+1 720 515 7230 frontdesk@museumof.ai
Contact
Tracy Allison Altman

By

The skill set for explaining, XAI, and why they both matter.

1 December 2018By
As data complexity grows, so does the importance of explaining. The philosophy of science can teach us about the role of explaining in high-quality, evidence-based decisions. It’s not just navel-gazing: An explanation is a statement that makes something clear, or a reason or justification given for an action or belief. It describes “a set of...
Read More
quantamentalist, man holding playing card

Are you quantamental? Should you be?

13 November 2018By
Quantamental is an investment strategy combining quantitative and fundamental methods. Data and algorithms have “prompted many traditional fundamentals-centered discretionary funds to integrate data-driven tools in day-to-day decision-making.” MarketWatch says the quantamental merger of computing power and human expertise is investing’s next frontier. Example: Active trading based on a particular blend of conventional balance sheets and...
Read More

PitchLab shows how to present complex technology.

13 September 2018By
Present everything better! As co-organizer of the meetups Papers We Love – Denver and Domain-Driven Design – Denver, I was delighted to co-host PitchLab for a talk on presentation skills. Jay Mays and Keefer Caid-Loos did an excellent job explaining how to connect with your audience. Participants were engaged, and appreciated PitchLab’s approachable, ask-me-anything attitude. The...
Read More
Building trust in the decision process

Evaluate your decision process separately from your outcomes.

12 August 2018By
How we decide is no less important than the data we use to decide. People are recognizing this and creating innovative ways to blend what, why, and how into decision processes. 1. Apply behavioral science → Less cognitive bias McKinsey experts offer excellent insight into Behavioral science in business: Nudging, debiasing, and managing the irrational...
Read More
fox

What makes us trust analytics, and how to argue.

7 June 2018By
1. Prior experience → More trust In Trustworthy Data Analysis, Roger Peng gives an elegant description of how he evaluates analytics presentations, and what factors influence his trust level. First, he imagines analytical work in three buckets: A (the material presented), B (work done but not presented), and C (analytical work not done). “We can...
Read More

Weaponizing KPIs and debiasing decision algorithms.

31 May 2018By
1. Vigilance → Better algorithms “Eliminating bias… requires constant vigilance on the part of not only data scientists but up and down the corporate ranks.” In an insightful Information Week commentary, James Kobielus (@jameskobielus) considers the importance of Debiasing Our Statistical Algorithms Down to Their Roots. “Rest assured that AI, machine learning, and other statistical...
Read More
prostatecancerdecision.org

What cancer decision trees can teach us.

22 May 2018By
Suppose you’ve gotten a cancer diagnosis. Would your business experience help you navigate the care pathway? Larry Neal describes how he applied his Decision Analysis skills to prostate treatment in Eight Lessons from a Decision Professional’s Cancer Decision. When a physician said Neal had a 30% chance of having cancer, but his analysis suggested 95-99%,...
Read More

Debiasing is painful, why analytics fail, and health app evidence.

15 May 2018By
1. Debiasing → Better decisions Debiasing is hard work, requiring honest communication and occasional stomach upset. But it gets easier and can become a habit, especially if people have a systematic way of checking their decisions for bias. In this podcast and interview transcript, Nobel-winning Richard Thaler explains several practical ways to debias decisions. First,...
Read More

Success theater, leaky tech pipeline, teacher bias, network meta-analysis.

9 March 2018By
1. Biased instructor response → Students shut out Definitely not awesome. Stanford’s Center for Education Policy Analysis reports Bias in Online Classes: Evidence from a Field Experiment. “We find that instructors are 94% more likely to respond to forum posts by white male students. In contrast, we do not find general evidence of biases in...
Read More
decision bias in food-poverty policy

Redefining data science skill, biased policy decisions, and data strategy.

28 February 2018By
1. Biased analysis → Misunderstood cause-effect In Biased Ways We Look at Poverty, Adam Ozimek reviews new evidence suggesting that food deserts aren’t the problem, behavior is. His Modeled Behavior (Forbes) piece asks why the food desert theory got so much play, claiming “I would argue it reflects liberal bias when it comes to understanding...
Read More
1 2 3

Museum musings.

Pondering the places where people interact with artificial intelligence: Collaboration on evidence-based decision-making, automation of data-driven processes, machine learning, things like that.

Recent Articles

muscle car by bing/create
20 June 2023
Stolen cars and AI ‘moral self-correction’
person in silhouette with orange background, pondering AI input for an evidence based decision
9 May 2023
Can you trust AI with your next decision? Part 3 in a series on fact-checking/citation
image generated by bing image creator bottle on apothecary shelf
25 April 2023
How is generative AI referencing sources? Part 2 in our series
22 April 2023
Sneaky STEM: Inspire learning with immersive experiences
15 March 2023
Can AI replace your CEO?