Center for Complexity and Emerging Technologies (COMET)

COMET is a multidisciplinary research and professional laboratory under the Advanced Research Institute for Informatics, Computing, and Networking (AdRIC) of the College of Computer Studies that investigates the science of complex adaptive systems and explores innovative ways of interacting with computing solutions. Aside from performing research, the center also functions as a development laboratory for the creation of various civic computing solutions, integrating research done internally.

It is currently composed of lead researchers, cohorts, and research assistants. The lead researchers come from the fields of computing, statistics, mathematics and physics. The cohorts and research assistants are students from the different programs and specializations under the College of Computer Studies.
COMET leverages its research in complex adaptive systems and computer-human interaction with the development of civic computing solutions. It also provides avenues for the professional growth of its lead researchers and cohorts.

Website: https://comet.dlsu.edu.ph/.

Research and Impact Areas

Our research lies at the intersection of Complex Systems, Human-Computer Interaction (HCI), Computer-Supported Cooperative Work (CSCW), Machine Learning, and Computing and Information Science. Despite the diversity in disciplines, we all strive to collaboratively work on research projects for the following themes.

Cities, crowds and mobility

“I think the next century will be the century of complexity.” – Stephen Hawking

  • How might we increase our understanding of the complex human-system interactions within cities and their externalities?
  • How might we enable government and civilian stakeholders to effectively plan urban environments and shape mobility patterns?
  • How do sociotechnical systems affect and shape the fabrics of our societies?

Cities, crowds and mobility
“I think the next century will be the century of complexity.” – Stephen Hawking

  • How might we increase our understanding of the complex human-system interactions within cities and their externalities?
  • How might we enable government and civilian stakeholders to effectively plan urban environments and shape mobility patterns?
  • How do sociotechnical systems affect and shape the fabrics of our societies?

Social networks and collective intelligence

  • How do social media platforms shape our collective intelligence about topical and crisis events?
  • How can we support authorities and crowdworkers leverage social media platforms to correct rumors and misinformation?
  • How might we enable ordinary people make informed opinions from their news feedss?

Social networks and collective intelligence

Rice feeds half of humanity. The production of rice needs to match human population growth while being environmentally sustainable and climate change-resilient. These challenges have motivated the identification of genetic factors behind agronomically important traits, often using genome-scale techniques such as QTL analysis or genome-wide association studies (GWAS). These studies report regions in the genome that are statistically significant, but they remain short of explaining the biological significance. Our lab has been working on software solutions to gain biological insights on statistically significant genomic sites.

Science of science

  • How might we grow collaboration networks in developing countries with limited access to funding and resources?
  • How can we support the formation of new collaborations?

Civic Computing and Community Informatics
“If interactive systems are knowingly designed to change human attitudes and behaviors, we would also need a philosophy of technology that provides us the means for revealing, analyzing, and discussing the human, social, cultural, ethical, and political implications of these
changes—that helps us understand ‘the new good’.” – Daniel Fallman

  • How might we leverage mobile and web technologies to promote stronger civic participation?
  • How can support the flow of information and services from the providers to their target beneficiaries?

Intelligent and Reflective Spaces
“IWe must design for the way people behave, not for how we would wish them to behave.” – Donald Norman

  • How might we assist, improve and sustain human creative experiences?
  • How might we develop new sensing technologies to improve our personal and digital wellbeing?
  • How can we support reflection in collaborative spaces to improve productivity?

Research Team