Data Driven

While grabbing coffee at a recently renovated McDonald’s, Frank ponders the future of work: both low-skill and higher skill work. There’s going to be no hiding from this: we are truly on the Eve of Disruption, where AI will impact everyone everywhere. It’s not all gloom and doom and there might be a strategy to survive and even thrive now and in the next economy.

In this episode, Frank and Andy talk to two guests, Ronald Schmelzer and Kathleen Walch, co-founders of Cognilytica and co-hosts of the AI Today podcast. Links Sponsor: Audible.com – Get a free audio book when you sign up for a free trial! Notable Quotes Cognilytica is amazing!([04:00]) All chatbots are dumb – for now. ([09:00]) Machine Learning vs. Machine Reasoning ([11:30]) The DIKUW Pyramid ([11:55]) More about Knowledge Graph… ([14:00]) More about Common Sense… ([15:00]) On generalization ([16:05]) ML and the Elephant in the Room ([16:22]) Movie reference: Guardians of the Galaxy ([17:00]) How did the AI Today podcast get started? ([18:00]) AI Today podcast with Dragos Margineantu, AI Chief Technologist at Boeing ([19:44]) Is AI retro? ([22:50]) Movie Reference: Short Circuit ([23:30]) Did you find data or did data find you? (0[25:00]) Tech Breakfast DC ([28:30]) AOL plug ([31:25]) What’s your favorite part of your current gig? ([32:00]) More about pseudo-AI… ([33:45]) Shout-out to Brent Ozar (just not by name) ([38:00]) When I’m not working, I enjoy ___? ([39:45]) I think the coolest thing in technology is ___? ([41:12]) Bubble programming language ([42:15]) I look forward to the day when I can use technology to ___. ([45:00]) “Don’t overshare…” ([46:30]) The loneliest people ([47:00]) Warning: Do not watch movies while driving. ([48:30]) Also, eating tacos while driving is difficult. ([49:00]) “Lefties are alright…” – Kathleen ([49:30]) Ron may be a pool shark. ([51:30]) Ron and Kathleen write for TechTarget and Forbes. ([53:00]) Ron’s book recommendation: Hackers: Heroes of the Computer Revolution ([56:00]) Kathleen’s book recommendation: My Not-So-Perfect Life ([57:00]) Kathleen’s other book recommendation: The Glass Castle ([57:40]) You can glamp at Sandy River in Farmville ([1:00:00])

