Tom Wilkinson

ICYMI - Open data, communities, and the role of gamification Sam Milsom and Pauline Roche led a discussion at Open Data Camp on how open data can work for communities, and people who are not data people. This blog captures their views and covers suggested techniques for best practice. https://buff.ly/4bQQmb5

2

This blog 👇 is a quick read and has a link to a really useful resource that is a handy guide of 10 tips to be statistically savvy with stats published on social media.

6

Excited to see that Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, Peter Kyle, has brought Matt Clifford on board to develop an AI Opportunities Action Plan. AI's not like other general technologies (Internet, Search) in that it will take significant public/private partnerships to ensure it reaches full potential across specialized & regulated industries. From mapping DNA to forecasting weather more accurately, I hope the Action Plan will help to take us a step further and identify how VC, corporate, and public institutions can work together to steer AI toward improve public services and driving equitable economic outcomes. Certainly won't happen entirely on its own!

22

Thomas Wood of Fast Data Science will be with Bettina Moltrecht, PhD at MethodsCon: Futures in Manchester, run by the National Centre for Research Methods on 11 and 12 September 2024 to present Harmony, the NLP and AI tool we have been developing for researchers in social science, funded by Wellcome Trust and ESRC: Economic and Social Research Council 🌐 https://lnkd.in/drXNbRK #predictiveanalytics #dataanalytics #analytics #nlp #machinelearning #fastdatascience #neuralnetworks #artificialintelligence #bigdata #ai #datascience #ml #naturallanguageprocessing

3

1 Comment

📙 What should the UK's new National Data Library do? The UK Government has committed to building a National Data Library to make it easier to access data, support research and create opportunities for economic growth. Some think it could drive AI development. But there's very few pragmatic ideas or proposals for how it should work. Wellcome Trust and ESRC: Economic and Social Research Council have recently launched a new challenge seeking 'technical visions and architectures for a UK National Data Library to make public sector datasets more accessible to researchers and enable future science to thrive'. I'm working with Icebreaker One to put together a response, building on our experiences delivering data infrastructure for net zero. We're focusing on: 1. Clarifying a vision for the National Data Library. 2. Taking inspiration from existing research data infrastructures. 3. Ensuring it adds something new, or improves or replaces what already exists. 4. Delivering something that's as simple as it can be, but not simpler. 5. Other considerations: private sector data, legal mandate, funding and AI-readiness. If you're thinking about the National Data Library too, then input, comments + feedback very welcome here: https://lnkd.in/eNYNHgTi

36

4 Comments

An excellent support scheme to boost your data science teams #construction #transport #logistics #warehousing #agriculture #foodprocessing #creative industries #aiforbusiness #ai #data #productivity #uk #ukbusiness #skills #datascience

2

What's the difference between 'smart data' and 'big data'? In this clear and engaging post about a recent Smart Data Research UK data dive, Elena Musi, Ph.D reflects on how to unravel the mysteries of smart data, to answer questions like: how can we integrate smart data with other data?

16

🚨New blog alert🚨 Check out our latest blog to learn how we manage our research data in compliance with the FAIR principles to deliver high-quality, collaborative research outputs. https://lnkd.in/eNc9gMbN

5

GOV.UK's new #Forms platform is ready to enter a public #beta phase according to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology - the platform, developed by the Government Digital Service as part of its work in creating common components for digital services in government, is to be rolled out across central government. Christine Bellamy, CEO of GDS, said: “GOV.UK Forms enables people running government services to create online forms in minutes, without the need for coding or design skills... By enabling teams to replace paper based forms with digital alternatives that are quicker to process, more secure and more accessible, we’re helping to realise a more modern digital government that helps to give people their time back.” https://lnkd.in/edCMHr_q

11

This article is a long read but well summarised by Ben Williamson and if you are interested in public services in the UK you should read it anyway

