Networks are sets of objects that are connected in some way and appear abundantly in nature, sociology, and technology. For many centuries, network theory focused on static networks, which are networks that do not change. However, since all networks transform over time, static networks have limited applications. By comparison, dynamic networks model how connections between objects change over time. In this work, we will explore how connections in dynamic networks change and how we can leverage these changes to make predictions about future iterations of networks. We will do this by first considering the link prediction problem, using either Katz distance or effective resistance to predict future connections, and relate these two metrics. Then we will look at using bipartite network connections to predict group transitions in professional sports teams. Lastly, we will investigate how to use network connections to identify and predict roles in social networks.

The modularity quality function commonly employed for finding community structure in complex networksis generalized in this article to a one-parameter family of quality functions. The generalization of networkmodularity proposed in this work is based on the concept of network efficiency, a metric first proposedby V. Latora and M. Marchiori. We define the efficiency-modularity of a partition based on the differencebetween the actual and expected efficiency among nodes in a community. The one adjustable parameter inefficiency-modularity can be tuned to detect either community or anticommunity structure with a singleunified algorithm.

Public space functions are essential for society to function because they can support social exchanges and building public life. This master thesis is a study of public life that unfolds in the setting of three redesigned public spaces in Rosengård, including Bokalerna, Rosens Röda Matta, and Rosengård Centrum. Drawing on a conceptual toolbox developed from a territorial actor-network theory (ANT) I examine the socio-material exchanges that take place because of the redesigned materialities of space and explore their impact on the quality of the selected public places. I employ qualitative methods - visual ethnography and interviews - to address the questions of 1) how material topographies mediate social exchange and 2) What actors or events are important for assembling everyday sociality in the selected three public spaces.I made use of six operative concepts of anchors, base camps, multicore and monocore spaces, tickets and rides, ladders, and finally punctiform, linear and field seating to explore their impact on the quality of the selected public places in terms of affording or hindering social exchanges. My field observations of the three sites and interviews indicate that the Rosengård Centrum accommodate a more pronounced public life compared the other, and perhaps the most popular one in the district. The programmed materialities and multiple points of organised activities allow space to facilitate heterogeneous clusterings of humans and non-human entities and the formation of a diverse collective. Moreover, the organization of a mixture of monocore and multicore space in combination with sheltered anchor spots appears to be essential for assembling and stabilising human collectives and everyday sociality in Rosengård.My findings suggest that, while many of the discussions in the literature concentrate on centres of cities or large metropolitan areas, much could still be learned from a thorough study of public spaces at a finer scale and neighbourhood level.

Based on research showing the serious environmental damage associated with conventional aquaculture, coastal marine ranching has been promoted by the Chinese government as an ecological and environmentally friendly way to produce aquatic products and simultaneously restore the marine environment. However, marine ranching is a general concept and there are significant differences among the three main types. This study initially focuses on commercial marine ranching to distinguish it from other types by identifying its unique features, functions and goals. Examining institutional frameworks of commercial marine ranching operations reveals the evolving interactions and interrelations between key actors in the network. The analysis adopts a modified social network theory approach that incorporates Chinese guanxi culture in a case study of the White Dragon Islet marine ranching project to research commercial marine ranching in China. Semi-structured interviews were conducted to collect details from each group of key actors, including the private sector, government, and local communities. Key outcomes of the research include developing a better understanding of the types of marine ranching in China and important insights into changing relationships developed from acquaintance to intimacy and then to trustworthiness within the institutional framework of a successful commercial marine ranching project. The thesis concludes by highlighting key practical implications for government policy and for commercial marine ranching practitioners to improve the implementation of such operations in China. / Graduate

Maps have longed been recognized as instruments of power and persuasion. With the recent proliferation of maps in the media and on the Internet has come an increasing desire among groups advocating for environmental and social change to have access to maps (the product) and mapping (the process) to more effectively promote their agendas. However, this is not as simple as it seems. Far from being neutral conduits of "truth," maps are constructed by a myriad of social interactions among heterogeneous actors (human and technical) that left unacknowledged can lead to an untapped potential of the power of maps. Adopting actor-network theory's (ANT) theoretical framework that accepts nonhuman entities as actors in the social, and its methodological protocols, this study contributes to the needed empirical evidence relating to the ways in which maps and mapping behave and function in society, particularly in the grassroots advocacy context and neighborhood scale, through a case study of the products, and thereby the process, of the Coalition for a Livable Future?s (CLF) Regional Equity Atlas four-year endeavor. The purpose of this study is to account for and expose the complexity of relations among data, technology, people, and organizations that underlie it and the ways in which these relations affected the atlas itself. Four interrelated themes emerge from this study. The first relates to CLF's contribution to equity mapping discourse including its participatory approach to equity mapping, its definition of equity, and the subsequent impacts of both of these things on the mapping process. The second relates more specifically to the contributions of the embedded ideologies that are integral to the GIS software that was used and the roles that they played. The third theme is the importance of process in community-based mapping projects and the recognition that they are social processes in the comprehensive sense that ANT theorists advocate. The fourth theme relates to how maps work, specifically, maps as maps versus the idea of maps.