Frank and Andy mix things up a bit and talk about running R in SQL Azure, becoming Anti-Fragile, Appalachia, and how they got blocked by a big time blogger. Links Sponsor: Audible.com – Get a free audio book when you sign up for a free trial! Notable Quotes Andy and Frank agree The Expanse is well-written. ([02:00]) Frank’s super-secret conference… wasn’t. ([04:00]) You should definitely check out Franks World ([04:30]) Keep up with Azure Data Fest on Twitter ([05:00]) AI Super-Powers ([05:20]) Frank and Andy “learned a lot” when we tried to land a “big fish”… ([05:40]) … and were blocked on Twitter ([06:15]) (It’s all Andy’s fault. Frank’s Twitter block was collateral damage.) ([06:30]) Frank is a Microsoft AI Ambassador ([07:15]) Check out the show with Ronald Schmelzer and Kathleen Walch on AI, Enterprises, and Startups ([08:00]) Shoutout to Milena Rodban and her show on Geopolitical Risk, Cybersecurity, and Tennis ([08:30]) Milena’s LinkedIn article ([09:15]) DIVE DIVE DIVE ([10:00]) “R-uh” ([10:45]) Kent’s show ([11:00]) Frank has another certification: AI ([11:15]) “No brakes on the F train…” ([12:00]) Frank has 36 certifications in the past 2.5 years ([12:30]) COBOL mentioned… ([13:00]) Regarding “SELECT *…” ([14:15]) More information about Azure Data Explorer ([15:30]) On dataframes… ([17:30]) Setting up R in Azure ([18:00]) Frank writes the Artificially Intelligent column at MSDN magazine ([20:00]) Learn more about Azure Databricks ([23:30]) Graeme Malcolm is an awesome presenter! ([26:00]) Frank totaled his car in December 2018 ([26:30]) More information on Honda Adaptive Cruise Control ([28:00]) Frank’s role – as a driver – has changed. ([31:12]) Book Recommendation: Anti-Fragile ([35:30]) Frank’s brush with “Ponch” ([36:50]) Interesting article about combination of tolerances ([38:50]) Andy shares thoughts on the economics of self-driving trucks ([43:00]) Frank shares thoughts on the shifting role of a driver in self-driving trucks ([45:30]) “Learn how to code” is not particularly helpful ([47:00]) AFAF == “Anti-Fragile As Frank” ([47:30]) Upcoming show with Anders Schneiderman, who has not (yet) blocked us on Twitter ([50:00]) “Disruption is now the norm.” ([51:30]) Mr. T predicts pain. ([53:30]) Frank’s *DataPoint* Be Playful With Your Data, but Judicious With Your Time ([54:30]) “Potpourri episode” ([55:55]) Book reference: Skin in the Game by Nassim Nicholas Taleb (@nntaleb) ([56:15]) Book references: The 10X Rule and Be Obsessed or Be Average by Grant Cardone (@GrantCardone) ([57:15]) Nassim Taleb is writing an Incerto. ([58:00]) “You’re not that guy. I’m that guy.” – Amos Burton ([1:00:00]) More love for The Expanse… ([1:01:00]) Love for Star Trek: Deep Space 9 ([1:01:30]) Love for “Stargate: Galactica” (Stargate Universe) ([1:02:30])

In this episode Frank and Andy talk with Milena Rodban, a Geopolitical Risk Consultant and Simulation Designer, which might be the best job title ever. Milena discusses the importance of data and the often overlooked security aspects around data, especially when set against the backdrop of complex business and security environments. Links Sponsor: Audible.com – Get a free audio book when you sign up for a free trial! Notable Quotes Frank and Andy wax rhapsodic about the term “information superhighway.” ([00:45]) Andy has been busy working on new releases at DILM Suite. ([01:50]) Frank has been to super-secret conference… ([02:15]) Happy Birthday, Frank! ([03:00]) Our guest, Milena Rodban, is a Geopolitical Risk Consultant and Simulation Designer at VerSprite Security.([03:30]) “Geo-political flux” ([06:20]) An article on the risk posed by Huawei. ([07:00]) Information on the 2018 Atlanta cyber-attack. ([10:15]) Regarding the challenges of identifying Black Swan events using machine learning… ([12:30]) Milena design simulations that surface internal organizational patterns and expose information vectors. ([14:30]) Are bad actors using automation? ([16:30]) What happens when bad actors begin using AI? ([17:10]) Automation reduces the cost / attack. ([17:40]) Milena asks, “Is there a listening device in use?” when she enters a home. ([19:15]) “The same way you would ask a doctor, ‘What are the side-effects of this medication?’ we should be thinking about the side-effects of introducing this technology into my home.” ([20:20]) Frank: “So it’s a good time to be a bad guy.” Milena: “It’s definitely an easy time to be a bad guy.” ([24:00]) “We have quite enough history to tell us things that things will go wrong and they will go wrong spectacularly if you’re not prepared.” ([25:50]) Milena answers: “What’s a good first step for organizations and people interested in being more mindful of security?” ([26:00]) Did Milena find this field or did this field find her? ([28:20]) Milena tweeted the hashtag #BanDataTorture for a while.([29:10]) More information about Enigma ([31:30]) On predicting the future from the past… ([32:45]) Lots of admiration for Nassim Nicholas Taleb ([33:33]) Milena mentions The Gray Rhino by Michele Wucker ([33:44]) What’s your favorite part of your current gig? ([34:50]) Milena enjoys playing tennis and appreciates IBM’s efforts to data mine the sport. ([35:50]) The coolest thing in technology is connecting with others. ([36:10]) “I look forward to the day when I don’t feel like I want to throw my laptop out the window!” ([37:15]) Milena enjoys scuba diving. ([38:00]) Learn more about Milena Rodban on LinkedIn and at VerSprite.com. ([38:40]) Milena’s writing may be found at her (excellent) website: MilenaRodban.com ([38:45]) For more information about Milena’s upcoming book, Geopolitical Flux, follow the Twitter for @Geopolitical Flux. ([38:55]) Milena recommends The Tyranny of Metrics by Jerry Z. Muller. ([39:10]) Milena is currently reading The Leadership Lab by Chris Lewis and Dr. Pippa Malmgren. ([39:30]) Get a free audio book and support DataDriven – visit thedatadrivenbook.com! ([40:30])

