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Modern technology gives us the ability to generate large amounts of data in ways that were not previously possible. Simultaneously, we now possess the computing power to organize and search this data efficiently.
Many fields are embracing this abundance of data to answer questions about ourselves and our society. However, there are also legitimate and growing concerns related to the inappropriate use of data. The collection of data has numerous privacy, legal, and ethical concerns. Data can also be misused, misunderstood, or badly analyzed, leading to incorrect conclusions.
The Fall 2016 Sagan National Colloquium will bring outstanding speakers to Ohio Wesleyan to address these and other aspects of the growing importance of data in our lives.
Note: All events are free and open to the public.
Wednesday, September 14, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: HWCC Benes Rooms
William Ray is an Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at The Ohio State University College of Medicine and holds a faculty position at the Battelle Center for Mathematical Medicine within the Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. Ray's laboratory addresses problems related to human-data interface and data visualization. In particular, Ray focuses on understanding the disconnect between complex biological systems and currently applied data analysis techniques as well as on developing new techniques that are more appropriate to the data and the needs of biomedical researchers.
Thursday, September 22, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: HWCC Benes Rooms
Stuart Aitken is the CEO of 84.51 a Cincinnati based marketing firm that uses data analytics to increase customer loyalty through personalization. One of Aitken’s principal customers is Kroger, the nation’s largest traditional grocery chain. Because of the work of Aitken and his partners at 84.51 Kroger has become one of the most successful brick and mortar retailers at leveraging data to understand customer preference, leading Forbes to observe that “Kroger knows your shopping patterns better than you do.”
Wednesday, September 28, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: Gray Chapel
Edward Snowden is a former intelligence officer who served the CIA, NSA, and DIA for nearly a decade as a subject matter expert on technology and cybersecurity. In 2013, he revealed that the NSA was seizing the private records of billions of individuals who had not been suspected of any wrongdoing, resulting in the most significant reforms to US surveillance policy since 1978. He has received awards for courage, integrity, and public service, and was named the top global thinker of 2013 by Foreign Policy magazine. Today, he works on methods of enforcing human rights through the application and development of new technologies. He joined the board of Freedom of the Press Foundation in February 2014.
Wednesday, October 5, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: HWCC Benes Rooms
Anna Flagg is a data journalist and interactive reporter for the Marshall Project, a nonprofit news organization focusing on the American criminal justice system. She has covered NSA surveillance, campaign finance, military spending, and the environment for other news organizations including Al Jazeera, ProPublica, and the Center for Responsive Politics. She studied applied math at the University of Toronto, and has a master’s degree from the University of British Columbia in human/computer interaction.
Monday, October 10, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: HWCC Benes Rooms
Paco Hope is a Principal Consultant in Security, Risk, and Compliance for Amazon Web Services (AWS), the leading worldwide provider of cloud computing services for corporations, governments, educational institutions, and nonprofits. He helps enterprise customers with security concerns moving their workload to AWS. Prior to joining Amazon, Mr. Hope was the Principal Security Evangelist for Cigital, a global software security consultancy. His experience spans several vertical industries, including financial services, online retail, online gaming, and embedded systems. In addition to holding both the CISSP and CSSLP certifications, Mr. Hope participates on (ISC)²’s European Advisory Council.
Wednesday, October 19, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: HWCC Benes Rooms
Nathalie Miebach is an artist whose work focuses on the intersection of art and science and the visual articulation of scientific observations. Using the methodologies and processes of both disciplines, Miebach translates scientific data related to astronomy, ecology and meteorology into complex woven sculptures.
Thursday, October 27, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: HWCC Benes Rooms
Hamid Khan is founder and lead organizer for the Stop LAPD Spying Coalition, a grass-roots coalition whose primary goals are to raise public awareness and action on police spying and surveillance. As founder and former Executive Director of South Asian Network, Khan helped create the first grassroots community-based organization in Los Angeles committed to informing and empowering thousands of South Asians in Southern California to act as agents of change in eliminating biases, discrimination and injustices.
Thursday, November 3, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: HWCC Benes Rooms
Travis Ridout is the Thomas S. Foley Distinguished Professor of Government and Public Policy and Associate Professor in the School of Politics, Philosophy and Public Affairs at Washington State University. He is also co-director of the Wesleyan Media Project which tracks and analyzes all broadcast advertisements aired by or on behalf of federal and state election candidates in every media market in the country. Ridout’s most recent book, Political Advertising in the United States, was published in 2016 by Westview Press.
Monday, November 7, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: HWCC Benes Rooms
Tristan Perich is an artist and composer whose work explores the boundary between data and its physical realization. Perich is particularly interested in where the physical world around us meets the abstract world of computation and electronics. His 1-Bit Symphony is an electronic composition in five movements on a single microchip. Though housed in a CD jewel case, 1-Bit Symphony is not a recording in the traditional sense; it literally “performs” its music live when turned on.
Thursday, September 8, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: HWCC Benes Rooms
Screening of the documentary, The Human Face of Big Data, directed by Sandy Smolan.
Directed by Sandy Smolan
Tuesday, September 20, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: HWCC Benes Rooms
Screening of the film, Citizenfour, directed by Laura Poitras
Tuesday, November 8, 2016 at 7 p.m.
Location: Jemison Auditorium
Performance by Vicky Chow of "Surface Image," Tristan Perich's composition for solo piano and 40 channel 1-bit electronics.
Vicky Chow is the pianist for the New York-based sextet Bang on a Can All-Stars and is also a founding member of DUO X88 and six keyboard ensemble GRANDBAND. Vicky’s passion for new music has propelled her to work with an A-to-Z of leading composers and musicians including John Adams, Louis Andriessen, Bryce Dessner (The National), Philip Glass, Glenn Kotche (Wilco), David Longstreth (Dirty Projectors), Steve Reich, Terry Riley, and Lee Ranaldo (Sonic Youth). In addition to performing, Ms. Chow also produces and curates “Contagious Sounds,” a new music series focusing on adventurous contemporary artists and composers in New York City.
Wednesday, November 9, 2016 from 4-6 p.m.
Location: Ross Art Museum
Opening/reception for Tristan Perich’s installation of three drawing machines.
