iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

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Andy Tseng @andytseng.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

A good read by @parkali.bsky.social. In today’s AI-driven world, data is the new currency. Great to see #ESRC investing not just in infrastructure, but also in services and training to empower researchers. #UK #AI #DataInfrastructure #UKDS #ResearchSky #AcademicSky

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

A blog from me on why social science infrastructures matter. I talk about the value of social science data collections & data services (especially @ukdsimpact.bsky.social), current opportunities and challenges (including AI, the growth of TREs & training), & what we're doing about them at ESRC.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 09/09/2025

Absolutely delighted that ESRC and UKRI are funding this new study - and great to hear one of its leads, Pasco Fearon, discussing its value just now on BBCR4 Today. Also led by @clscohorts.bsky.social.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 15/05/2025

One for anyone with an interest in the research potential of administrative data! The 2025 @adr-uk.bsky.social conference will be in Cardiff on 17-18 September. Full details including keynote speakers & the ministerial address by Rt. Hon Mark Drakeford MS (Member of Senedd) in the thread below.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 15/05/2025

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John Van Reenen @johnvanreenen.bsky.social · 29/11/2023

How to embed green industrial policy in a UK growth strategy buff.ly/47AOf9P My new piece for @IPPR volume with @asvalero @poid_lse @cep_lse

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Stian Westlake @stianwestlake.bsky.social · 25/03/2025

Such a great choice for the new head of Innovate UK! Tom is an inspiring leader and a tech hero. www.gov.uk/government/n...

gov.uk

New executive chair selected to boost innovation and growth across the UK

Tom Adeyoola selected as preferred candidate to head up Innovate UK.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 24/03/2025

Astonishing fact on #bbcr4today earlier, discussing the Heathrow power failure. Heathrow requires 41MW; a new data centre nearby needs 150MW. Stark illustration of the underpinning energy consequences of data storage.

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Claire Boardman @claireboardman.bsky.social · 13/02/2025

Yes!!! Not enough focus on the DATA. How many disciplines/sectors have accessible datasets, alone or even integrated, at sufficient scale and quality to successfully apply these emergent, data-driven technologies?

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 13/02/2025

Great lecture by @hetanshah.bsky.social today on #AI. A key message: AI depends on data (quality, coverage, access, linkage) but not enough focus upon it; “data is the unsexy cousin of AI”. Vital we keep focused on AI AND data, and on ensuring the public have a voice within discussions about both.

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Jack Hardinges @jackhardinges.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

really happy the National Data Library submission I worked on with @dgen.net has been selected

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Ben Goldacre @bengoldacre.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

We just published a paper on what the new NATIONAL DATA LIBRARY should look like. It's very readable! Lots on: accountability.. federated analytics.. code.. modular tools.. Thanks to @wellcometrust and @ESRC who ran a competition for these papers! zenodo.org/records/1467...

zenodo.org

A National Data Library: the Modular Approach

The UK National Data Library: Technical White Paper Challenge, initiated by Wellcome and the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), sought visionary approaches to enhancing access to UK public s...

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 17/01/2025

ESRC recently collaborated with Wellcome on the UK National Data Library Technical White Paper Challenge. Five submissions were successful and have now been published - do take a look: wellcome.org/what-we-do/o...

wellcome.org

UK National Data Library | Wellcome

We are seeking technical visions and architectures for a UK National Data Library to make public sector datasets more accessible to researchers and enable future science to thrive.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 09/01/2025

In case you missed it - cohort studies got a mention on Call the Midwife last Sunday (specifically the 1970 Birth Cohort Study)! A bit cheesy I know, but good to see these essential data resources, & the unique insight they make possible, get the attention they deserve. www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p...

bbc.co.uk

BBC One - Call the Midwife, Series 14, Episode 1, "This is going to be teaching us things for 80 years"

The midwives get to grips with the 1970 Birth Cohort Study.

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Miriam Sorace @miriamsorace.bsky.social · 08/01/2025

New PhD position on my UKRI Future Leaders Fellowship project on political polarization: fully funded + ~20k tax free yearly stipend. Deadline: Feb 14th! Link to apply: www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DLI246/p...

jobs.ac.uk

PhD Studentship in Politics and International Relations at University of Reading

Explore the PhD Studentship in Politics and International Relations on jobs.ac.uk, the top job board for higher education. Apply now.

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 06/01/2025

What would it look like to reimagine #arts and #humanities as a vital and creative force for change at the heart of #science? For 25 years, the Arts and Humanities Research Council has supported the transformation of our understanding of ourselves through research...

