Thursday, August 30, 2012

Finding the Right Tool to Unlock the Power of Data

Published: August 29, 2012 in Knowledge@Wharton
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In the last few decades, statisticians and computer scientists have produced a dazzling arsenal of extremely powerful tools to help managers translate data into business decisions.

Having access to a wide array of versatile solutions is not ordinarily considered a problem in the world of business. But the rise of "big data" has also brought along with it the explosion of mathematical models made possible by today's low-cost computing and storage platforms. Ironically, this poses a number of substantial challenges to managers trying to making sense of ever-growing quantities of information. 

Friday, August 24, 2012

Open Data and the GSS - UK Statistics Authority

From: www.statisticsauthority.gov.uk/.../open-data-and-the-gss.pdf

The GSS is committed to increasing the amount of data released in open and re-usable formats in production of its statistical outputs. This is in line with the UK Government’s policy, as set out in the Open Data White Paper.

Principle 8 of the Code of Practice for Official Statistics states that producers of official statistics should ensure that they are disseminated in forms that enable and encourage analysis and reuse. Producers should release datasets and reference databases, supported by documentation, in formats that are convenient to users.

Principle 5 of the Code of Practice states that official statistics should not reveal the identity of an individual or organisation, or any private information relating to them, taking into account other relevant sources of information. Arrangements for confidentiality protection must be sufficient to protect the privacy of individual information, but not so restrictive as to limit unduly the practical utility of official statistics.

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Mobile Apps about the American Economy


US Census Bureau Logo




Our users are not only changing how they want our statistics, they’re changing how they access them. To increase and improve access to our statistics, the Census Bureau is providing mobile apps that deliver information when and where you need it.
image of iPad mobile view of New Residential Construction page



America’s Economy

Take the pulse of the U.S. Economy straight from your phone. The America’s Economy app provides real-time updates for 16 key economic indicators released from the U.S. Census Bureau, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and Bureau of Economic Analysis. Key economic measures on employment, manufacturing, international trade, retail sales, and residential construction and sales allow those who follow the U.S. economy to be the first to see whether the indicator has gone up or down since the previous report, and trends over time.

icon image of Google play
Key Features
  • Quick overview of indicators measuring the U.S. economy
  • Detailed page for each indicator with trend data
  • Share indicators on Facebook, Twitter and via email
  • View release schedules for indicators
  • Set up notifications and custom views
Indicators
  • Advance Monthly Retail Sales
  • Advance Report Durable Goods
  • Business Inventories
  • Construction Spending
  • Homeownership Rate
  • International Trade
  • Manufacturers’ Goods
  • Monthly Wholesale
  • New Residential Construction
  • New Residential Sales
  • Personal Income
  • QFR–Manufacturing
  • QFR–Retail Trade
  • Quarterly Services Survey
  • Real Gross Domestic Product
  • Unemployment Rate

Welcome to the world’s first open contest to celebrate excellence and beauty in data visualizations, infographics and information art

From: http://www.informationisbeautifulawards.com/

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Winners of 2012 award for statistical excellence in journalism announced | RSSeNews


 RSSeNews





August 21, 2012

The winners of the 2012 awards for statistical excellence in journalism have been
announced, with journalists at the Financial Times, the BBC and The Guardian
all recognised for their work.

The awards, now in their sixth year, are made in three categories – print, broadcast and online – and recognise work first published or broadcast in the preceding calendar year.

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Open Data In EU: Big Data At Your Service

Eurozone


August 16, 2012
(CORDIS) — The increasing use of ICT for business, leisure and public services is leading to the accumulation of mountains of structured and in many cases unstructured data. But this so-called ‘big data’ should be seen as an opportunity not a problem. EU research and efforts to promote open data are helping to make sense and good use of this resource.

‘Open data’ is the idea that certain data should be freely available to everyone to use and republish as they wish, without restrictions from copyright, patents or other mechanisms of control. Inspired by the open source software (non-proprietary) and open access (academic publishing) movements, open data is broadly taken to mean the liberal movement, use, re-use or electronic distribution of data.

An important part of this ‘big data’ movement is the use for the wider benefit of society of the non-personal information that citizens share with their governments and public services. Open government data is a tremendous resource that has yet to be fully tapped. ‘Government collects a vast quantity of high-quality data as part of its ordinary working activities. If this data is made open, it can have huge potential benefits,’ notes the Open Government Data (OGD) website, run by the Open Government Working Group.

Read more....

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Health IT Dashboard from the Office of the US National Coordinator for Health IT


Check Out How HITECH Programs Are Helping
From:  http://dashboard.healthit.gov/

Are you interested in better understanding health IT and the transformative changes that electronic health/medical records are having in our nation's health care system? The Health IT Dashboard presents key information and data to enable collaborative monitoring of the impact of federal policies, programs, and research activities related to health IT. Return to this web site regularly to explore and download new datasets and statistics as they become available.



The ONC Overview Dashboard includes summary information about all of ONC's HITECH grant programs, including their location, funding amount, and contact information.

With the Health IT Dashboard, you can:

  • Generate maps of ONC's planned obligations by state and program (data does not include sub recipients or contracts servicing ONC grants).
  • Learn how ONC's HITECH programs work together to create momentum in EHR adoption and health information exchange activity.
  • Download a full list of ONC HITECH program grantees for your own purposes