@GavinChait@wandering.shop
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

GavinChait

@GavinChait@wandering.shop

I am a data scientist, researcher, engineer, sometime-traveler, and African SFF author.
I lead software- and systems development in open data and open science, with a focus on ethics and curation. I am fascinated by the frontiers of human progress: innovation vs ignorance; wealth vs poverty, migration vs stasis.
I also drink a great deal of coffee.

#DataScience, #OpenData, #OpenScience, #author, #ScienceFiction, #African, #SFF, #coffee, #searchable

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atomicpoet, to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

The truth is, there’s usually only two avenues for financing new technology:

  1. equity
  2. debt

VCs deal in the world of equity. They exist for the awkward “teenage” phase of development – between seed rounds and IPO. They assume a lot of risk because they (typically) hope for the possibility of 10x ROI, and they almost always have an exit strategy. Most VC-backed companies fail.

Theoretically, you could avoid the world of equity through debt financing. Thing is, debt financiers are more risk averse than VCs. For good reason too – the only thing they have to gain is their money back with some interest. If the company fails, they get nothing.

Thus, if you want to get rid of VCs, you need people who are willing to tolerate the same risk.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@atomicpoet there's a third... Grants, public or private. I've received both to develop new tech, as have numerous activitypub initiatives. NLNET grants have supported quite a range of activitypub projects. There's a huge case to be made that public funds should support innovation in exchange for open licences. Too often that doesn't happen, but it's fantastic when it does.

jonny, to random
@jonny@neuromatch.social avatar

A future for the web is the radical idea that its bad to put all data in a single place owned by 3 companies and rented by a few hundred. The internet wasnt a mistake, the cloud was a mistake. Platforms were a mistake. A mistake where its not only possible but routine for "everyone's health data" to get stolen. https://infosec.exchange/@patrickcmiller/112341111375581551

I need to share my health data with like 3 people that arent me. Why on earth is that data in the same pile as literally everyone else's.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@jonny my 2 cents based on my experience with my https://openlocal.uk data research project... Only a small number of research specialisms permit grant funding for longitudinal data research. The costs aren't just hosting, but mostly curation. So the work isn't done or is precarious, or is forced to be semicommercial to keep the lights on.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@jonny I get the principle, & it may work for relatively mainstream data (sort of like OpenStreetMap labelling) but a lot more challenging for specialist / niche data where the learning curve is steep & the result interesting only to a handful of specialists.

I'm not sure what good potentials would be, other than the obvious Wikipedia & OpenStreetMap, & they still need paid staff to build software & maintain data integrity, even if you took away hosting costs.

What is your ideal example?

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

I also built a whole tabular data restructuring system (at https://whyqd.com), & my next roadmap steps are to support linked data for categorisation, plus shareable schema & crosswalks.

What you raise is important, I'm just not clear on where the blockers are. Is it curation/interoperability, or distribution, or hosting? I've lead multiple national open data publication projects, & it's common for the realisation of how difficult curation for publication is to end up killing projects.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@jonny Sorry, I meant the learning curve for curation itself. Complex data with dodgy probity are inherently difficult to interpret & restructure/label. Decentralisation is one aspect of a complex open data ecosystem (architecture & implementation of open data being my milieu). So, while I get how p2p can help with hosting/distribution, the underlying complexity of architecture, data interoperability, curation, etc are fairly severe. RDA has multiple research groups working on interoperability.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@jonny Well 😜 short answer is people aren't data literate, & it "seems" faster to start hacking away at Excel than sit down & research a data schema. I'm facilitating an RDA discussion looking into interoperable learning objectives for syllabus discovery & reuse, & this type of problem goes deep. There's also an RDA group researching anything-to-anything schema interoperability. But the challenge is the same, getting data owners to recognise that the first step is curation, not production.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@jonny In academia, there really isn't any excuse for not using formal data methods (although, if you've ever supervised dissertations, you'll know the blood-rush to dive direct into doing analysis without a data plan). It's the bulk of work-based public data - local & national government particularly (from an open data perspective) where drivers, motivations & skills just fail.

Focusing on getting things right in academia would be tremendous. I don't hold out much hope for the public sector.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@jonny That's my intention behind Whyqd as well, that you don't need to formally declare a schema, or ensure interoperability, as it can progress naturally. But, as we find on the OpenLocal project, when working with 350 different publishers - none of whom make any effort to adhere even to government regulated classification standards (like, types of tax) - it's a challenge.

