November 2018 Seminar: The Networkness of Networks

Summary

At this meeting Yasmin Merali, Professor of Systems Thinking and Director of the Centre for Systems Studies at Hull University Business School, and Drew Mackie gave an introduction to network science and demonstrated some practical applications.

Speakers

Yasmin Merali is Professor of Systems Thinking and Director of the Centre for Systems Studies at Hull University Business School. Prior to that she was Co-director of the Doctoral Training Centre for Complexity Science at the University of Warwick and served as Director of Warwick Business School’s Information Systems Research Unit until 2006. Professor Merali is an Expert Evaluator for the EU and was elected to the Executive Committee of the Council of the European Complex Systems Society in 2012 and the Board of the UNESCO Unitwin Complex Systems Digital Campus in 2013. Her research is trans-disciplinary, using complexity theory to address issues of transformation in internet-enabled socio-economic contexts, focusing on network dynamics and the emergence and co-evolution of socio-economic structures. She has extensive consultancy experience in public, private, and third sector organizations, and received a BT Fellowship and an IBM Faculty Award for her work on knowledge management and complexity.
Drew Mackie is a recognised expert in the Kumu online system of network visualisation and is particularly interested in using network methods to evaluate changes in connectivity over the life of projects.
Drew has been active in the Joined Up Digital project for the Centre for Ageing Better, following an exploration into Living Well in the Digital Age with the Age Action Alliance. He has also been involved in social network mapping for the Croydon Best Start programme.

Time and Venue

2pm on 15th November 2018, The British Dental Association, 64 Wimpole Street, London W1G 8YS

Pre Event Information

The internet and advances in information and communications are implicated in the emergence of the network economy and the network society. Greater connectivity and access to increased variety and volume of information enable new and complex forms of organisation. This presents opportunities and threats that are challenging both, public and private sector institutions.
This session looks at the quest for more effective ways of dealing with the uncertainties and dynamism of the network economy whilst maximising the opportunities afforded by the Internet and associated technologies. The main speaker was Professor Yasmin Merali, who explores how understanding the “networkness” of networks may enable us to understand the emerging context and to harness network forms of organisation to deliver transformational capacity or stability as appropriate in the face of environmental turbulence.
The afternoon will then feature practical discussion, in which those present can share examples from their own experience. This will be facilitated by Drew Mackie, who has a huge range of practical expertise working in this field.
This seminar will be our ‘Community Network’ meeting to which we welcome practitioners from our colleagues in other IKM networks as our guests.

Slides

No slides available

Tweets

#netikx95 There were no tweets from this meeting due to a power cut.

Blog

See our blog report: Networks

Study Suggestions

Have a look at the Centre for Systems Studies at Hull University: https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=Centre+for+Systems+Studies+%7C+University+of+Hull

September 2018 Seminar: Ontologies and domain modelling: a fun (honest!) and friendly introduction

Summary

At this lively meeting Helen Lippell and Silver Oliver introduced ontologies and explained how they could be used. Michael Smethurst and Anya Somerville ran an interactive practical session

Speakers

Helen Lippell has run her own consultancy since 2007, working as a specialist in taxonomy, metadata, ontologies and enterprise search. She loves getting stuck into projects and working with clients to figure out how best to use the messy content and data they have. She has supported organisations such as the BBC, gov.uk, Financial Times, Pearson, and Electronic Arts.
Silver Oliver has worked as an Information Architect for many years. Previously he has worked with the BBC, British Library and government. For the last 10 years he has worked at Data Language, a small consultancy specialising in semantics. His areas of expertise include all areas of information architecture but focuses primarily on the role of domain modelling in delivering design solutions.
Michael Smethurst has worked as an Information Architect for over ten years. Prior to working for the UK Parliament, he worked at the BBC and BBC R&D on a variety of projects, ranging from programmes, iPlayer, news, sport and food. Here he brought together practices from the semantic web and the domain-driven design community. He now works as a data architect for the UK Parliament using the same methods to understand and document parliamentary processes, work flows and data flows.
Anya Somerville is Head of Indexing and Data Management for the House of Commons Library, where she leads a team of information specialists. The team adds subject indexing, links and other metadata to parliamentary business data. It also manages Parliament’s controlled vocabulary. Anya and her team work closely with Michael and Silver on the domain models for parliamentary business. A pdf flyer for this meeting can be downloaded from the link Ontologies and domain modelling