This week, Frank is at (near) Microsoft’s headquarters just outside Seattle, Washington, attending internal, possibly even secret, training. In this impromptu Data Point, he chats with fellow attendees about AI, Ethics, and the ever-present Unintended Consequences of technological advancement.

In this Data Point, Frank explains why you should be playful with your data and judicious with your time in this unusually philosophical Data Point

In this episode of Data Driven, Frank and Andy talk to Trey Johnson about ETL, Data, and fixing up old cars.  

In this DataPoint, Andy reflect on software development, SSIS Catalog Compare, and his philosophies on testing software. Also, if you want to grab a cool SSIS t-shirt, get it from Amazon today for $19 . You get some sweet geeky swag and your purchase helps fund the show.

In this free excerpt from Andy’s Fundamentals of Azure Data Factory course, Andy shows off some of his prowess with ADF with our listeners.

In this Data Point recorded at a Costco during the post-holiday shopping season, Frank explains his algorithm for determining that magical point when a lot of data becomes “Big Data.” Given the constant advances in storage technologies, that borderline is a moving goalpost that’s hard to measure. Or is it?

In case you’re wondering, why it’s been quiet here, Frank had a car accident last Monday and, in this Data Point, shares his hastened desire for self-driving cars. Also a cameo by a dog. Normal schedule should resume shortly.

In this Thanksgiving episode of Data Driven, Frank and Andy reflect on the two years since the inception of Data Driven at a humble Dunkin Donuts in Gaithersburg, MD.   Support the show! Data Driven T-Shirts on Amazon Data Driven T-Shirts on Amazon.co.uk  

Last night, I spoke at the DC Emerging Technologies Meetup at the Gensler office on K Street on Applied AI: Use cases of AI in business and government. It was a really great conversation and an awesome meetup with some very smart people.

While Andy and Tim are living it on at the PASS Summit in Seattle, Frank was at the University of Virginia today running a hands-on-lab showing off the basics of the data science process: ingestion, processing, analysis, and visualization. #2Hosts2Coasts

Andy catches up with what he’s been up to at the PASS 2019 Summit, SQL Server 2019, and driving late at night.

In this DataPoint, roving reporter Tim McAliley explains what he’s been up to on the last day of PASS 2018.

Andy is at PASS 2018 waiting for the Day 2 Keynote to start.

PASS 2018 is this week in Seattle, Washington. Andy is on site and he even has a booth for Enterprise DNA! Rumor has it that there’s even a Data Driven logo on the booth! We are also excited to have Timothy McAliley as our very first “roving reporter” covering events and happenings all around the conference. Be sure to like us on Facebook to stay up to date and have access to all the bloopers we make while recording DataPoints!

