Nikolaos Yiannakoulias
Biographic Data
| ID | 267155 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Nikolaos Yiannakoulias |
| GIVEN NAMES | Nikolaos |
| FAMILY NAME | Yiannakoulias |
| SIGNATURE | YIANNAKOULIAS N |
| AFFILIATIONS | McMaster University |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-3443-1071 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 24 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 39 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 24 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2002 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Learning From Wins and Losses: An Analysis of Improvement in Online Speed Chess
Background Learning from feedback is an important part of skill improvement. A common assumption is that failure offers superior learning opportunities when compared to success. However, this assumption remains underexplored in natural time-constrained settings. Objective To examine the impact of self-analysis on performance improvement in online speed chess, with a focus on whether analyzing wins versus losses differentially predicts gains in pl…
Parameterizing agent-based models using an online game
Agent-based models (ABMs) of human systems are often parameterized using real-world data. For some ABMs this is not possible because the reality upon which the models are based does not exist or is not generalizable from one setting to another. In this paper we implement an online decision game to parameterize an agent-based model of pedestrian and cyclist route choice decisions in a neighbourhood. Our conceptual framework is to use an experiment…
Spatial intelligence and contextual relevance in AI-driven health information retrieval
The evolution of large language models (LLMs) has already significantly influenced online health information retrieval. As these models gain more widespread use, it is important to understand their ability to contextualize responses based on spatial and geographic information. This study investigates whether LLMs can vary responses based on geographic and spatial context. Using a structured set of prompts submitted to ChatGPT, responses were anal…
In memoriam M. John Hodgson 1942–2024
In memory of M. John Hodgson, the academic community mourns the loss of a distinguished scholar, teacher, and mentor who passed away in January of 2024. Born on 6 June 1942, in Houma, Louisiana, John received his Ph.D. in Geography from the University of Toronto in 1973. After graduate studies he spent the remainder of his academic career at the University of Alberta, where he was a faculty member in the Department of Geography from 1972 to 1995,…
Sometimes simple is good enough: An analysis of methods for residential building population estimation
Residential building population data can be useful in a breadth of urban planning, health, transportation, and business applications. Unfortunately, complete datasets of residential building populations are not widely available for use in Canada, and therefore either larger census geographies are used or residential building populations must be estimated. This research explores four different methods of estimating residential building populations…
‘Vaccinfluencers’: A study of influential voices criticizing Covid-19 vaccination efforts and negative vaccine information discourse on Twitter
In late 2020, the large-scale rollout of COVID-19 vaccines to combat the global pandemic ignited a firestorm of debates and media discourse on vaccines. We conducted a discourse analysis of tweets (n = 875) criticizing the COVID-19 vaccination process and/or containing negative vaccine information (NVI) authored by influential Twitter accounts receiving the highest user engagement. Results showed news media and private citizens to be important in…
Games in Socioenvironmental Research
In recent years, games have emerged to offer new opportunities for studying socioenvironmental systems, and online games in particular offer a low-cost option for collecting rich data from diverse populations. Compared to the now well-established popularity of education games, research games remain uncommon outside of economics and social psychology; however, the emergence of technology that makes the development and deployment of games easier cr…
Has public health messaging during the Covid-19 pandemic reflected local risks to health: A content analysis of tweeting practices across Canadian geographies
Cancer risk communication in the news coverage of suspected cancer clusters in Ontario: Contrasting media messaging on cancer by geography
Key Messages This study suggests that the communication of select information on cancer risk varies between urban and rural settings in newspaper coverage in Ontario. News coverage that reports risk information in a variety of formats could foster health literacy and accurate perceptions of cancer risk among Canadians. Participatory communication practices, involving collaboration between multiple stakeholders, could help address communication in…
Open government data, uncertainty and coronavirus: An infodemiological case study
The decision game: A serious game approach to understanding environmental risk management decisions
Here we describe the implementation of an experimental research tool called the Decision Game that we used to collect data on household flood risk management decisions. Participants using this tool play an interactive game that involves making household decisions about place of residence and a variety of household expenditures, including spending on flood insurance and private flood risk mitigation. Participants also answer survey questions befor…