Time and Venue

2pm on 20th September 2018, The British Dental Association, 64 Wimpole Street, London W1G 8YS

Pre Event Information

What exactly is an ontology? How can we use them to better understand our information environments? Helen Lippell and Silver Oliver will be explaining all, providing examples from projects they have worked on, and giving you the chance to build your own ontology and domain model. Helen will give an accessible introduction to what ontologies are, how they are being used in a variety of different applications, how they differ from taxonomies, and how you can combine taxonomies and ontologies in models. This introduction assumes no prior knowledge of ontologies or semantic technologies.
Silver will be explaining how ontologies are used in domain modelling, demystifying some of the terminology, and providing case studies to demonstrate ontologies in practice. There will be the chance to get pens and paper out to produce and develop your own ontology and domain model, with additional help from experienced domain modellers Michael and Anya. You will learn the basic ideas around ontologies and domain modelling and see how ontologies can be used to better understand our information environments. You will begin to learn how to develop and use ontologies

Slides

Slides available.

Tweets

#netikx94

Blog

See our blog report: Ontologies and Domain Modelling

Study Suggestions

Take a look at the Simple Knowledge Organization System Namespace Document

https://www.w3.org/2009/08/skos-reference/skos.html

July 2018 Seminar: Machines and Morality: Can AI be Ethical?

Summary

At this meeting Stephanie Mathisen, Policy Manager at Sense About Science, and Tamara Ansons, Behavioural Science Consultant at Ipsos, addressed the question of the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence – is it possible for machines to have morality?

Speakers

Dr Tamara L Ansons is an expert on behavioural science. After receiving her PhD in Brain and Cognitive Sciences from the University of Manitoba, she did a post-doc in Marketing at the University of Michigan and then worked as an Assistant Professor of Marketing at Warwick Business School before moving to LSE to manage their Behavioural Research Lab. Her academic research focused on examining how subtle cognitive processes and contextual or situational factors non-consciously alter how individuals form judgments and behave. Much of this work has focused on how cognitive psychology can be applied to provide a deeper understanding of our interactions with technology – from online search behaviour, to social media and immersive technologies. She has published her research across a range of academic journals and books, and presented her research at many international conferences. At Ipsos Tamara is drawing on her expertise to translate academic research into scalable business practices. Recent projects that she has contributed to while at Ipsos include: Using goal setting and technology to increase physical activity in a healthcare community; Examining the psychology of technology adoption; Applying behavioural science to optimise digital experiences; Developing a model of behaviour change to better understand the barriers and enablers of secure cyber behaviour.

Dr Stephanie Mathisen is policy manager at Sense about Science, an independent charity that ensures the public interest in sound science and evidence is recognised in public debates and policymaking. Steph has just organised the first ever Evidence Week in the UK parliament, which took place 25–28 June this year. Steph works on transparency about evidence in policy and decision-making, including assessing the UK government’s performance on that front. She submits evidence to parliamentary inquiries and coordinates Sense about Science’s continuing role in the Libel Reform Campaign. In February 2017, Steph persuaded the House of Commons science and technology committee to launch an inquiry into the use of algorithms in decision- making.

Time and Venue

2pm on 26th July 2018, The British Dental Association, 64 Wimpole Street, London W1G 8YS

Pre Event Information

The speakers at this meeting will be addressing the question of the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence – is is it possible for machines to have morality? And to do this, they’ll be unpacking the hype currently surrounding the subject of AI – how much of it is justified, and how do they see these new technologies influencing human society over the coming decades? The potential of AI and its many applications needs little to spark enthusiastic intrigue and adoption. For example, when it comes to managing customer experiences, Gartner estimates that 85% of customer interactions will be managed without humans by 2020.

However, as we plough ahead with the adoption of AI, it hasn’t taken long to realise that incorporating AI into our lives needs to be handled with a careful, measured approach. Indeed, unpacking AI’s integration into our lives provides us with an opportunity – and responsibility – to ensure AI brings out the best of our humanness while mitigating our shortcomings. It is through a careful integration that the promise of AI and us can be realised to address the big challenges we face.

Tamara Ansons will look at:
•Human input in the creating of AI (relating to the coders and to AI training)
•AI and measurement (spinning off from the previous point is how AI guides our focus to the specific/measurable)
•Humanising technology (where we do humanise and where some barriers exist)

Stephanie Mathisen will address the importance of:
•Meaningful transparency around algorithms used in decision-making processes (to challenge or agree; fairness)
•Scrutiny
•Accountability

Slides

No slides available for this presentation

Tweets

#netikx93

Blog

See our blog report: Machines and Morality: Can AI be Ethical?