Hurricane Florence hit the US East Coast nearly seven weeks ago, yet the cleanup is on going and many people’s lives are still not back to normal. In this DataPoint, Andy talks about the importance to remembering that there are people behind the statistics and data we gather. Frank’s Thoughts: What prompted me to think about this was how in the first few years after 9/11, I had shared my photos of the event with a researcher at NIST. In email exchange, I remember explaining to him that I would send him more data after I attended “another memorial service, third one this week.” He wrote back snarkily, “you know a lot of dead people.” To which I replied, “I knew a lot of people in the Towers.” He wrote back quickly, apologizing how his excitement for data collection got the better of him and he never really thought about the people who died and that he’s not just researching a fire, but a mass murder. That interchange stuck with me and, as I saw parallels between our excitement about “Andy Weather,” I thought it would be a teachable moment.It also helped that he was down in NC to volunteer to help the people whose lives have been upended by the storm. Andy’s Thoughts: Frank is spot on. It’s easy to get wrapped up in the numbers and forget that the numbers represent lives. Hurricanes are massive storms. The damage they cause takes months and years to fix. Some of the damage – like lives lost or permanently altered – is irreversible. That’s easy to overlook in some moments and – often – requires a paradigm shift in thinking for data driven people (like me). We should strive to help others at every opportunity – especially those recovering from disasters – because we are the only “us” we’ve got. It’s data. But it’s not just data.  

In his session from Azure Data Fest Reston 2018, Frank explores reinforcement learning. As an added bonus, Andy (who’s holding the camera) chimes in now and then.

In this keynote session from Azure Data Fest 2018 Reston, Data Driven’s very own Andy Leonard discusses and demonstrates migrating SSIS to Azure Data Factory Integration Runtime.

In this keynote from the Azure Data Fest 2018 in Reston, Mark Brown dives deep into Microsoft Azure’s globally distributed database, Cosmos DB. He covers concepts then dive into specific features and capabilities that make this database the key to building global applications and services in the cloud.

In this keynote from the Azure Data Fest 2018 in Reston, Tim McAliley and Devin Jaswal explore the data services available in Azure.

In this Data Point, Frank and Andy talk about reinforcement learning, Mario Brothers, and then get sidetracked. Then Joel Cochran stops by and they really get sidetracked.

In this episode, Frank and Andy talk with Rie Irish about her path from sociology to database administration, women in technology, and getting people to walk around in circles.

We love experimenting around here and examining the resulting data. After all, we are Data Driven: not just in name but also in spirit. In this webinar Andy recorded, he also streamed it live on our Facebook page. We thought it was good enough to share with our larger audience here. Let us know what you think. Both Frank and Andy have been recording/streaming their live events and we’re curious to hear what you have to say about this innovation in how we podcast.

Andy is at SQL Saturday Boston and he runs into another Andy from SentryOne.

Today, Frank was in Philadelphia presenting a session at AI Discovery Day on Computer Vision Cognitive Services. The labs for this session are on GitHub: https://github.com/Azure/LearnAI-Bootcamp/tree/master/lab01.1-computer_vision These events will be taking place across the US. Here are a few dates and links to registration. City Date Title Link Boston, MA 9/28/2018 AI Discovery Day Registration Link Boston, MA 10/16/2018 AI Discovery Day Registration Link Malvern, PA 10/17/2018 AI Discovery Day Registration Link Reston, VA 10/25/2018 AI Discovery Day Registration Link Boston, MA 10/25/2018 WORKSHOP: Applied AI – Cognitive Services Registration Link

Hurricane #Florence has been making its presence known on the eastern shores of the mid-Atlantic region since the wee hours of this morning (13 Sep 2018). In Farmville, Andy is seeing weather that is being pushed by the storm – not the storm itself. Update: Andy blogged about the @AndyWeather weather station and how he uses IoT technology to tweet weather data and display it at AndyWeather.com. In other news, this is Episode #150 and we hit 70,000 downloads earlier today. Thank you listeners! Thank you guests! Yall rock!

In this DataPoint, Andy shares plans to capture weather data from Hurricane Florence for a site he maintains – named AndyWeather – and a Twitter account named @AndyWeather.