Celebrity over science? An analysis of Lyme disease video content on YouTube
Examining the relationship between active travel, weather, and the built environment: A multilevel approach using a GPS-enhanced dataset
A geography of moral hazard: Sources and sinks of motor-vehicle commuting externalities
The effects of local and non-local traffic on child pedestrian safety: A spatial displacement of risk
Playground Accessibility and Neighbourhood Social Interaction Among Parents
Spatial aberration vs. geographical substance: Representing place in public health surveillance
Understanding Identifiability in Secondary Health Data
Secondary health data are becoming important sources of information for health research. Unfortunately, there are few national guidelines outlining clear criteria for data custodians when adjudicating requests for access to these data. This presents a particular challenge to researchers and even public health officials interested in multi-jurisdictional analysis of health data. While some of the problem in developing consistent national standards…
Using population attributable risk to understand geographic disease clusters
Geographic hierarchies of diagnostic practice style in cerebrovascular disease
Modelling Geographic Variations in West Nile Virus
Diagnostic uncertainty and medical geography: What are we mapping
The administration of the Canadian health care system requires the collection of large quantities of health data that some health researchers have used to map the spatial distribution of disease. The authors discuss the difficulty of separating genuine geographic variations in health and disease from geographic differences in how diseases are diagnosed, and how these diagnoses are represented in an administrative data system. Although there have …
Zones of prevention: The Geography of Fall Injuries in the Elderly
The Spatial and Temporal Dimensions of Child Pedestrian Injury in Edmonton
Zones of prevention: The Geography of Fall Injuries in the Elderly
Playground Accessibility and Neighbourhood Social Interaction Among Parents
Using population attributable risk to understand geographic disease clusters
Celebrity over science? An analysis of Lyme disease video content on YouTube
The effects of local and non-local traffic on child pedestrian safety: A spatial displacement of risk
The Spatial and Temporal Dimensions of Child Pedestrian Injury in Edmonton
Spatial aberration vs. geographical substance: Representing place in public health surveillance
Diagnostic uncertainty and medical geography: What are we mapping
The administration of the Canadian health care system requires the collection of large quantities of health data that some health researchers have used to map the spatial distribution of disease. The authors discuss the difficulty of separating genuine geographic variations in health and disease from geographic differences in how diseases are diagnosed, and how these diagnoses are represented in an administrative data system. Although there have …
Has public health messaging during the Covid-19 pandemic reflected local risks to health: A content analysis of tweeting practices across Canadian geographies
The decision game: A serious game approach to understanding environmental risk management decisions
Here we describe the implementation of an experimental research tool called the Decision Game that we used to collect data on household flood risk management decisions. Participants using this tool play an interactive game that involves making household decisions about place of residence and a variety of household expenditures, including spending on flood insurance and private flood risk mitigation. Participants also answer survey questions befor…
Geographic hierarchies of diagnostic practice style in cerebrovascular disease
The Spatial and Temporal Dimensions of Child Pedestrian Injury in Edmonton
Zones of prevention: The Geography of Fall Injuries in the Elderly
Diagnostic uncertainty and medical geography: What are we mapping
The administration of the Canadian health care system requires the collection of large quantities of health data that some health researchers have used to map the spatial distribution of disease. The authors discuss the difficulty of separating genuine geographic variations in health and disease from geographic differences in how diseases are diagnosed, and how these diagnoses are represented in an administrative data system. Although there have …
Modelling Geographic Variations in West Nile Virus
Using population attributable risk to understand geographic disease clusters
Geographic hierarchies of diagnostic practice style in cerebrovascular disease
Spatial aberration vs. geographical substance: Representing place in public health surveillance
Understanding Identifiability in Secondary Health Data
Secondary health data are becoming important sources of information for health research. Unfortunately, there are few national guidelines outlining clear criteria for data custodians when adjudicating requests for access to these data. This presents a particular challenge to researchers and even public health officials interested in multi-jurisdictional analysis of health data. While some of the problem in developing consistent national standards…
Playground Accessibility and Neighbourhood Social Interaction Among Parents
The effects of local and non-local traffic on child pedestrian safety: A spatial displacement of risk
