Projects

Each term, the Center for Data, Media and Society helps support interdisciplinary research projects by funding students to work on projects at the intersection of data science and other disciplines. These projects have involved everything from computationally-driven music and historical archive annotation, to supporting agricultural decision-making and inclusive fashion design. We encourage both students and faculty to get in touch to discuss existing projects, or for help in finding project partners in another field.

Upcoming Projects

Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU), Spring 2021 - The NewsAuth Project

The News Authentication Research Group (NewsAuth) is now accepting applications for a paid remote Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) with researchers at Columbia DSI and the Columbia Journalism School, including a wider collaboration opportunity with researchers from Clemson University and New York University. We are seeking applicants who are interested in learning about research in digital news and media trust, privacy and security in organizational settings, and human-centered computing.

Application process

Applicants must be active full-time students at a U.S. college and must be U.S. citizens or U.S. permanent residents. This research appointment is a part-time and remote work opportunity, and covers between 10-20 hours per week. To apply, please submit your 1-page resume to The NewsAuth Group at reu.newsauth@columbia.edu. Preference will be given to students who submit their resume by February 1, 2021.

For more information about this project, please visit our project page.

Recent Projects

Uni-ke

Uni-ke is an interdisciplinary project that aims to provide individuals with an economic avenue to become involved in creative entrepreneurship. With Center support, CS student Christian Cruz Godoy built a web application that allows users to create art and sell it, while on the back end connecting them with potential producers nationwide. Robust data analytics that both assist the artists and established production businesses so as to provide value to both parties. The project also provides a window into economic exclusion of the youth demographic worldwide and immigrant/refugee employment inaccessibility.

Uni-ke is now a vibrant online brand. You can shop their products at https://www.uni-ke.com/, learn about their mission at https://www.uni-ke.com/theory and follow them on IG @uni__ke.

VizPol

VizPol is an app designed to provide journalists with contextual information about unfamiliar graphic symbols they may encounter during field reporting, especially during live events, protests, and rallies. By offering journalists some additional information about these symbols (or just alerting them to the fact that a symbol may have broader political connotations) the VizPol app supports more accurate, effective reporting on an increasingly complex political landscape.

You can learn more about the VizPol project on Twitter/Medium @vizpolresearch.

Part of Columbia's's Data Science Institute