American Foreign Policy Since World War II by Hook, Steven W.; Spanier, John W.; Bueno de Mesquita, Bruce; Dolbeare, Kenneth M.; Cummings, Michael S.; Vig, Norman J.;

Short description:

This book offers a much needed critical introduction to data mining and ‘big data’. Supported by multiple case studies and examples, the authors provide everything needed to explore, evaluate and review big data concepts and techniques.

Long description:

This book offers a much needed critical introduction to data mining and ‘big data’. Supported by multiple case studies and examples, the authors provide:

• Digestible overviews of key terms and concepts relevant to using social media data in quantitative research.


• A critical review of data mining and ‘big data’ from a complexity science perspective, including its future potential and limitations


• A practical exploration of the challenges of putting together and managing a ‘big data’ database


• An evaluation of the core mathematical and conceptual frameworks, grounded in a case-based computational modeling perspective, which form the foundations of all data mining techniques  

Table of Contents:

Chapter 1: Introduction
Part 1: Thinking Complex and Critically
Chapter 2: The Failure of Quantitative Social Science
Chapter 3: What is Big Data?
Chapter 4: What is Data Mining
Chapter 5: The Complexity Turn
Part 2: The Tools and Techniques of Data Mining
Chapter 6: Case-Based Complexity: A Data Mining Vocabulary
Chapter 7: Classification and Clustering
Chapter 8: Machine Learning
Chapter 9: Predictive Analytics and Data Forecasting
Chapter 10: Longitudinal Analysis
Chapter 11: Geospatial Modeling
Chapter 12: Complex Network Analysis
Chapter 13: Textual and Visual Data Mining
Chapter 14: Conclusion: Advancing A Complex Digital Social Science