Have you seen https://cedar.metadatacenter.org? It's a means of creating interoperable research forms.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@jonny Timezones ;[ I think the problem is an elephant, & each of us has come to it from a slightly different place. I work direct with data & infrastructure for public/government open data so my perspective is slightly different, but I follow your work with interest.

KitMuse, to actuallyautistic
@KitMuse@eponaauthor.social avatar

Thoughts about writing action scenes. I feel like I don't have the brain power to wrap my mind around all the action, who goes where, who does what?

I'm wondering if this is related to my extra spicy neurodivergence.

Does anyone have any tips or tools they use? Wonder if I need to dig out my D&D miniatures?

Thoughts my fellow neurodivergent authors?

@bookstodon @actuallyautistic @neurodiversity

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@KitMuse @bookstodon @actuallyautistic @neurodiversity Most action is quite boring. Two people punching each other for more than a paragraph only works if something else happens at the same time. If it's confusing for you to write the scene, then it's way, way worse for your reader to follow.

I draw maps of the scene. Place people in it, & work out their interactions. Your instinct to get out your miniatures is a great idea.

Once you have it present like that, it's a lot easier to describe.

atomicpoet, to random
@atomicpoet@atomicpoet.org avatar

I’m obsessed with Teamir Gizaw.

This is how angels must sing. Her voice is like hearing audio honey. I’ve never heard someone sound so perfect.

At first, I thought maybe she was using autotune since everything was just so pinpoint precise. So I checked out a live performance.

And she actually does sound this beautiful live too. How is anyone this breathtaking?

https://youtu.be/2hvALMHqlOc?si=2pWV98bWPSWUbf2R

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@atomicpoet Have you heard any of the Somalian music from Sweet as Broken Dates? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C1eGDt0KBWE This track has a very similar vibe to the live version of Minewa you posted (especially the sax solo).

davidallengreen, to random
@davidallengreen@mastodon.green avatar

The word atheism should always be in lower-case.

It means a disbelief in gods.

I am such an atheist: I disbelieve in gods generally (and not just in one in particular), like I disbelieve in gnomes and dragons and other supernatural and paranormal things.

And the word does not mean anything more than that.

My a-theism means no more to me than my a-gnomism.

The problem comes when one tries to convert lower-case atheism to upper-case Atheism, with the implications of its own belief system.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@davidallengreen Umberto Eco said he preferred to describe himself as agnostic, since atheism requires active belief in the nonexistence of gods, which then raises your point.

And then there's Oscar Wilde's definition of atheism, which is that he didn't disbelieve in gods so much as just personally disliking them.

CatherineFlick, to random
@CatherineFlick@mastodon.me.uk avatar

I'm really hoping you don't need me to tell you that using machine learning ("AI") systems to identify potential targets and then to suggest that they be targeted when at home with their family members, including children, is one of the most abhorrent, unethical, inhumane things I've ever seen. There is absolutely no excuse for developing these systems. Technology is never neutral. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/03/israel-gaza-ai-database-hamas-airstrikes

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@CatherineFlick what's the chance this is going to turn out to be a roomful of Kenyans on minimum wage working in some data centre with the instructions that they're supposed to be doing some sort of mapping exercise?

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@CatherineFlick OK, that beats any dystopia anyone has come up with recently 🥺
"Prove you're human by identifying the humanitarian vehicle convoy from above."

randahl, to random
@randahl@mastodon.social avatar

Prime Minister of Denmark Mette Frederiksen has taken a one-sided position in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, by saying "Israel has a right to defend itself", while civilian Palestinians are killed.

On March 8, the PM was supposed to speak at International Women's Day in Copenhagen, but members of the crowd did not want to hear from her.

Videos on social media show, people shouting, "Stop the hypocrisy!", "The women of Gaza has a right to live", "Free Palestine", until the PM left.

1/2

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GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@anderspuck @kimschulz @randahl @sarahbeck A riot is the speech of the unheard. @randahl isn't commenting on whether it's appropriate protest or not, merely that it's hardly unexpected given the nature of the event, the PM's stated position, & the position of the majority at that event. That you'd like the protestors to be more polite, or choose a more appropriate time/place, isn't how protest works. Those without power use what they have, when they have it.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@anderspuck @kimschulz @randahl @sarahbeck Then that's just good tactics, isn't it? No different from protestors hijacking a fashion show, or throwing paint at an exhibit. Creative use of protest is just another form of asymmetric conflict given the power differential of protestor vs protested. You don't have to like it or agree to recognise their opportunism or the inevitability of their pursuit of that opportunity.

davidallengreen, to random
@davidallengreen@mastodon.green avatar

Why the inquiry announced into potential war crimes is interesting – very interesting.

