The phrase ‘research data management’ might make your eyes glaze over, but it’s actually this behind-the-scenes work that allows for large-scale scientific discoveries and collaborations.
Twitter has long allowed anyone to access its data about who tweeted what and when. This has been a boon to research, from public health to criminology. The new fees put that research at risk.
Big data analysis has unveiled startling links between seemingly unrelated things, such as how a person’s physical elevation above sea level might influence their personality.
Undergraduate programs are springing up across the US to meet the burgeoning demand for workers trained in big data. Yet many of the programs lack training in the ethical use of data science.
Data science infrastructure is sorely needed in many places. Doctors Without Borders brings medical help to nations in need, but similar efforts are relatively small for statistics.
As Canadians yearn for a return to normal life, experts will rely on the latest data to determine the safest ways to come out of the coronavirus pandemic. Making that data transparent is essential.
Mathematician Hannah Fry has called for tech and data scientists to make an ethical pledge, as medical doctors do. But the same result might be delivered by simply asking people to mind their bias.