EAGER: GreenSC: Characterizing and Modeling Energy Use in Social Computing

社交网络将行为和社交活动与无数支持个人之间关系的基础设施网络联系在一起。这些基础设施网络包括互联网、电话系统和交通网络，所有这些都与电力和燃料供应网络(如电网)捆绑在一起。社交网络在底层基础设施网络中发挥着强大的塑造作用，对其容量提出了巨大的要求，并帮助确定了它们如何通过使用演变。一组初步的分析表明，通过分析和优化建立和维持社交网络所需的能源，有很大的机会改善能源使用。该项目旨在量化社交网络的能源需求，并通过以下方式确定优化其能源使用的战略：通过调查和众包数据评估社交网络所用技术的生态；对通信技术所消耗的电力进行建模和经验性测量；以及开发一个社会可持续性综合指标，该指标将被纳入一个工具，帮助用户作出更可持续的选择。该项目将有助于更好地理解复杂的社会技术网络的行为和动态，以便更好地设计未来的网络。该项目旨在建立对不同通信技术如何在社交网络中一起使用的理解，并使用这一模型来解决支持关系的技术网络中的能源消耗如何积累。最后，该项目寻求将大规模问题与个人的行动和行为联系起来，这对促进行为改变至关重要。更广泛的影响本项目中回答的问题对于在社会网络和社会生活背景下的能源使用的知情优化和创新至关重要。更好地了解社交网络和社会计算技术的能源成本有望对气候变化、信息技术促进发展和运营效率产生影响。此外，S项目的调查结果将通过一系列全国性的培训和课程开发项目进行分发。

Social networks link behavioral and social activities with a myriad of infrastructural networks that support relationships between individuals. These infrastructural networks include the Internet, telephone systems and transportation networks, all of which are in turn tied to power and fuel-supply networks, such as electricity grids. Social networks play a powerful shaping role on underlying infrastructural networks, placing great demands on their capacity and helping determine how they evolve through use. An initial set of analyses suggests that there are significant opportunities for improving energy use by analyzing and optimizing the energy required to build and sustain social networks. This project seeks to quantify the energy requirements of social networks and identify strategies for optimizing their energy use by: assessing the ecology of technologies used in social networks through surveys and crowdsourced data; modeling and empirically measuring the power consumed in communication technologies; and developing a social sustainability composite indicator that will be integrated into a tool to help users make more sustainable choices. Intellectual Merit This project will lead to an improved understanding of the behavior and dynamics of complex, socio-technical networks so that future networks can be better designed. The project seeks to build an understanding of how different communication technologies are used together in social networks and to use this model to address how energy use accumulates in technical networks that support relationships. Finally, the project seeks to link large-scale problems with the actions and behaviors of individuals, which is critical for promoting behavioral change. Broader Impacts The questions answered in this project are critical to informed optimization and innovation of energy use in the context of social networks and social life. A better understanding of the energy cost of social networks and social computing technologies promises to have impact in climate change, information technology for development and operational efficiency. Additionally, the project?s findings will be distributed through a number of national programs for training and curriculum development.