Category Archives: Data, science and statistics

Public policy – is it academia vs party politics?

Posted on May 14, 2013 by

Summary Some thoughts from a couple of talks inside Cambridge’s public policy community Puffles has been flying around the Cambridge Public Policy community of late. Talks hosted by the Cambridge Science and Policy Exchange, by the Centre for Research in … Continue reading →

Posted in Cambridge, Charities and Big Society, Data, science and statistics, Party politics, Public administration & policy, Social media | 3 Comments

“Time for revolution rather than evolution?” A response to Steph Gray & GovUK friends

Posted on May 7, 2013 by

Summary Some thoughts from the Open Policy Teacamp This blogpost stems from the Open Policy Teacamp that Puffles and I went to on 2 May, and from this article by Steph Gray, who you really should be following if you are … Continue reading →

Posted in Data, science and statistics, Party politics, Public administration & policy, Social media | 5 Comments

“Will 38 degrees please stop spamming my inbox?”

Posted on April 29, 2013 by

Summary Some thoughts on 38 degrees following comments from a number of MPs, Westminster & Whitehall insiders, and seasoned campaigners I took Puffles along to an event on the ‘social mediatisation’ of politics at the London HQ of the European Parliament … Continue reading →

Posted in Campaigning, protesting and demonstrating, Charities and Big Society, Data, science and statistics, Party politics, Public administration & policy, Social media | 16 Comments

#ScienceDay at the Department for Communities and Local Government

Posted on April 24, 2013 by

Summary What happens when Eric Pickles pays for the train fare of a dragon fairy. I thought for transparency’s sake I’d get that out up front first. Richard Harries, who I briefly worked with during my time in Whitehall, invited … Continue reading →

Posted in Cambridge, Data, science and statistics, Education, training and exams, Public administration & policy, Social media | Leave a comment

“Hey! Those are MY Cambridge posh people! You leave them A-LONE!”

Posted on March 31, 2013 by

Summary Breaking oxbridge stereotypes  I sort of re-interpreted this sketch by Imran Yusuf on the back of a polarised Twitterfeed all around The Oxford vs Cambridge Boatrace. It’s at this time of year when one side tears into oxbridge over elitism … Continue reading →

Posted in Cambridge, Data, science and statistics, Education, training and exams | 2 Comments

When too much choice is just as annoying as none at all

Posted on March 13, 2013 by

Summary Unpicking ‘choice’ This follows on from a short rant I had about choice a year ago. Mark Steel, who I went to see at The Junction (who I ended up joining for a drink after the gig) raised this … Continue reading →

Posted in Business economics and finance, Data, science and statistics, Law and legal issues | 2 Comments

Open data, city data and privatised utilities

Posted on February 8, 2013 by

Summary Some thoughts from this month’s Teacamp gathering at Imperial College London This month’s Teacamp London gathering was markedly different to our normal gatherings on Victoria Street for a number of reasons. The first one was venue: We were in … Continue reading →

Posted in Business economics and finance, Data, science and statistics, Law and legal issues, Public administration & policy, Social media | 3 Comments

Puffles’ Twitter Lists – Communicating Science, Technology, Engineering & Maths (STEM)

Posted on January 31, 2013 by

Summary A wander through the various science-type tweeple that Puffles and I have met over the years. This list isn’t intended to be a comprehensive guide to all the Twitter accounts of the best scientists in the world. That would … Continue reading →

Posted in Data, science and statistics, Puffles' Twitter Lists, Social media | Leave a comment

The new Whitehall digital strategies

Posted on December 21, 2012 by

Summary The new departmental digital strategies were published today, but have ministers spotted the elephant in the room? You can see the new digital strategies here in all their glory. For those of you short on time, you can have … Continue reading →

Posted in Data, science and statistics, Party politics, Public administration & policy, Social media | Leave a comment

The 2011 Census – data and the Church

Posted on December 16, 2012 by

Summary Some thoughts on the significant fall on the number of people identifying themselves as Christian The decline over a decade is stark: “Between 2001 and 2011 there has been a decrease in people who identify as Christian (from 71.7 … Continue reading →

Posted in Charities and Big Society, Data, science and statistics | 2 Comments