12

Last week, OECD - OCDE Chief Statistician Steve MacFeely joined a Royal Statistical Society virtual section group meeting on Data, AI and statistics as a digital public good. Steve’s presentation delved into what constitutes a public good, offering insights into how digital resources, particularly data, can support societal advancement by being accessible, equitable, and supportive of public rights as well as SDGs. 📖 What is a digital public good? Economists define public goods as goods that are non-excludable and non-rivalrous, meaning they can be shared and used by everyone simultaneously. Data, when open and accessible, align with this definition, enabling communities to benefit from essential information on economic, demographic, and environmental conditions. Official statistics serve the public good by providing reliable, impartial data that supports democracy and enables informed decision-making for all. Yet, from a statistics or data perspective, this definition is insufficient: data may be non-rivalrous and non-excludable and simultaneously of poor quality – and thus might be considered a public bad. Hence the importance of data stewardship. 🤝 How can data, AI and statistics serve society - and where are the gaps? To help statisticians and other data experts serve society effectively, certain DPGs—like accessible datasets in underserved areas, open-source statistical tools, and globally interoperable data frameworks—are still needed. On the other hand, other datasets can’t be shared with the public because full open access would be at odds with public benefit (e.g. personal health data). Building and governing these resources calls for standards, ethical guidelines, and collaborative funding to ensure sustainability, transparency, and appropriate accessibility. Promoting a combination of club data (accessible to specialist researchers but not the general public) and digital public goods appears as a path to realize the aspiration of community data in service of the public good. At #OECDStatistics, we believe in the potential of high-quality, accessible data to drive equitable development and trust in data systems worldwide. Steve’s contributions underscored the importance of international cooperation to maintain the accessibility of digital public goods, advancing our mission to build open, inclusive societies. Learn more about the RSS’s work 👉 https://rss.org.uk/ #DigitalPublicGoods #DataForGood #AI #InternationalCollaboration

42

Book now for 'From Bad Science to Better Data' with Ben Goldacre, Professorial Fellow at Jesus and Director of Bennett Institute for Applied Data Science. The champion for better research methods discusses his career and the challenges of addressing this complex issue more widely 👉https://ow.ly/BhBv50RvJNg

11

I'm looking forward to returning to the UK Parliament next week to attend another interesting #blockchain discussion at the APPG on Blockchain Technologies, to be facilitated by The British Blockchain Association and chaired by Natalie Elphicke OBE MP. I'm particularly interested to hear the thoughts and opinions of the group, regarding how a UK Blockchain Services Infrastructure (#UKBSI) could be built. In my opinion, a general UK Blockchain Services Infrastructure could share many technical similarities with a financial-focused UK Blockchain Services Infrastructure, such as the one currently being explored via the Regulated Liability Network (#RLN) concept: https://lnkd.in/g5dkdftB . Additionally, I believe that a public/private partnership would be the best way forward to get a UKBSI built. If you have an opinion on a UK Blockchain Services Infrastructure, please drop a comment and I will include it in my thoughts. #FutureOfFinance / #FutureOfTechnology

63

4 Comments

I often talk about how it’s #statistics and #maths that drives social change - those statistics, values and numbers that “kick you in the guts” and make people want to create a better world. The Royal Statistical Society has published a manifesto on how the next UK government can harness #data and copies are going to all parties. Take a look and tell us what you think

19

1 Comment

Great to see that the the Oxfordshire Local Enterprise Partnership (OxLEP) Strategic Economic Plan has been published and is now being put into action 👏 ⏩. The underlying evidence base presents a rich and distinct picture of the sub-regional economy and has helped the LEP set a course towards clear priorities and ambitious growth. glass.ai was part of the team that delivered this work, alongside SQW and Oxford Brookes University, providing key data inputs 📊. See more, here, on our role in the project 👇. https://lnkd.in/eaSb7UV9 #data #sectors #insights #strategy #AI

19

The case for GB Cloud The AI revolution will need massive computing capacity to enable it. In this paper Demos ‘ Elizabeth Seger with UKDayOne calls for the next government to invest in sovereign compute - GB Cloud - to develop cost effect and resilient compute. GB Cloud should be a public interest company offering discounted access to the NHS, public services and researchers and start-ups and could have parliamentary oversight and public consultation to ensure it is a trusted resource for the nation. The next will have to pick some targets to stimulate growth. This is a good bet. https://lnkd.in/eg28dipv

6

Join Outlier researcher and journalist Gemma Ritchie for a free online tutorial on making maps with data on Thursday, 30 May at 1pm SAST. 👉 Register here to receive a link and reminders: https://lnkd.in/dyWt-T79 #datatraining #datalearning #maps #dataviz #datainsights #webinar #OutToLunch #TheOutlier

6

The UK making significant impact with this strategic partnership between the Met Office and The Alan Turing Institute in delivering improved weather forecasting capability. Achieving this by systematically combining both mathematically described physics and statistical observational data.

19

1 Comment