Examining the relationship between active travel, weather, and the built environment: A multilevel approach using a GPS-enhanced dataset
A geography of moral hazard: Sources and sinks of motor-vehicle commuting externalities
Celebrity over science? An analysis of Lyme disease video content on YouTube
The decision game: A serious game approach to understanding environmental risk management decisions
Here we describe the implementation of an experimental research tool called the Decision Game that we used to collect data on household flood risk management decisions. Participants using this tool play an interactive game that involves making household decisions about place of residence and a variety of household expenditures, including spending on flood insurance and private flood risk mitigation. Participants also answer survey questions befor…
Open government data, uncertainty and coronavirus: An infodemiological case study
Has public health messaging during the Covid-19 pandemic reflected local risks to health: A content analysis of tweeting practices across Canadian geographies
Cancer risk communication in the news coverage of suspected cancer clusters in Ontario: Contrasting media messaging on cancer by geography
Key Messages This study suggests that the communication of select information on cancer risk varies between urban and rural settings in newspaper coverage in Ontario. News coverage that reports risk information in a variety of formats could foster health literacy and accurate perceptions of cancer risk among Canadians. Participatory communication practices, involving collaboration between multiple stakeholders, could help address communication in…
Games in Socioenvironmental Research
In recent years, games have emerged to offer new opportunities for studying socioenvironmental systems, and online games in particular offer a low-cost option for collecting rich data from diverse populations. Compared to the now well-established popularity of education games, research games remain uncommon outside of economics and social psychology; however, the emergence of technology that makes the development and deployment of games easier cr…
‘Vaccinfluencers’: A study of influential voices criticizing Covid-19 vaccination efforts and negative vaccine information discourse on Twitter
In late 2020, the large-scale rollout of COVID-19 vaccines to combat the global pandemic ignited a firestorm of debates and media discourse on vaccines. We conducted a discourse analysis of tweets (n = 875) criticizing the COVID-19 vaccination process and/or containing negative vaccine information (NVI) authored by influential Twitter accounts receiving the highest user engagement. Results showed news media and private citizens to be important in…
Parameterizing agent-based models using an online game
Agent-based models (ABMs) of human systems are often parameterized using real-world data. For some ABMs this is not possible because the reality upon which the models are based does not exist or is not generalizable from one setting to another. In this paper we implement an online decision game to parameterize an agent-based model of pedestrian and cyclist route choice decisions in a neighbourhood. Our conceptual framework is to use an experiment…
Spatial intelligence and contextual relevance in AI-driven health information retrieval
The evolution of large language models (LLMs) has already significantly influenced online health information retrieval. As these models gain more widespread use, it is important to understand their ability to contextualize responses based on spatial and geographic information. This study investigates whether LLMs can vary responses based on geographic and spatial context. Using a structured set of prompts submitted to ChatGPT, responses were anal…
In memoriam M. John Hodgson 1942–2024
In memory of M. John Hodgson, the academic community mourns the loss of a distinguished scholar, teacher, and mentor who passed away in January of 2024. Born on 6 June 1942, in Houma, Louisiana, John received his Ph.D. in Geography from the University of Toronto in 1973. After graduate studies he spent the remainder of his academic career at the University of Alberta, where he was a faculty member in the Department of Geography from 1972 to 1995,…
Sometimes simple is good enough: An analysis of methods for residential building population estimation
Residential building population data can be useful in a breadth of urban planning, health, transportation, and business applications. Unfortunately, complete datasets of residential building populations are not widely available for use in Canada, and therefore either larger census geographies are used or residential building populations must be estimated. This research explores four different methods of estimating residential building populations…
Learning From Wins and Losses: An Analysis of Improvement in Online Speed Chess
Background Learning from feedback is an important part of skill improvement. A common assumption is that failure offers superior learning opportunities when compared to success. However, this assumption remains underexplored in natural time-constrained settings. Objective To examine the impact of self-analysis on performance improvement in online speed chess, with a focus on whether analyzing wins versus losses differentially predicts gains in pl…
Geography (16 works) · Medicine (15 works) · Computer Science (14 works) · Political science (9 works) · Environmental health (8 works) · Sociology (8 works) · Business (6 works) · Demography (6 works) · Population (6 works) · Public relations (6 works)