Vladimir Barash, PhD

Researcher • Writer • Data Scientist

I am the Science Director at Graphika, Inc, a social media analytics startup based in New York.

My research focuses mainly on the intersection of social media and large-scale social phenomena. I am keenly interested in how large groups of people behave together, how ideas and movements spread from individual to individual, and how much we can deduce about a person's behavior from their digital footprint.

In addition to my research duties, I oversee many aspects of Graphika's technology stack, from automated discovery of key content for the platform to building the Graphika API and generating custom user reports.

Research

Projects

Respondent-Driven Sampling - Testing Assumptions: Sampling with Replacement

Details

Vladimir D. Barash ◦ Christopher J. Cameron ◦ Michael W. Spiller ◦ Douglas D. Heckathorn

Berkman Russia Paper Series

Details

Karina Alexanyan ◦ Vladimir Barash ◦ Bruce Etling ◦ Robert Faris ◦ Urs Gasser ◦ John Kelly ◦ John Palfrey ◦ Hal Roberts

Grants

Details

Tracking Critical-Mass Outbreaks in Social Contagions

PI: Michael Macy, Cornell University
Co-PI: Clay Fink, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory ◦ John Kelly, Graphika, Inc. ◦ Vladimir Barash, Graphika, Inc.

Book Chapters

Details

Analyzing Social Media Networks with NodeXL:
Insights from a Connected World

Chapter 9: Twitter: Conversation, Entertainment, and Information, All in One Network! Marc Smith, Ben Shneiderman, Derek Hansen. Morgan Kaufmann Press, Waltham MA 2010

 

Writing

As a writer, I want to tell stories about our changing, complicated world. I try to share my Russian-American identity and culture in a way that is accessible to readers no matter their origin.

 

Blog

The occasional ramblings of an east coast academic. Often about the internet, gaming, or some other similarly nerdy topic. Sometimes relevant to current events. Enjoy!

I love to play, test and make games; my dream is to combine stories and games in an exciting, spontaneous way and to share them with the world. I run original games at Anonycon in Connecticut.

Games

  • Original Tabletop Scenarios:
    Call of Cthulhu • Firefly • FantasyCraft
  • Demon Mark: A Russian Saga

 

Who is Vlad?

Vlad Barash

I received my Ph.D. from Cornell University, where I studied Information Science and wrote my thesis on the flow of rumors and virally marketed products through social networks.

Although I was born in Russia, I have lived up and down the east coast of the US most of my life. These days I am anchored in the greater Boston area. Here, I pursue my passions of science, writing, and games alongside my partner and our little dog, whom we love very much.

 

Get in Touch