On the Use by Facebook, Google, and Twitter of algorithms to filter content presented to users

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Through Forensic Linguistics
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(thanks to Charles Willock )

For those looking for an easy-to-understand introduction to /discussion of, personal data tracking and use it for raising awareness of non-computer students the following items could be useful: (Listen from these pages)

  Algorithm awareness, Sunday, September 21, 2014
  Christian Sandvig   (09:23)
  http://www.cbc.ca/spark/blog/2014/09/21/algorithm-awareness/

  “Why Twitter Should Not Algorithmically Curate the Timeline”
   Zeynep Tufekci   (08:48)
   http://www.cbc.ca/spark/blog/2014/09/21/twitter-algorithms/

They outline use by Facebook, Google, and potentially Twitter of algorithms to filter content presented to users and the general lack of awareness of the existance of that software by users.

More systematic studies are needed in order to test the benefits of DDL

In different ways, the use of concordancers, concordance lines and language corpora promoted the use of information technologies and active search strategies, which was perceived as a valuable asset. Recently, Johansson (2009:41) claimed that more systematic studies are needed in order to test the benefits of DDL and that it is necessary to discuss “students’ problems with corpus investigation” so that specialists can “suggest how [learners] could be better equipped to be corpus researchers”. 

From Pérez-Paredes, P.Sánchez-Tornel, M. and Alcaraz Calero, J.M. Learners’ search patterns during corpus-based focus-on-form activities. A study on hands-on concordancing. International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 17:4. 2012. iii, 150 pp. (pp. 482–515)

More systematic studies are needed in order to test the benefits of DDL

In different ways, the use of concordancers, concordance lines and language corpora promoted the use of information technologies and active search strategies, which was perceived as a valuable asset. Recently, Johansson (2009:41) claimed that more systematic studies are needed in order to test the benefits of DDL and that it is necessary to discuss “students’ problems with corpus investigation” so that specialists can “suggest how [learners] could be better equipped to be corpus researchers”. 

From Pérez-Paredes, P.Sánchez-Tornel, M. and Alcaraz Calero, J.M. Learners’ search patterns during corpus-based focus-on-form activities. A study on hands-on concordancing. International Journal of Corpus Linguistics 17:4. 2012. iii, 150 pp. (pp. 482–515)