Q1: Author Distribution
Analysis of Post Volumes:
To get a broad picture of how much authors are sharing in both comments and submissions, we combined these two categories to create a new measure called “total_count,” showing the overall number of posts. We focused on the top 50 most active authors, checking how much of their posting activity makes up the total. Our analysis revealed an interesting trend: most users tend to share more comments than submissions. Notably, the top 10 users together make up about 10% of all posts(excluding AutoModerator), with veritanuda being the most prominent. Additionally, the top 20 authors contribute around 16% of all posts, showing a significant influence in the technology community’s discussions. (we have excluded AutoModerator)
In r/Futurology, we noticed something interesting about the people who contribute to the subreddit. Take, for example, “lzumi3682” and “Gari_305” - they’re both active members who post a good amount of content, whether it’s starting new discussions or commenting on existing ones. Surprisingly, “Gari_305” even shares more new ideas than they comment on!
When we looked at the big picture, we found that the top 5 most active contributors in r/Futurology only make up about 10% of all the posts, and even the top 20 contributors together only account for around 21% of the total. This tells us that there’s a wide range of people chiming in and sharing their thoughts in this subreddit, creating a diverse mix of perspectives compared to what we see in r/Technology.
Breakdown of Posts and Comments:
Diving deeper into the analysis of different types of posts, we uncovered some interesting trends. In terms of new posts submissions, we noticed that users “Sorin61” and “Wagamaga” stand out as the top contributors in the r/technology subreddit. Together, the top 5 contributors make up about 16% of all submissions, and the top 20 contributors account for approximately 33% of the total. This highlights a significant level of dominance among a smaller group of contributors in terms of submissions.
In the comments section, excluding ‘AutoModerator,’ the top 5 authors together make up about 7% of all comments, and the top 20 authors make up roughly 16%. Still, some authors like “veritanuda”, “littleMAS”, and “DarthBuzzard” remain highly engaged, suggesting they have a significant impact on shaping discussions in the subreddit.
When it comes to posts, the top 5 authors together make up just 22% of all Posts submission, and the top 20 authors contribute to 37% of the total.
On the flip side, when it comes to comments, the top 5 authors together make up just 10% of all comments, and the top 20 authors contribute to 21% of the total. However, it’s interesting to point out that the top two contributors, “Surur” and “StarChild413”, play a big part, making up about 6% of all comments. This indicates that engagement in comments is spread out more evenly, although there are still some key authors making significant contributions.
This analysis offers a detailed look into who’s contributing to discussions in both the r/technology and r/Futurology subreddits. It helps us see the diverse mix of people involved and how much they’re influencing both posts and comments. These insights are really helpful for understanding how these communities work and how certain people play a big role in steering the conversation.