Arts and Humanities Research Council 25 years of excellence and impact against a colourful background

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 06/01/2025

It's ESRC's 60th birthday in 2025 - keep an eye out for how we are planning to celebrate! In the meantime, if you're interested in how our history connects to our current strategic thinking take a look at @stianwestlake.bsky.social's blog below.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 12/12/2024

“These models can see patterns humans cannot, but not all patterns they identify are meaningful or reliable” … AI not immune to the correlation and causation challenge.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 07/12/2024

Interesting @jburnmurdoch.bsky.social FT Data Points today - does the apparent rise in the UK’s illness-related activity say as much about incentives in the benefit system as the nation’s health? Good to see (ESRC funded!) Understanding Society - UKHLS - as a key data source.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 05/12/2024

Delighted the ECHILD team, funded by ADR UK, has been awarded the ONS Research Excellence Award 2024 in the category of Secure Data Creation. ECHILD is a pioneering linked data resource that integrates administrative data across sectors from health & education. Find out more - www.echild.ac.uk

echild.ac.uk

ECHILD: Education and Child Health Insights from Linked Data

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Tom Calver @tomcalver.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

NEW: Why do we always think crime is rising, even when it isn’t? This week I looked at one of the big data mysteries. Britain is 2/3 less violent than the 1990s; thefts were higher pre-lockdown Why, then, doesn’t it feel like it? 1/8 @thetimes.com 🔗 www.thetimes.com/article/b63d...

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 01/12/2024

Good article about many challenges in collecting accurate employment data - & importance of improving access to other sources (eg private sector & admin data). Good too to see some of the hidden challenges acknowledged - inc losing data savvy staff to tech firms. londonherald.co.uk/fuzzy-job-nu...

londonherald.co.uk

Fuzzy job numbers need fixing - London Herald

Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Anyone who has taken “Econ 101” will know that most economic models assume ...

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Stian Westlake @stianwestlake.bsky.social · 22/11/2024

UKRI is recruiting a Director to lead work on R&D and Place. A great opportunity for an action-oriented leader who wants to tackle the many well-documented issues of the geography of R&D in the UK! careersportal.taleo.net/careersectio...

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 21/11/2024

Fantastic night last night at the ESRC Celebrating Impact Prize awards. There was a particularly strong legal and justice theme this year with winners including ... 1/3 More details: www.ukri.org/news/esrc-an...

ukri.org

ESRC announces its 2024 Celebrating Impact Prize winners

The work of researchers who have made an outstanding societal and economic contribution was celebrated at the ESRC Celebrating Impact Prize awards last night.

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Charlotte O'Brien @cobrien.bsky.social · 21/11/2024

We won the ESRC Celebrating Impact Prize for Outstanding Public Policy Impact last night. An inspiring evening, learning about projects making profound differences, highlighting the power of research (see: Yvonne McDermott Rees; @richardmoorhead.bsky.social; and many more)

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 21/11/2024

Congratulations to @richardmoorhead.bsky.social & the postofficeproject team for being worthy winners of the ESRC societal impact prize. Particularly struck by Lord Arbuthnot's comment towards the end of the video about the "forensic, humane, academic brilliance" of the work - high praise indeed.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 16/11/2024

On a packed train to Oxford and everyone seems to be staying on for Moreton in the Marsh? I remember Moreton being a sleepy little town, what changed?!

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Stian Westlake @stianwestlake.bsky.social · 15/11/2024

The UK government has ambitious plans for a National Data Library, and a lot of the important technical choices remain to be made. Together with Wellcome, ESRC is running a Technical White Paper challenge to invite proposals for how to make it work best - more below! wellcome.org/what-we-do/o...

wellcome.org

UK National Data Library | Wellcome

We are seeking technical visions and architectures for a UK National Data Library to make public sector datasets more accessible to researchers and enable future science to thrive.

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Alan Wager @dralanwager.bsky.social · 13/11/2024

‘The country is in a state but my patch is actually (relatively) grand’ is a phenomenon in public opinion not unique to the US. Here it is in the context of attitudes to public services and spaces in England. From work with @lawrencemckay.bsky.social, @psurridge.bsky.social @drjennings.bsky.social

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 11/11/2024

Delighted to see HM Treasury has published its Areas of Research Interest - which set out their key questions within the following areas - growth, labour market, financial sector, international, fiscal policy, tax, and public spending/services.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 22/10/2024

Really recommend this - astute observations and some very interesting research questions.

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Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 17/10/2024

So do you want to run the Resolution Foundation, NIESR or the IFS? Lots of great jobs to run economics think tanks as Paul Johnson moves to Queen's College Oxford. I personally hope we will see some great women head up these think tanks in their next phases ifs.org.uk/news/ifs-dir...

ifs.org.uk

IFS Director Paul Johnson announces move to Queen’s College, Oxford in summer 2025 | Institute for Fiscal Studies

The chair and staff at the IFS express their thanks to Paul Johnson for what will be 14 years as Director.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 24/09/2024

With the National Police Chiefs’ Council, UKRI is funding 9 Policing Academic Centres of Excellence to improve connections between researchers & research users in policing & help research users identify the best research evidence, science, technologies & postgraduate training. See: orlo.uk/1O9u8

orlo.uk

Apply to be recognised as a Policing Academic Centre of Excellence

The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) and UKRI will fund nine Policing Academic Centres of Excellence (P-ACEs) to increase the accessibility and use of research evidence, science and technology i...

