Nov 5, 2016 08:13 PM
Should we trust predictive policing software to cut crime?
https://aeon.co/essays/should-we-trust-p...-cut-crime
EXCERPT: [...] It is no surprise, then, that versions of predictive policing have been adopted (or soon will be) in Atlanta, New York, Philadelphia, Seattle and dozens of other US cities. These programs are finally putting the enticing promises to a real-world test. Based on statistical analysis of crime data and mathematical modelling of criminal activity, predictive policing is intended to forecast where and when crimes will happen. The seemingly unassailable goal is to use resources to fight crime and serve communities most effectively. Police departments and city administrations have welcomed this approach, believing it can substantially cut crime. William Bratton, who in September stepped down as commissioner of New York City’s police department – the nation’s biggest – calls it the future of policing. But even if predictive policing cuts crime as claimed, which is open to question, it raises grave concerns about its impact on civil rights and minorities...
Why Are There So Few Women Mathematicians?
http://www.theatlantic.com/science/archi...en/506417/
EXCERPT: [...] “At some point I thought, I need to be doing something active to contribute to addressing this problem.” So Topaz and the Macalester statistician Shilad Sen set to work by looking at a new metric of academic success: the editorial boards of academic journals. Who’s on an editorial board may seem like an esoteric statistic, but Topaz and Sen argue that it’s a proxy for women’s leadership in a field. Think of the editors as the gatekeepers of science: They direct journals’ peer-review process, the backbone of modern science. Editors call the shots on which papers get published in their journals—and this affects the ultimate direction of a field....
https://aeon.co/essays/should-we-trust-p...-cut-crime
EXCERPT: [...] It is no surprise, then, that versions of predictive policing have been adopted (or soon will be) in Atlanta, New York, Philadelphia, Seattle and dozens of other US cities. These programs are finally putting the enticing promises to a real-world test. Based on statistical analysis of crime data and mathematical modelling of criminal activity, predictive policing is intended to forecast where and when crimes will happen. The seemingly unassailable goal is to use resources to fight crime and serve communities most effectively. Police departments and city administrations have welcomed this approach, believing it can substantially cut crime. William Bratton, who in September stepped down as commissioner of New York City’s police department – the nation’s biggest – calls it the future of policing. But even if predictive policing cuts crime as claimed, which is open to question, it raises grave concerns about its impact on civil rights and minorities...
Why Are There So Few Women Mathematicians?
http://www.theatlantic.com/science/archi...en/506417/
EXCERPT: [...] “At some point I thought, I need to be doing something active to contribute to addressing this problem.” So Topaz and the Macalester statistician Shilad Sen set to work by looking at a new metric of academic success: the editorial boards of academic journals. Who’s on an editorial board may seem like an esoteric statistic, but Topaz and Sen argue that it’s a proxy for women’s leadership in a field. Think of the editors as the gatekeepers of science: They direct journals’ peer-review process, the backbone of modern science. Editors call the shots on which papers get published in their journals—and this affects the ultimate direction of a field....