Me back on 15th December 2022.

https://emptycity.substack.com/p/why-the-inquiry-announced-today-into

Suggest you (re-)read this for background, for something coming up soon.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@davidallengreen If the UK wants to play any role in human rights investigations in Ukraine or Gaza, they're going to need to be believable, & they can only do that if they hold themselves to the same standards they demand of others. Otherwise it'll be seen as just the usual cynical / colonial posturing.

shoq, to random
@shoq@mastodon.social avatar

I refer to them privately as the “opportunistically offended.”

Source: @msbellows
https://mastodon.social/@msbellows@c.im/112112221966343516

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@shoq @msbellows It's especially revealing when - given the ephemeral nature of social media - the "opportunistically offended" deliberately search out old Mastodon posts (Mastodon!) & jump in to old threads just to tone police random phrases. Adds a new frisson to being occasionally online.

GavinChait, to random
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

Follow along with me on my adventures.

In 2021 I cancelled my subscription & migrated. I deliberately, & carefully, deleted my credit card information & all passwords from the account. I received email acknowledgement, & then I forgot about it.

That was a mistake.

Turns out, they continued to charge me. Every year. Even increased the fee.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

My bank, helpfully, reversed the last charge, but can't help me further, or stop them from trying again.

I contacted LastPass. They acknowledge I don't have an account, & that they have no basis for charging me.

Then they ended all further correspondence. Unhelpfully, I now get regular spam telling me how important my case is to them, but not engaging with me.

I just filed a complaint with ICO, & we'll see how this goes ...

But - and I cannot stress this enough - .

Garwboy, to random
@Garwboy@ohai.social avatar

Not sure if I have any academic followers who feel the same, but I'd say there's a very unique and specific sense of satisfaction gained from discovering that the score you gave a dissertation you marked was within 2% difference of the score the second marker gave

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@Garwboy It is a genuine emotional moment 🥲

PurpleBooth, to random
@PurpleBooth@hachyderm.io avatar

The suit is a more suspicious outfit than the hoodie

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@JessTheUnstill @PurpleBooth Counterpoint, it can also be a profound act of revolution... https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Sape

MisuseCase, to Israel
@MisuseCase@twit.social avatar

It looks like and might actually reach a deal soon with the hostages getting released and many prisoners getting released also!

Hopefully it works out and both sides stick to the terms of the agreement.

https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2024-01-25/ty-article-live/qatar-harshly-rebukes-netanyahu-for-allegedly-labeling-it-as-problematic/0000018d-3e9c-d02c-a79f-7f9f6f250000?liveBlogItemId=593807062#593807062

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@MisuseCase There's a case study on this type of transition. Namibia's independence & decolonial transition was managed by the UN since South Africa - then still an Apartheid state, and the illegal occupier - wasn't even vaguely trusted to do the job.

cstross, to random
@cstross@wandering.shop avatar

1/25: How do you feel about writers who write outside of their gender/sexuality/race?

Flip the question: how would you feel about a writer who ONLY ever wrote inside their gender/sexuality/race?

(They're not exactly stretching themselves or developing their art, are they?)

Yes, it's easy to mess up writing the other. "How not to" isn't a topic I can answer in a toot. But it's important for writers to try to see the world through other eyes.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@cstross Depends how you classify outside, and the sensitivity/self-awareness of the writer. I've written two African sci-fi novels. One set in Nigeria, the other in Senegal. Superficially, I am not these people, yet I write about migration and founding mythology of migrants. I'm an African economic migrant. I do extensive in-country research. Maybe that will never be enough for some but, for me, telling stories that bridge culture & people is critical to my work.

davidallengreen, to random
@davidallengreen@mastodon.green avatar

Been commissioned by Prospect Magazine to do a long piece on the Post Office scandal.

A mess both simple and complicated, where the rules of court and evidence, and prosecution misconduct, enabled stupid arrogant people to cause horrific amounts of suffering for innocent people.

GavinChait,
@GavinChait@wandering.shop avatar

@davidallengreen And an aristocratic beaurocratic determination to offload responsibility to borked automated systems, coded by people without the technical competence to make these judgement calls themselves, let alone write software capable of doing it algorithmically.

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