How is Big Data research changing lives?

Big data projects at the University of Essex are taking part in the Economic and Social Research Council’s Festival of Social Science with a panel discussion exploring the impact of Big Data on today’s society.

The free event ‘Changing Lives through Big Data Research’ will be introduced by Professor Sasha Roseneil, Executive Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Essex. The panel members will be Mounia Lalmas (Director of Research, Yahoo! London), Patrick Guthrie (Head of Public Service Reform, Essex County Council) and Sharon Witherspoon (Deputy Chair, Administrative Data Research Network and Acting Head of Policy, Academy for Social Sciences).

Katherine McNeill, Director of Access at the UK Data Archive will chair the event which is taking place on Thursday 10 November, 5.30-7.00pm, at Essex Business School at the University’s Colchester Campus.

Katherine McNeill said, “We’re very excited to be part of this year’s Festival of Social Science. ‘Changing Lives Through Research’ is the third of five events in the Talk Big Data Series: Big Data. Big Questions at the University of Essex, designed to raise awareness and understanding about the potential uses of Big Data.

“People are aware that data is constantly being collected behind the scenes by many organisations yet they may be unaware about how or for what purpose it is being used. Our panel of influential speakers will share their insights and expertise with the audience, to discuss the relationship between research and Big Data. What are the key challenges around using data for research? What type of issues can be solved now or in the future? What are the most compelling public benefits of using data?

“We invite the audience to listen, question and challenge our panel and find out more about big data and its relevance to our lives.”

The series is being organised by the Administrative Data Research Network (ADRN), the Business and Local Government Data Research Centre (BLGDRC) and the Human Rights, Big Data and Technology Project (HRBDT). All three big data projects are based at the University of Essex and funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).

The events are all open to members of the public, businesses, charities and other organisations as well as University students, academics and staff. Booking is advised to guarantee a place. Please visit www.essex.ac.uk/see/talkbigdata to view the whole series and to book any sessions you would like to attend.

After each event there will be an opportunity for attendees to network with each other and the speakers, and to find out more about how they could work and engage with the three centres.

You can also follow the series on Twitter using #talkbigdata

The Festival of Social Science provides an opportunity for anyone to meet with some of the country’s leading social scientists and discover, discuss and debate the role that research plays in everyday life.