I don't like the term 'scientist' as it makes the role sound unaccessible and elite. Google's Hal Varian said "the sexy job in the next ten years will be statisticians" ... but I don't like that term either. I'd replace 'statisticians' with 'working with data' or something ... and then I believe it!  I think data people have a tendency to overplay the role of the 'statistics' and magic of it and underplay the importance of the 'bringing it to life' and 'helping people understand / make use of it' parts of working with data.

I thought about this because of this cool article in The Guardian about data scientists.

As it points out, "science" is defined as "systematic study of natural or physical phenomena". I guess that's us all. Perhaps I shouldn't shy away from that phrase.

The journalist describes the role well, as "someone who can bridge the raw data and the analysis - and make it accessible. It's a democratising role; by bringing the data to the people, you make the world just a little bit better." Perfect, eh?

One last quote: "the four qualities of a great data scientist are creativity, tenacity, curiosity, and deep technical skills." That list sounds pretty good to me, also. So perhaps I should rename this the 'data scientist' blog and be done :)



Posted by
0

Add a comment

It's all about the people
Knowing when to use data and what to use it for
A conversation with the Big Data Insight Group
A conversation with the Big Data Insight Group
What's a data scientist?
The life of an analyst: Fun with charts
New sparklines in Google Spreadsheets are AWESOME
New sparklines in Google Spreadsheets are AWESOME
6
Data as the new 'black gold'
Sometimes words can replace data
Little sparklines in hospital notes
Fixing ranking charts?
Org charts that really show what's going on
My hard to read report is good for you
My hard to read report is good for you
Standing on the shoulders of giants
Standing on the shoulders of giants
Some data challenges (part 1)
Using data day-to-day
1
What does one trillion dollars LOOK like?
What does one trillion dollars LOOK like?
I only read the Beano
1.4 million New Yorkers in DC for Inauguration!
1.4 million New Yorkers in DC for Inauguration!
Sometimes its not cool to gather data
Sometimes its not cool to gather data
Excel 2007 is good for something, after all
Interest rates racing down
Interest rates racing down
Florence Nightingale's eye for info clarity
Florence Nightingale's eye for info clarity
Spotting fraud in numbers
4
Why keep data?
1
Common BNP names
3
Misleading conclusions
1
How to avoid supermarket waste
When you are lost, any map will do
Knowing where you were
Analytics? You can't touch this!
1
The difficulty and danger of tipping
2
Visualising the wedding data
Visualising the wedding data
1
The importance of a good quality notebook
The importance of a good quality notebook
1
Towards some clarity on airline loyalty
Towards some clarity on airline loyalty
Sometimes its good to BRAG
1
Making sense of big numbers
Understanding the root causes
Tree maps for playing with data
Mapping Iowa ... in Excel
Visualising your Gmail inbox
Visualising your Gmail inbox
1
No more excuses for bad charts
1
A Nobel prize for PowerPoint
A Nobel prize for PowerPoint
1
Daylight Clarity
A Periodic Table of Data Visualisation
Love Clarity
Forever blowing bubbles
1
Sharing: Internet data
Sharing: Internet data
Power to the people: Visualizations
Personal Annual Report
Personal Annual Report
Power to the people: Charting
1
Clearer charts
Mapping problems
Mapping problems
A (tiny) picture paints a thousand words
4
A square pie
Moving parts
Friends trends
3
Labels
Labels
If you like this you'll like:
If you like this you'll like:
Info Clarity Archive
Info Clarity Archive
Loading