In this episode, Frank and Andy chat with Stu Ainsworth about service reliability in a chaotic world. Links Sponsor: Audible.com – Get a free audio book when you sign up for a free trial! Notable Quotes Postmortem: VSTS 4 September 2018 ([02:00]) Stuart Ainsworth on Twitter: @CodeGumbo ([05:30]) Reliability: Expectations vs. Solutions ([06:00]) “Canada is another country.” ([11:00]) “Serendipitous” ([11:55]) TV references: MacGyver and The A-Team ([13:40]) Chaos Monkey ([00:00]) Brent‘s book review of Database Reliability Engineering ([15:00]) Andy cannot count 9’s… ([19:15]) The shifting node for “big data.” ([23:30]) Service Level Objective ([25:00]) The Black Swan (Audible) by Nassim Nicholas Taleb (@nntaleb) ([28:00]) Frank’s 9/11 Experience ([30:00]) Culture is prime. ([35:00]) The hard part is figuring out, “What is the problem we’re trying to solve?” ([35:45]) DTU ([36:50]) Things are changing. Some folks are threatened ([40:30]) Stu works for Jack Henry. ([41:40]) Risk cannot be removed by technology. ([43:30]) “… it’s kinda like an old girlfriend…” – Stuart Ainsworth ([44:30]) Road trips! ([47:30]) “We are living in interesting times.” ([49:00]) Hoschton, Georgia ([50:25]) Stu likes the book Accelerate ([52:40]) Find out more about Stu at CodeGumbo.com! ([53:45]) Learn more about Azure DataFest by following @AzureDataFest on Twitter! ([54:00])

On Friday, the first ever Azure AI Fest was held in Reston, VA. Data Driven streamed the keynote presentation live and was a sponsor. So, enjoy the audio of the keynote address by Ashish Jaiman, a former colleague and manager, who now works in the Democracy and Cybersecurity team at Microsoft. If you prefer to watch the event, including some of our special effects laden pre-roll, then click on the play icon below. Jump to the ten minute mark to see the event.

In this episode, Frank and Andy talk to Jake Mannix, an accomplished data engineer who has had an amazing career. Links Sponsor: Audible.com – Get a free audio book when you sign up for a free trial! Notable Quotes Frank heartily recommends Head Strong ([00:50]) It takes a lot of time to fly from Farmville to India… ([2:40]) Audible is a sponsor! ([04:00]) Jake is a Chief Data Engineer for LucidWorks ([06:15]) Jake describes a cool Systems Development Cycle… ([10:00]) … and compares and contrasts with Customer Service and Product Engineering. ([12:00]) Sometimes this cycle works “too good!” ([13:10]) Learn more about Lucene. ([15:00]) We now search by typing questions. Not terms. ([15:40]) More about Query-Intent Classification… ([17:10]) “How Do I Do Brain Surgery” – Google Search ([18:25]) Smart search is based on closed loop analysis of “who clicks on what.” ([19:30]) One example of public search datasets: Google Trends. ([21:30]) What is a garage-door opener? ([22:00]) “We expect a lot from search these days.” ([26:10]) Searching Amazon for garage door. ([26:40]) “Data is their foundation.” ([28:00]) “I’m a data engineer.” ([31:00]) “Math is fun but it’s 5% of the work.” What is most of the work? Data cleansing. ([31:20]) On tensors… ([31:40]) Jake likes to run long distances over mountains! ([33:10]) Jake thinks self-driving cars will be cool. ([37:30]) Jake shares his encounter with the Moonies, which wins the Something Different About Yourself segment (to date). ([39:35]) Jake and his daughter like to listen to audio books. ([43:20]) Learn more about Jake on LinkedIn! ([44:00]) Jak helped build LinkedIn‘s search engine! ([44:44]) Check out the LucidWorks blog. ([45:00])

If you’ve not heard the news, the first ever Azure AI Fest is happening Reston this Friday and we are super excited to announce that Data Driven will be the official media sponsor. As such, we’ll be live streaming the keynote on our Faceook page.

