Living with complexity: evolution, ecology, viruses and climate change
Just as we manage human health-care in any civilised society, our clear and present responsibility is to manage this planet, our only home, and all its magnificent life forms. Here, … Continue reading
Bottom of the data pyramid: Big data and the global South
Big data is a misnomer. While the field is relatively young, much thought has already been churned on critiquing the term, particularly about not being able to equate the scale … Continue reading
The Death and Life of Great Italian Cities – A Mobile Phone Data Perspective
The Death and Life of Great American Cities was written in 1961 and is now one of the most influential book in city planning. In it, Jane Jacobs proposed four … Continue reading
Big Data and International Development: Impacts, Scenarios and Policy Options
In the world of data, size obviously matters. But how much will it matter in the end, in what ways will these effects be felt and by whom. Perhaps most … Continue reading
In the name of Development: power, profit and the datafication of the global South
There is currently a ‘datafication’ process underway in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) which is shifting power in the field of international development away from traditional actors such as aid … Continue reading
Data revolution at 15,000 feet
There has been perhaps too much emphasis on sample surveys to estimate indicators around poverty and service delivery. More needs to be done both to improve detailed and timely government … Continue reading
The Art and Science of Data-driven Journalism
Decades after early pioneers successfully applied computer-assisted reporting and social science to investigative journalism, journalists are creating news apps and interactive features that help people understand data, explore it, and … Continue reading
Data-Driven Urban Citizenship
With networked infrastructures mixing with physical fabric of the cities, there is a gradually growing body of urban data. Often this data is not collected or not stored. Often it … Continue reading
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