Four GRAND PhD students from across Canada were awarded the opportunity to participate in a National Science Foundation (NSF) Funded Doctoral Symposium on Social-Computational Systems, held June 9-11 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The symposium, limited to 40 American and Canadian students, provided a forum where Ph.D. students met and discussed their work in social computing with each other and a panel of experienced researchers and practitioners. Social computing can be described as collaborative and interactive online behaviour and technology. Examples of social computing systems include blogs, wikis, Twitter, RSS, instant messaging, multiplayer gaming and open source development.

In addition to the four PhD students, GRAND researcher and Dalhousie University professor Anatoliy Gruzd was selected as one of the mentors. 

This is the fourth time GRAND has participated in NSF-funded initiatives.

GRAND's Ph.D. students who participated in the symposium will share their experience in a series of blog-style entries linked below: 
Noreen Kamal, University of British Columbia
Naureen Nizam, Dalhousie University
Mo Guang-Ying, University of Toronto
Rob Bajko, Ryerson University

GRAND participants in the NSF Symposium on Social-Computational Systems (L to R). Rob Bajko, Ryerson University; Dr. Anatoliy Gruzd, Dalhousie University; Mo Guang-Ying, University of Toronto; Noreen Kamal, University of British Columbia; Naureen Nizam, Dalhousie University

Graphic credit: webtreats.mysitemyway.com