 

Study Suggestions

The SciTech Committee can be found here

June 2018 Seminar: Organising Medical and Health-related Information

Summary

At this meeting held in Leeds, Ewan Davis, one of the first developers of a GP computerised health record system, discussed Electronic Health Records. This is a joint meeting with ISKO UK.

Speakers

Ewan Davis was one of the first developers of a GP computerised health record system. His background is solidly in Health Informatics and more recently he has been championing two things: the use of apps on handheld devices to support medical staff, patients and carers, and the use of open (non-proprietary) standards and information exchange formats in health informatics. Indeed, he is not long back from a launch in Plymouth by the local NHS trust of an integration system based on the OpenEHR standard – see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/OpenEHR. We also hope to have a second speaker on other aspects of EHR.

Time and Venue

2pm on 7th June 2018, The British Dental Association, 64 Wimpole Street, London W1G 8YS

Pre Event Information

This meeting, NetIKX’s first outside London for several years, will focus on health-related information. The main speakers will be Ewan Davis, who has pioneered Electronic Health Records (EHR) and, in particular, the relationship between clinical EHR (prepared by medical professionals), Personal Health Records (PHR), which are managed by individuals themselves, and Co-produced PHR, which is a proposal for a hybrid between these two types of record.

Slides

No slides available for this presentation

Tweets

Due to a power cut there were no tweets from this event

Blog

See our blog report: Organising Medical and Health Related Information

Study Suggestions

Our partner organisation can be found here

Titus Oates claims that there is a Catholic plot against the King’s life

May 2018 Seminar: Trust and integrity in information

Summary

The question of how we identify trustworthy sources of information formed the basis of this varied and thought-provoking seminar. Hanna Chalmers, Senior Director of IPSOS Mori, detailed the initial results of a recent poll on trust in the media. Events such as the Cambridge Analytica scandal have resulted in a general sense that trust in the media is in a state of crisis. Hanna suggested that it is more accurate to talk of trust in the media as being in flux, rather than in crisis. Dr Brennan Jacoby from Philosophy at Work, approached the topic of trust from a different angle – what do we mean by trust? The element of vulnerability is what distinguishes trust from mere reliance: when we trust, we risk being betrayed. This resulted in a fascinating discussion with practical audience suggestions.

Speakers

Hanna Chalmers is a media research expert, having worked client side at the BBC and Universal Music before moving agency side with a stint at IPG agency Initiative and joining Ipsos as a senior director in the quality team just under three years ago. Hanna works across a broad range of media and tech clients exploring areas that are often high up the political agenda. Hanna has been looking at trust in media over the last year and is delighted to be showcasing some of the most recent findings of a global survey looking at our relationship with trust and the media around the world.
Dr Brennan Jacoby is the founder of Philosophy at Work. A philosophy PhD, Brennan has spent the last 6 years helping businesses address their most important issues. While he specialises on bringing a thoughtful approach to a range of topics from resilience, communication, innovation and leadership, his PhD analysed trust, and he has written, presented and trained widely on the topic of trustworthiness and how to build trust. Recent organisations he has worked with include: Deloitte, Media Arts Lab and Viacom. Website: https://philosophyatwork.co.uk/dr-brennan-jacoby/

Time and Venue

2pm on 24th May 2018, The British Dental Association, 64 Wimpole Street, London W1G 8YS

Pre Event Information

In this new media age, the flow of information is often much faster than our ability to absorb and criticise it. This poses a whole set of problems for us individually, and in our organisations and social groupings, especially as important decisions with practical consequences are often made on the basis of our possibly ill-informed judgements. There is currently a huge interest in the area of ‘fake news’ and ‘alternative facts’ and other ‘post truth’ information disorders circulating in the traditional and social media, and it is appropriate for us as Knowledge and Information Professionals to be able to operate successfully in this increasingly difficult environment, and provide expertise in information literacy and fact-checking to bring to our workplaces.

Slides

No slides available for this presentation

Tweets

#netikx91

Blog

See our blog report: Trust and Integrity in Information

Study Suggestions

Article on Global Trust in Media: https://digiday.com/media/global-state-trust-media-5-charts/

March 2018 Seminar: Working in Complexity – SenseMaker, Decisions and Cynefin

Summary

At this meeting attendees were given the opportunity to take part in experimenting with a number of tools and analytical approaches that have been used to good effect in dealing with intractable, complex problems.  It was a lively action-packed meeting with useful learning for Monday morning, and plenty of opportunity for networking and exchanging ideas and experience across organisations.

