Abstracts

The Joy of Data

Hannah Fry, Professor in the Mathematics of Cities

I’ve spent the last decade working with data, hunting for mathematical patterns in human behaviour. In that time, I’ve come across some incredible stories - written solely in the numbers - that get right to the heart of who we are as people.

In this optimistic talk, I’ll share some extraordinary tales about what’s happening at the very cutting edge of data science – a host of surprising and delightful stories that demonstrate how far you can go when we look back at ourselves through the eyes of data. And I’ll show you how a mathematical view of what it means to be human can shape the way we design our society, from dating and healthcare to catching serial killers, and everything in between. 

It's Always Something

John Sall, JMP

To quote Roseanne Roseannadana, "It just goes to show you. It's always something. If it's not one thing, it's another." When analyzing data, sometimes we feel very frustrated because just as one problem has been addressed, there is always another one just around the corner. It feels like it never ends, especially since we still need to meet each frustration and deal with it. When modeling, we need to pay attention to common problems, like those involving missing values, outliers, limits of detection, and unusual distributions, which can make all the difference between drawing the right conclusion – or the wrong one.

Grace, Regeneration and Connection

Craig Foster, Filmmaker, Naturalist and Founder of the Sea Change Project

What does grace have to do with analytic best practices? What does regeneration have to do with World Water Day? And what does Craig Foster know about connections? Everything! Known for his film, My Octopus Teacher, Foster shares his story of overcoming adversity and finding beauty in unexpected places. It’s a message of hope and of opportunity...a welcome message for the times.