About Alexander
Research Biography
My current work focuses on the study of memes within information science. I’m a PhD candidate in the School of Information Studies at Syracuse University, expecting to graduate in Spring 2024. Memes provide a useful boundary object connecting information to cultural research. Meme studies bridge many theoretical interests: dynamics and evolutionary theories of culture, information, media, cybernetics, etc. Memes act both as a “unit,” as well as a variety of information and communication processes. Many facets of meme studies enable a negotiation of information and data’s place in studying culture. These are the fundamental concerns that continue following through my scientific and critical perspectives.
My research is about information and technology studies and their connection to media and culture studies. In particular, I focus on these subject areas’ connections to epistemological and metaphysical interests pertaining to theory and history of information. Memetic empirical lenses contribute developments in cultural information and its mediation processes. Noted in my CV, my work has been published at Journal of Documentation and Policy & Internet. Also I am a regular contributor to conference venues such as the Association of Internet Researchers (AoIR), Association for Information Science and Technology (ASIS&T), and Social Media and Society (SMS).
Teaching
At Syracuse University, I instructed IST 343: Data in Society. This course is an ethics and critical sociological course, offering an evaluation of what data is and what it does in our contemporary digital world. Additionally, I have been a recitation leader for IST 256, an introductory python programming course, focused for information systems and data science.
In the past, I have been a teaching assistant, tutor, and Supplemental Instruction Leader for various economics courses including Principles of Microeconomics and Macroeconomics, International Economics, Intermediate Microeconomics, and Macroeconomic Policy.
Personal Life
I have an obsession with all things drink culture related and spent ~7 years in coffee/bar industry. Also I have an expensive habit of buying fountain pens and building mechanical keyboards. Ever since junior high school, I’ve had a strong interest in online culture and tinkering with computer hardware and open source operating systems. It has been noted that I have an pesky love-hate relationship with half-functioning technologies. Importantly, I carry a special affinity for all things TRON, Blade Runner, and Star Wars.