The discovery of solidus coins on the islands of Öland and Gotland, propose a contactbetween Scandinavia and the Roman Empire during the Migration Period (AD 400-550), buthow did the Scandinavians get access to these coins? In this essay, I will study thestampidentity and coin embossing from 572 coins found on Öland and Gotland. The aim is tounderstand where the coins were minted and during which periods there was a big influx ofsolidus coins to Scandinavia. But also, to understand what European regions the people ofÖland and Gotland were in contact with. This essay will also map certain events that are vitalfor understanding why the solidus coins are found in Scandinavia.

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The municipalities' vision of using City Information Modeling (CIM) and Digital Twins (DT) inurban planning, requires prerequisites in place. A prerequisite is BIM, which together with GIS can create CIM.BIM implementation for a municipality involves major challenges and one such challenge is the lack of BIMmodels for existing buildings and infrastructure. However, this study is limited to planned development inconnection with land allocation. BIM implementation for the land allocation process within a medium-sizedSwedish municipality involves many involved actors and thus the need for a mobilization of the involved actorsfrom an ANT-inspired perspective. The purpose of this study is therefore to analyze how an actor network canbe mobilized to implement BIM in the land allocation process. A case study method has been chosen in thisthesis, considering that a well-defined case is identified, and the approach enables a variety of data collectionmethods that have been inspired by the autoethnographic approach because the researcher belongs to the focalactor in the process.

The increasing demand for female-centred services and devices in the digital era has challenged traditional notions of privacy. This thesis explores how users perceive privacy issues in period- tracking applications provided by various developers. By utilising mixed-method research and adopting an ethnographic methodology within the framework of Actor-Network Theory, this study examines the trade-off of sensitive data in exchange for predictions through agential roles in the use of period-tracking applications. The results reveal that users desire control over whom they share their menstrual information with and feel confident doing so with non-human actors, the period-tracking application. Users are unaware of the developers' access to their data and the potential selling of it to third parties. The study highlights the power dynamics between users, period-tracking applications, and developers and their impact on perceived privacy. The research emphasises the mediating role of the period-tracking application in trust and power dynamics as users perceive privacy differently in the digital and physical worlds. The thesis proposes a podcast prototype that demonstrates the impact of technology on user behaviour and their willingness to compromise their privacy. The prototype aims to evokes emotions and encourages reflection on how non-human actors can influence decision-making. The podcast prototype emphasises user's need for more awareness of how data is used and highlights the potential dystopian future. Through this demonstration, the thesis aims to contribute to a deeper understanding of the complex interplay between human and non-human actors in the digital world and their effect on individual privacy.

Battery electric buses (BEBs) bring several advantages to public transportation systems. With fixed routes and scheduled trips, the implementation of BEBs in the transit context is considered a seamless transition towards a zero greenhouse gases transit system. However, energy consumption uncertainty is a significant deterrent for mainstream implementation of BEBs. Demonstration and trial projects are often conducted to better understand the uncertainty in energy consumption (EC). However, the BEB's energy consumption varies due to uncertainty in operational, topological, and environmental attributes. This thesis aims at developing simulation, data-driven, and low-resolution models using big data to quantify the EC of BEBs, with the overarching goal of developing a comprehensive planning framework for BEB implementation in bus transit networks. This aim is achieved through four interwind objectives. 1) Quantify the operational and topological characteristics of bus transit networks using complex network theory. This objective provides a fundamental base to understanding the behaviour of bus transit networks under disruptive events. 2) Investigate the impacts of the vehicular, operational, topological, and external parameters on the EC of BEBs. 3) Develop and evaluate the feasibility of big-data analytics and data-driven models to numerically estimate BEB's EC. 4) Create an open-source low-resolution data-based framework to estimate the EC of BEBs. This framework integrates the modelling efforts in objectives 1-3 and offers practical knowledge for transit providers. Overall, the thesis provides genuine contributions to BEB research and offers a practical framework for addressing the EC uncertainty associated with BEB operation in the transit context. Further, the results offer transit planners the means to set up the optimum transit operations profile that improves BEB energy utilization, and in turn, reduces transit-related greenhouse gases. / Thesis / Doctor of Engineering (DEng)