Nobel prize of the science information sector, with no winners from Asia yet
Only Professor Park selected as candidate for this year from Korea
Webometrics expert recognized for global research achievement
[March 3, 2017]
YU Department of Media and Communication Professor Park Han-woo (45) was selected as a candidate for the 'Derek de Solla Price' award, which is also known as the Nobel prize of the science information sector.
There was no winner of the Derek de Solla Price award from Asia yet. A total of 33 people are candidates for this year's award, and among the 10 main candidates likely to be chosen as the winner, Professor Park is the only candidate from Asia.
Professor Park is an expert in webometrics, which is on the quantitative analysis of the web, and big data sectors. Professor Park led the 'YU WCU Webometrics Project Team' that received government support since 2008, and has made outstanding research achievements such as publishing over a hundred theses in world acclaimed academic journals based on the theme of social network analysis through website contents and hyperlinks. In particular, upon analyzing the productivity, impact and collaboration of the 5,417 theses in the measurement informatics sector published in 75 countries since 1964 (1948-2012) in 2014, Professor Park was ranked 13th in the betweenness centrality rankings.
Professor Park was recognized internationally for his achievements and has been active as an editor for the SSCI international academic journal 'Big Data & Society', 'Technological Forecasting & Social Change' and Scientometrics'. Professor Park earned his PhD at New York State University and constructed a wide ranging academic exchange network together with researchers of North America and Europe while working at the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Oxford Internet Institute. After returning to Korea, he established a global academic society on the theme of 'Triple Helix', which is a new cooperative model of industry, academics and government.
'Derek de Solla Price' became known as the 'Father of Scientometrics' after investigating scientific knowledge production and citation structures through his book, 'Little Science, Big Science 1963) and 'Networks for Scientific Papers' carried in the world-acclaimed science journal 'Science' in 1965. Scientometrics is the 'science of science' that makes quantitative analysis on the production and development of academic fields based on the types and publications of researchers, and it contributed significantly in the birth of today's 'Big Data'.
The 'Derek de Solla Price' award selected its first winner with Eugene Garfield of the US in 1984 for his contributions by establishing the science technology thesis citation index (SCI) database, and a total of 18 people received this award. The final winner of this year will be determined on March 15 through votes by past winners and editors of the international journal, 'Scientometrics'.
