This morning I gave a guest lecture at the Amsterdam University College as part of a course on Big Data mostly (using Rob Kitchin’s book The Data Revolution: Big Data, Open Data, Data Infrastructures and Their Consequences). I talked about open data, open government data more particularly. How it creates impact, the challenges for government in publishing it, and also quite a bit on the pitfalls connected to using open data for some sort of application. I ended on the note that the ethical issues tied to open data usage are also connected to the notion that data is now a prime geopolitical factor. Any choices you make w.r.t. re-using open data will therefore tell the world a lot about who you are, and to which of the geopolitical data propositions you adhere (e.g. surveillance capitalism, data driven statism, data driven enlightenment)
The lecturer I’ve known for a decade or so from open data efforts, and he invited me as well as TU Delft’s Frederika Welle Donker. She and I have been speaking together in various settings before. A combination that worked well again this time I think, my own practice based perspectives in combination with the insights that research provides from approaching in a more rigorous manner the same questions I deal with.
I published the slides and transcript in my new set-up running ‘my own Slideshare‘, and shared the URL at the start of the talk.
This came in handy as this of course was an online event, and convenient and immediate sharing of content makes more sense in such a setting than when doing a talk in the same room as the students.
It has been a while I did such a general introduction about open data. So I spent time yesterday evening and early this morning first rewatching a general talk I gave 8 years ago, and one two years ago, thinking about what are the current developments that are relevant, and current things we are actually working on (e.g. data governance and ethical issues).
Another week I didn’t feel quite on top of things or hitting my stride. I was outside too little and behind my desk for way too much. I also really need some time just to do some random things for myself. I plan to take some more days before Christmas off, but that is still a few weeks away so I’ll try and create some space for myself in the coming days as well.
This week I
Finished a proposal for a citizen science project, that if accepted would mean an cool new project for the first half of 2021
Discussed a guest lecture with the prof on Monday, made the outline Thursday, prepped slides and gave it on Friday. Spent more time than necessary to create the guest lecture. It did mean however I now have a current version again of a general open data introduction.
Watched a friend being installed a Mayor of a small municipality. Because of the pandemic everything was mostly remote, and only his husband was allowed within 1.5m, so he was the one hanging the mayoral chain of office on him. That was way more moving to watch than I expected.
Prepared for and attended a thorough discussion session on open data, algorithm and ethics for a province.
Had the weekly client calls for the projects I’m involved in
Had several interviews and sessions to process notes on sustainable infrastructure with a client
Had our monthly all hands meeting of my company
Had the annual General Assembly of the Open Nederland association, in which I was reconfirmed for another 2 years as treasurer
Visited family for a socially distanced visit
(Where meetings are mentioned: these all took place remotely)
This week in … 1975*
Juan Carlos became King of Spain, after General Franco’s death, who had been dictator of Spain from 1939. Against expectations he set Spain on an immediate course to democracy, which culminated in becoming an EU member in 1985. As a child I remember the television scenes of the attempted military coup in February 1981 trying to return Spain to military dictatorship. As a 10 year old I found the gesticulating Tejero with his to me comical looking military hat rather ridiculous, though I suspect for the members of parliament he held hostage it must have felt quite different.
Photographer Manuel Pérez Barriopedro next to his winning World Press Photo 1982 image of the 1981 coup attempt with Tejero in the Spanish parliament. Image by Marcel Antonisse / Anefo Dutch National Archive, license CC BY SA
(* I show an openly licensed image with some Week Notes posting, to showcase more open cultural material. See here why, and how I choose the images for 2020.)