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Data! Data! Data! I can’t make bricks without clay!
- Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
How do we think about stories in today’s context of Artificial Intelligence, mixed reality, and automation? Is it possible to create engaging narratives amidst the endless stream of digital content? How can we narrativise data to set ourselves apart from the crowd as researchers?
Thankfully, the hardworking team at RezBaz can help! At Data Storytelling for Researchers, you will have the opportunity to answer these questions and many, many more.
This July we are hosting an interactive two-day intensive event focused entirely on telling interesting stories with data.
What is Data Storytelling for Researchers?:
Data Storytelling for researchers is free event, run over two consecutive days on Monday the 3rd and Tuesday the 4th of July from 9am - 5pm.
The event will comprise four streams, each with a focus on different methods of narrativization using different digital tools:
Sound like your cup of tea? (or wine)…
This is not your average training workshop. Instead of learning to use digital tools the standard way via an instructor-student approach, participants will develop their own data sets, problem solve, and learn to approach data creatively through hands-on, intuitive methods. You’ll be mentored in groups and supported in answering self-guided research questions with new digital approaches, from data collection to communicating your research story with stunning data visualisations.
At the end of the event, participants will present their data project proposal to a panel of experts for feedback. There will also be the opportunity to hear from Keynote speakers, engage with experts in the field, share ideas with other researchers, and meet like-minded people. The event will culminate in a session of group presentations moderated by a panel of judges, followed by canapés, drinks, and excellent prizes!
Apply to be part of Data Storytelling for Researchers here:
https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/data-storytelling-tickets-34995856549
In more detail, the 4 streams to choose from are:
In this stream, participants will work creatively to develop a data-collecting survey using KoboToolbox. Using cultural research techniques to tailor a survey form to their immediate environment, they’ll end the first part of the workshop with an original, new data set with which to work. Following this, participants will use the digital archiving tool Omeka to develop an engaging, informative online exhibit that casts their dataset in an interesting narrative of their own creation.
Learning objectives:
Ever wanted to create an online museum of physical objects? Had an archive that you were wondering how to digitise? Come along to the Digital Archives of 3D Objects stream of DatStory where you can explore 3D modelling with tinkerCAD, 3D scanning, and archiving with Omeka!
Learning objectives:
Learn to capture social media data and create your own research corpus using text mining with TAGS. Participants will then learn how to analyse their data with the Natural Language Toolkit, a computational linguistics tool for automated textual analysis. Participants will also be introduced to linguistics concepts such as concordancing, collocations and programming methods to perform these tasks on large datasets.
Learning objectives:
Political donations – Compiling and exploring an online database with R.
Australian political parties rely heavily on donations from domestic and international businesses. Where does the money come from? How is it distributed? Is it all declared? What can this tell us about democracy in Australia? In this stream, participants will be guided in manipulating and visualizing data scraped from the web to answer these questions and ask new ones.
Learning objectives:
Make an impact in presentations, journal articles, news articles and more!
To register:
https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/data-storytelling-tickets-34995856549
Questions are welcome. Please don’t hesitate to contact Kim Doyle: doyle.k@unimelb.edu.au
We will email the registration form to all those that indicate their interest.
…And why wouldn’t you be interested! Data is cool, just like this…
Be there, be square!
“Our recent presentation to the Digital Literacy Symposium”
Are you interested in research? Do you identify yourself as a researcher? Have you attended one of our workshops but haven’t had the chance to apply your newfound skills yet? Would you like to develop your research communication skills? Then Res.Search is just the event for you.
What is Res.Search?
Well, Res.Search is research, ResBaz style. So much of research is lonely, thankless work. Researchers are often stuck in a lab or room, collecting and analysing data all on their own. At ResBaz, we want to change the nature of research. We want you to be able to do your research faster, better, smarter, more collaboratively. We want research to be reproducible, accessible and understandable. At Res.Search, you will conduct research in a diverse TEAM, working on openly available datasets.
Res.Search is a free event that will run over four consecutive Thursday evenings from June 29th to July 20th (6 - 9pm). Each week’s training session will focus on one aspect of research. The first session will focus on data interrogation, using tools such as: R, Matlab, Python and NLTK (if you’ve wanted to have a play with natural language data, now’s your chance!). During the second session, you will learn about effective visual communication: the dos and don’ts of data visualisation. The third session will focus on oral communication: how to effectively communicate findings to an audience. This event will culminate in an evening of group presentations, moderated by a panel of judges.
FAQs
Will programming be taught at Res.Search?
No. We will teach you how to clean, process and visualise data using the tool of your choice. However, we will not be teaching you the programming basics themselves. If you would like to learn how to program, consider attending one of our beginners programming courses: http://melbourne.resbaz.edu.au/calendar
Will training in statistics be provided?
In short no. We will not provide training in statistics. We will however have a data analyst with whom you can discuss statistical issues.
What tech tools are available?
We will provide data cleaning and processing training in R, Python, MATLAB and Natural Language Toolkit (NLTK). This will allow participants to look at both qualitative and quantitative research.
Is programming knowledge essential for applying to Res.Search?
Not necessarily. We would like you to analyse and visualise data in a tool of your choice. But if you don’t know how to program but are interested in research/ have other awesome skills you can provide the team, then we would love for you to apply.
What is the time commitment?
As mentioned above, the event will run over four weeks. Participants are required to attend 3 hour sessions every Thursday night beginning 29th June. Participants are encouraged to work on their research projects outside these contact hours.
Sounds interesting? Apply to be a part of Res.Search here: http://go.unimelb.edu.au/ov66 by June 22nd, 2017. If you have any queries, please contact ResBaz at research.bazaar@gmail.com or tweet us @ResPlat.