Rainy day can ruin online restaurant review

After looking at 1.1 million online reviews for 840,000 restaurants in more than 32,000 cities across the country, Georgia Tech and Yahoo Labs researchers have found that the weather outside can be just as significant a factor for reviews as what happens inside a restaurant. Their study shows evaluations written on rainy or snowy days, or very cold or hot days, are more negative than those written on nice days.

"People love to describe themselves as foodies. But in the end, it looks like we're all weather people, whether we realize it or not," said Saeideh Bakhshi, a Georgia Tech College of Computing Ph.D. candidate who led the study.

The study also found a nationwide spike in the number of reviews written during the summer, but July and August were the worst months of the year for ratings. November was the best.

"The best reviews are written on sunny days between 70 and 100 degrees," said Bakhshi. "Science has shown that weather impacts our mood, so a nice day can lead to a nice review. A rainy day can mean a miserable one."

The study covered a period of 10 years of reviews on sites that included Foursquare, Citysearch and TripAdvisor. It also found that demographic factors such as neighborhood diversity, education levels and population density have a significant impact.

For instance, areas with a high percentage of people with college degrees (more than 50 percent) average nearly three times more reviews than places where fewer than 10 percent have diplomas. However, higher education levels don't have much of an effect on ratings.

The study shows that population density of cities is closely tied to the expectations of service options. Based on reviews in busy cities, people are more patient with wait times and expect restaurants to have delivery options. In smaller cities, carryout service was rated more positively than places with delivery, but reviewers were harsher on pace of service.

"We also found that restaurants in the Northeast and Pacific get more reviews than places in the South and Midwest," Bakhshi added. "I think the difference between the South and Pacific comes mostly from the differences in education, diversity and liberal versus conservative. Blue states such as California, Washington and Oregon have a higher number of reviews per restaurant."

The research team also included Eric Gilbert, an assistant professor in Georgia Tech's School of Interactive Computing, and Partha Kanuparthy, a Yahoo Labs research scientist and 2012 Ph.D. Georgia Tech graduate in computer science.

"Our findings could help consumers better understand online reviews and ratings and help review sites calibrate recommendations," said Gilbert. "Outside factors apparently introduce bias in online ratings of a highly reviewed restaurant in big cities compared to a similar place in a rural area."

As for the ultimate "outside factor," Kanuparthy says restaurants face the same challenge as everyone else.

"You can plan the best wedding or birthday party. Restaurants can serve great food and provide spectacular service," he notes. "But no one can control the weather. In the end, you can't beat Mother Nature."

Abstract to the study can be found at: http://labs.yahoo.com/external_publication/2014/02/27/32842/

Cite This Page:

Georgia Institute of Technology. "Rainy day can ruin online restaurant review." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 2 April 2014. .Georgia Institute of Technology. (2014, April 2). Rainy day can ruin online restaurant review. ScienceDaily. Retrieved April 19, 2014 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140402105557.htmGeorgia Institute of Technology. "Rainy day can ruin online restaurant review." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/04/140402105557.htm (accessed April 19, 2014).

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New online mapping tool for Great Lakes region

September 9, 2013

Scientists take samples that can inform cleanup and restoration actions for the Kalamazoo River in Michigan.

High resolution (Credit: NOAA)

NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration has launched a new online mapping tool for the Great Lakes that will give decision makers, resource managers, and environmental responders better information as they clean up hazardous materials and restore the coastal and estuarine environments.

The new Great Lakes Environmental Response Management Application (ERMA®) tool features the most comprehensive collection of environmental contaminant data in the region, as well as information on natural resources, habitats, weather, water levels, and currents.

Great Lakes ERMA adds to ERMA coverage in other regions around the nation, and focuses on coastal areas in the Great Lakes Basin from Minnesota to New York and from Ontario to Quebec in Canada. It integrates both static and real-time data from NOAA and other partners into a centralized, easy-to-use format.

By combining environmental contaminant data from NOAA’s Great Lakes Query Manager database with ecological, recreational, cultural, and commercial information, resource managers can compare environmental conditions over time and between locations.

Great Lakes Areas of Concern and NOAA Query Manager sediment sampling stations (orange points) shown in Great Lakes ERMA.

High resolution (Credit: NOAA)

ERMA helps to illustrate progress in cleaning up contaminated sediment and restoring the health of the Great Lakes, both across the basin and in Areas of Concern -- areas identified by the U.S. and Canada as polluted and in need of cleanup and restoration.

As part of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, NOAA developed Great Lakes ERMA,  in collaboration with EPA, U.S. Coast Guard, and University of New Hampshire.

In addition to addressing environmental cleanup and restoration under the initiative, Great Lakes ERMA also improves planning, communication, and coordination for emergency responses to pollution incidents, such as oil and chemical spills. It integrates information from a variety of sources into a common picture, which can provide the response team with a quick visualization of the situation.

NOAA continues to work with federal, state, regional and non-governmental partners in the Great Lakes to incorporate additional, regionally relevant data and information into Great Lakes ERMA, including restoration projects and alternatives, potential climate change impacts, spill response plans, and environmental modeling and forecasts.

NOAA’s mission is to understand and predict changes in the Earth's environment, from the depths of the ocean to the surface of the sun, and to conserve and manage our coastal and marine resources. Join us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and our other social media channels.

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