While on the drive back from the inaugural Azure Data Fest Atlanta, Andy pauses and reflects on what it takes to get into Data Science, AI, and Data Engineering in 2018.

Andy is at the inaugural Atlanta Azure Data Fest and, while talking to organizer Stu Ainsworth, a who’s who of Atlanta SQL community folks, including former guest Julie Smith, drop by and say hello.

Andy is presenting at the Atlanta Azure Data Fest and he bumped into former guest, Joel Cochran.

In this episode of Data Driven, Frank and Andy talk with Micheleen Harris, an R developer who loves Python. Yes, it is possible. Show notes coming soon!

In this episode of Data Driven, Frank and Andy answer two questions sent in by listeners.

Yesterday, I had the chance to speak to a group of high school students from around the world who enrolled in a data and coding focused summer program at Georgetown University. It was a great experience and underscores the need to teach kids the importance of data as well as coding.

Recently, this post of the Best Jobs in the US came across my news feed. Note that “Data Scientist” has been knocked out of first place by “Machine Learning Engineer.” This title didn’t even exist a few years ago. So then, how do we prepare kids for the future of work when the jobs don’t exist yet. Simple: you prepare them with the fundamentals. As I recorded this show, I was joined by a distinguished guest rather by surprise. See, anything can happen on a live stream! Check out his coding camp’s website at http://fairhavencodingcamp.com and if you live in the DC area, sign up your middle/high schooler today!    

While in Vegas, I caught up with my former DataLeader pal, Kim Schmidt to talk about her new book, advanced analytics, and why Microsoft, Google, and Amazon are the Ford, GM, and Chrysler of the 21st century.

In this Data Point, Frank talks about how it’s data analytics and statistical analysis — and not luck — that run Las Vegas. It’s not Sin City, it’s Stats City. Although, that’s not nearly as catchy.

Frank and Andy sync up before a big internal conference and some goodies that Andy’s working on.

In the first episode of “Season 2,” Frank and Andy catch up with Joel Cochran. Joel Cochran leverages data in the political arena. Show notes coming soon.

Links Sponsor: Audible.com – Get a free audio book when you sign up for a free trial! Sponsor: Enterprise Data & Analytics McKnight Consulting Group Notable Quotes On strategy and leadership… ([7:00]) “Business strategy is really about data strategy” ([7:45]) It takes a team ([10:30]) On AI: “We’re only barely tapping into the possibilities…” ([12:00]) Interviewing at IBM ([12:45]) “…data as its own discipline, it’s not a drag-along to applications.” ([14:45]) William is active! ([16:00]) AI is the coolest thing ([17:30]) Growing meat, prescription errors ([19:00]) On McKnight Consulting Group ([21:20]) @WilliamMcKnight “Be a leader.” ([25:50])

In this Data Point, Frank reflects on the impact of data analytics on cancer research and one year of recording data points. In honor of Father’s Day, he left a few bloopers in place.

Summer vacation season is upon on us(at least in the Northern Hemisphere) and Andy is taking some well-deserved R&R at Busch Gardens in Virginia. However, data never takes a vacation and he notices something new at the Loch Ness Monster ride.

It was two years ago today that I had what I refer to now as my “Blues Brothers moment.” If you’re not familiar with the movie, then this GIF below depicts the seen elegantly enough. via GIPHY As promised, here’s the live stream I did from the hotel after day one. I’d like to think my on camera presence has improved since then. Also here are the links to the two videos I recorded in the Channel 9 Studios: Decoding Brainwaves with Azure Machine Learning Getting Started with the Brainwave Decoding Competition

In this episode, Frank and Andy celebrate one year of podcasting, the origins of “Data Points,” how the show got started, and where it may be headed.