Posts By Matthew Kerr

Hack day produces prototype mobile app for enhanced learning

Thanks to all who attended Developing Solutions Camp on Friday. We had an exciting day of interactive working with about 50 people in the room and 6 teams working on ideas that had been submitted under the first phase of the competition. Congratulations to the winners of the mobile application competition; the team who workedRead… Read more »

We have the technology

The information is out there. The technology is available. All it requires is a fair bit of inspiration and a little bit of perspiration to develop small scale applications that can really make a difference to people’s lives. A map can tell you which direction to go in, but it cannot tell you what yourRead… Read more »

Telling stories

Creating a visualisation of data has the power to tell a story behind the data. This article in Rustwire.com uses indicators of deprivation to create visualisations that illustrate how poverty has spread across Cleveland over the past two decades. This article by Simon Rogers in the Guardian discusses the most deprived areas in the UK,Read… Read more »

Are open data publishers doing enough?

Coming in the wake of data.gov and data.go.uk, there are now many cases of public bodies implementing initiatives to publish their open data; Lichfield Council, Open Kent, Vancouver’s Open Data Catalogue and The London Data Store are but a few examples. Those tapping into the conversations going on around the globe on open data willRead… Read more »

Open data to help your lifestyle choices

Its here! The app that all London bus users have been waiting for has finally been developed. This blog on Public Strategist humorously describes the positive effect on a daily commute, that knowing when the buses will arrive, can have. In Rome, the position of pedestrians using mobile phone activity and buses with GPS hasRead… Read more »

Police developing ‘Big Brother’ by crowdsourcing

According to Cliff Saran’s article in Computer Weekly, Surrey police have developed an iPhone app to encourage members of the public to engage with the police and help fight crime in their area. A similar situation arose in Vancouver after the recent ice hockey-inspired riots, where the police tried to get the public to uploadRead… Read more »

A global perspective on child health

After publishing data sets from Kent on child health, we have been looking from inspiration on how to present and reuse such information. A wonderful example of using data visualisations to tell a story of global demographic trends has been compiled by Hans Rosling’s excellent Gapminder organisation here. Using national statistics on child mortality andRead… Read more »

Child health matters

We have recently published a number of data sets regarding children’s health, such as infant mortality rates and the incidence of childhood obesity. This will be of interest to many citizens and health care professionals who live in the county. And for those who want to put such information in context, you can see anRead… Read more »

Councils using open data to encourage channel shift

Councils are using demographic research information to target sections of the population to encourage them to access their services online. Many local authorities are using research tools to compile and analyse statistical information about their community. A report such as this one published on Kent County Council’s website contains a wealth of information that canRead… Read more »