Measurements of the collective public mood derived from millions of tweets can predict the rise and fall of the Dow Jones Industrial Average up to a week in advance with an accuracy approaching 90 percent, Indiana University information scientists have found. Researchers at IU Bloomington's School of Informatics and Computing found the correlation between the value of the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) and public sentiment after analyzing more than 9.8 million tweets from 2.7 million users during 10 months in 2008. Full Story

Lilly Endowment Inc. has awarded Indiana University $4 million to support creation of the Center for Law, Ethics and Applied Research in Health Information, which will address ethical, legal and social issues involved in the growing use of health information to facilitate treatment and research, improve health outcomes for patients and heighten accountability. The gift will leverage the resources of the university and the State of Indiana in health sciences, information technology, law, ethics and other disciplines. The center will also partner with industry and nonprofit groups in Indiana and elsewhere to advance the quality, efficiency and affordability of health care. Full Story

Truthy.indiana.edu, the website created by researchers at Indiana University Bloomington's School of Informatics and Computing to root out Twitter-based political astroturfing campaigns, is finding success. In what the researchers are calling one of the most egregious examples, the Twitter account @PeaceKaren_25, while concealing its ownership identity, generated more than 10,000 tweets since the end of June. Another account, @HopeMarie_25, that was created 10 minutes later and that also has a concealed owner identity, retweets all tweets generated by @PeaceKaren_25 while producing no original tweets of its own. Full Story

Indiana University Alumni Association Executive Director J Thomas Forbes and IU Foundation President and CEO Gene Tempel have signed a memorandum of understanding to collaborate on data and information technology issues. The agreement, announced Oct. 20, brings both organizations' data and information technology staff together under a single chief information officer, Don Grinstead. Grinstead has been the chief information officer for the IU Foundation since 2006. Besides heading up the data and IT staff for the IU Alumni Association and the IUF, Grinstead also will lead the development and implementation process for the Enterprise Advancement System, an advanced database and records system. Full Story

Now that you've safely made your way through the vampires and zombies of Halloween, Indiana University's Center for Applied Cybersecurity Research (CACR) wants to remind everyone that you are much more likely to be haunted by cyber-criminals than by ghosts or ghouls. CACR has teamed up with public radio station WFIU to produce "Security Matters," a series of radio spots alerting listeners to cyber threats and directing them to practical information about how they can protect themselves. Each radio spot also has a corresponding three to five minute video segment on the Security Matters website, demonstrating simple steps that listeners can take to protect against cyber threats. Full Story

The Oct. 4, 2010, edition of IT Matters@IU includes announcement of a new website designed by IU Bloomington informatics and computer science researchers to uncover Twitter-bombs and smear campaigns during the lead-up to the November 2010 elections. Also in this issue, a $2 million grant will boost the number of students graduating with bachelor's degrees in STEM areas by 10 percent; an announcement inviting young women interested in technology careers to pursue a new program offered by IU and the National Center for Women and Information Technology; and news of a new partnership between an IU data mining expert and Pfizer that could lead to new drug discoveries. Full Story