active users

❧  50 million tweets sent every day

❧  46% of users tweet 1+ times a day

❧  19% of all adults online are on Twitter

Twi>er  ❧  What are you

doing? ~140chars ❧  1 Billion+ total

users, 255 million monthly active users

❧  50 million tweets sent every day

❧  46% of users tweet 1+ times a day

❧  19% of all adults online are on Twitter

TIP:  Use  TwiOer’s  naJve  search  to  find  data  of  interest.  Be  creaJve.  But  be  sure  to  check  the  “All”  tweets  link,  not  just  “Top  Posts”  

HOT  TIP:  Develop  species/topical  keyword  list,    get  this  book/codes  

TwiOer:  @SocialWebMining    @ptwobrussel  

HOT  TIP:  Examine  raw  (TwiOer)  data  for  specific  ‘sighJng’  language    (e.g.,  caught,  hooked,  landed,  saw,  hit,  there  is/are,  OMG,  etc.),  then  filter  on  those  word  associaJons  

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cherry_reports

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chokecherry_reports

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dogwood_reports

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armadillo_reports

Examine  filtered  data  

What info can be extracted? Location Date/Time Environment Reaction/Sentiment Behavior Condition

What info can be extracted? Date/Time

LocationEnvironment

Reaction/Sentiment Behavior Condition

Profile informationConnections…

SEASONALITY  

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hummingbird_reportsHUMMINGBIRD  -­‐  DAILY  

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dogwood_reportsDOGWOOD  -­‐  DAILY  

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cherry_reportsCHERRY  -­‐  DAILY  

ANGLER  EFFORT/  RECRUITMENT  

IDENTIFY/EARLY  TRACKING  OF  INVASIONS,  RANGE  SHIFTS  

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armadillo_reportsARMADILLO  -­‐  DAILY  

HOT  TIP:  Expect  2-­‐9%  of  tweets  to  come  with  geolocaJons.  A  few  other  tweaks  can  drive  that  number  closer  to  40%.  

TRACK  DISEASE  VECTORS,  OUTBREAKS  

SUPPLEMENT  EXISTING  ECOSYSTEMS  INFO    &  DATABASES  

STEELHEAD  2/7-­‐3/31  

OPINION  MINING  /  SENTIMENT  

SENTIMENTVIZ  (CHRIS  HEALY)  

HOT  TIP:  Check  out  Chris  Healey’s  (NCS)  SenJmentViz,  SenJWordNet  for  quick,  useful  opinion  mining  of  TwiOer.  

2014  urban  wildlife  hotspots  FACTOID: 85% of US lives in urban areas. 16% use Twitter. It’s wild what they tweet.

Take  Home  Messages  

•  Networking  plakorms  freely  provide  access  to  lots  of  data  

•  Useful  ecosystem  observaJons  can  be  mined  from  social  datastreams  

•  There  are  a  number  of  free  tools  to  help  find,  store  and  filter  social-­‐derived  data  

Jeremiah  Osborne-­‐Gowey    Feather  River  ConsulJng  Contact:  @JeremiahOsGo  

JEREMIAHOSBORNEGOWEY@gmail.com  

Zachary  Easton    Dept.  of  Biological  Systems  Engineering  

Virginia  Tech  

Mary  Fuka  EnPhysica,  LLC    @MzPhyz  

Daniel  Fuka,    Dept.  of  Biological  Systems  Engineering    

Virginia  Tech  

M.  Todd  Walter  Biological  and  Environmental  Engineering    Cornell  University  

πάντα  χωρεῖ  καὶ  οὐδὲν  μένει  •  Heraclitus  of  Ephesus  (535-­‐475BC)    

Everything  changes  and  nothing  stands  sJll.  •  Heraclitus  of  Ephesus  (535-­‐475BC)    

InformaJon  bombardment.  

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all_cherry

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all_chokecherry

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all_dogwood