Speaker

Tony Quinlan is an independent consultant and a member of the Cognitive Edge network of practitioners founded by Dave Snowden in 2004.  As a co-trainer with Dave, Tony has worked internationally, teaching techniques for addressing complexity to a variety of organisations.
Tony has used SenseMaker® in over 50 projects in the past decade, including in Europe, Asia, Africa and Latin America. He has helped organisations such as the European Commission, United Nations Development Programme and various UK government departments work with the Cynefin framework since 2005. This mix gives him a unique combination of theoretical foundations and practical field experience.
Tony blogs at https://narrate.co.uk/news/

Time and Location

2pm on 7th March 2018, The British Dental Association, 64 Wimpole Street, London W1G 8YS

Pre Event Information

In complex, uncertain and dynamically changing situations, there is a need for good, context-heavy and up-to-date information which decision-makers can access fast. The traditional approaches – such as questionnaires, citizen polling, employment engagement surveys and patient focus groups – have all had limited success in meeting that need, and they are failing to support decision- makers with appropriate strategies to deal with the inherent uncertainty of complexity.

This NetIKX seminar session will give attendees the opportunity take part in experimenting with a number of tools and analytical approaches that have been used to good effect in dealing with intractable, complex problems. In particular we will look at:

  • SenseMaker® narrative research methods, and the software tools that support them;
  • the Cynefin framework for analysing complexity;
  • ways of co-creating projects to address these

The afternoon will be interactive from the beginning – including an ‘acoustic SenseMaker®’ exercise, along with examples from various organisations; an explanation of the underlying principles; and how to make best use of these methods to intervene in evolving situations and to obtain desirable outcomes.

Time allowing, the afternoon will also include discussion and exercises around how this approach can be combined with the Cynefin framework to improve organisational resilience and decision-making. A pdf giving detail of the meeting is available at Working in Complexity

Slides

No slides available for this presentation

Tweets

#netikx90

Blog

See our blog report: Working in Complexity.

Study resources

Tony Quinlan suggests this website: https://narrate.co.uk/

January 2018 Seminar: Making true connections in a complex world: new technologies to link facts, concepts and data

Summary

At this meeting new approaches to Linked Data and Graph Technology were presented and discussed. Dion Lindsay introduced the New Graph Technology of Information and David Clarke discussed Building Rich Search and Discovery User Experiences with Linked Open Data.

Speakers

Dion Lindsay
Introducing the New Graph Technology of Information. Graph technology is a rapidly growing method of making complex datasets visually engaging and explorable in new ways, revealing hidden patterns and creating actionable insights. Graph technology is being applied to the vast and unruly sets of unstructured data, with which traditional relational database technology has not been able to come to terms, but which enterprises own and are anxious to exploit.

David Clarke
Building Rich Search and Discovery User Experiences with Linked Open Data This presentation will demonstrate how to leverage Linked Open Data for search and discovery applications. The Linked Open Data cloud is a rapidly growing collection of publicly accessible
resources, which can be adopted and reused to enrich both internal enterprise projects and
public-facing information systems. Linked Open Data resources live in graph databases, formatted as RDF triple stores. Two use-cases will be explored.

Time and Venue

2pm on 25th January 2018, The British Dental Association, 64 Wimpole Street, London W1G 8YS

Pre Event Information

NetIKX offers KM and IM professions a chance to increase our understanding of the new technology approaches that are changing and challenging our work. Our next seminar will give you a chance to confidently discuss and assess the opportunities of new approaches to Linked Data and Graph Technology that can enhance your work and your organisational value.
In everyday language, a ‘graph’ is a visual representation of quantitative data. But in computing and information management, the word can also refer to a data structure in which entities are considered as nodes in a network diagram, with links (relationships) between some of them.
Both the entities and the relationships can also be recorded as having ‘properties’ or ‘attributes’, quantitative and qualitative.

Slides

No slides available for this presentation

Tweets

#netikx89

Blog

Blog link
See our blog report: Making True Connections

 

Study Suggestions

The Neo4j team produced a book by Ian Robinson, Jim Webber and Emil Eifrem called ‘Graph Databases’, and it is available for free (PDF, Kindle etc) from https://neo4j.com/graph-databases-book/