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 23/09/2024

New £11.5m call to develop & administer a global evidence synthesis infrastructure to provide policymakers with access to accurate, up-to-date, & accessible syntheses of existing scientific evidence in key policy areas. Background & more helpfully set out here: www.nature.com/articles/d41...

nature.com

Scientists are building giant ‘evidence banks’ to create policies that actually work

Funders launch projects with US$70-million to develop tools that make rapid syntheses of the world’s science. Funders launch projects with US$70-million to develop tools that make rapid syntheses of t...

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 23/09/2024

nature.com

Scientists are building giant ‘evidence banks’ to create policies that actually work

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 21/09/2024

Great illustration at the start of this about the difference between sample size & representivity (in relation to stats about millionaires in the UK) podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/m...

podcasts.apple.com

How do you count millionaires?

Can we be sure that thousands of millionaires are leaving the UK? How much do asylum seekers cost the state? Who will win a geeky bet on private school pupil nu

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 12/09/2024

This year’s finalists for ESRC’s Celebrating Impact Prize were announced today. All very impressive examples of how excellent social science can make a genuine difference to the world. www.ukri.org/who-we-are/h...

ukri.org

Finalists: 2024

Winners of the 2024 Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Celebrating Impact Prize will be announced at an awards ceremony in London on 20 November 2024.

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 09/09/2024

The @britishelectionstudy.com team is celebrating the study's 60th anniversary today - 6 decades on from the 1st British Election Survey in 1964 & all the insight that has resulted since. V proud of the role that ESRC has played in supporting the study & research over those decades.

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Margot Finn @eicathomefinn.bsky.social · 06/09/2024

Undertaking postdoctoral Humanities and/or Social Science research from a UK base? New round of British Academy Small Research Grants (up to £10,000 over 24 months) has opened. Deadline 6 November 2024, 17:00 GMT.

thebritishacademy.ac.uk

British Academy/Leverhulme Small Research Grants

The BA/Leverhulme Small Research Grants are available to support primary research in the humanities and social sciences. These awards, up to £10,000 in value and tenable for up to 24 months, are provi...

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Owen Boswarva @owenboswarva.bsky.social · 04/09/2024

Civil Service Data Challenge 2024 finalists selected moderncivilservice.blog.gov.uk/2024/09/04/c... (UK) The winner "will receive £50,000-worth of support from NTT DATA to further develop their idea, as well as the endorsement by senior leadership within the Civil Service." *looks to camera*

moderncivilservice.blog.gov.uk

Civil Service Data Challenge 2024 finalists selected

News and updates on cross-government reform and modernisation.

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Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 04/09/2024

The UK Statistics Authority response to the Lievesley review was published today. They commit to stronger user engagement through a new UK Statistics Assembly, continued pushing on data sharing in government, and a forthcoming MoU with Eurostat uksa.statisticsauthority.gov.uk/publication/...

uksa.statisticsauthority.gov.uk

Authority response to the Independent Review of the UK Statistics Authority

Statistics for the Public Good

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 04/09/2024

Blog by my boss, Stian Westlake (Executive Chair of ESRC but writing in his own capacity) setting out his thoughts on research & innovation capacity to deliver Government missions, with a particular focus on the role of social science & the importance of better data. docs.google.com/document/d/1...

docs.google.com

Research & innovation capacity to deliver Government missions

Some thoughts on research & innovation capacity to deliver Government missions How should public R&D funding – such as that provided by UKRI – support the five missions that sit at the heart of the ...

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 03/09/2024

Excellent essay - "Harder, better, faster, stronger - will AI improve public policymaking?". Delighted to see proper recognition of the centrality of data - "any AI tool is only as good as its data, and novel forms of AI are still haunted by old data problems". 👋👋

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 03/09/2024

Administrative Data Research’s (ADR) Annual Report published today, illustrating the progress they have made in generating data-driven insights that help drive improvements in policy & practice, & tackle pressing global challenges. reports.adruk.org/annual-repor...

reports.adruk.org

Annual Report 2023-2024 - ADR UK - Reports

Annual Report 2023-2024- ADR UK - Annual Reports - Data driven change

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Alison Park @parkali.bsky.social · 03/09/2024

Good blog by Emma Gordon, ADR UK, about the Labour manifesto pledge to create a National Data Library and what needs to happen next. Great to see recognition of the value of linked data, but vital to build on existing successes - we do not need to start from scratch here. t.co/7HYMta50Hv

t.co

https://www.adruk.org/news-publications/news-blogs/the-new-uk-government-wants-a-national-data-library-a-brilliant-aspiration-if-built-on-solid-foundations/

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Hetan Shah @hetanshah.bsky.social · 02/09/2024

Good piece from Geoff Mulgan on the importance of diffusion and take up in R&D / technology policy. It can be a blindspot in traditional economic theory and a bit grubby for policymakers. But we won’t get better productivity without it! www.geoffmulgan.com/post/not-jus...

geoffmulgan.com

Not just rocket science - the vital missing fuel for Labour’s growth plans

The new Labour government has bet everything on reviving economic growth. This makes a lot of sense after over a decade of stagnant productivity and GDP growth, since there is little chance of sortin...

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Christopher Smith @christophersmith.bsky.social · 02/09/2024

“What’s the point of having UKRI if it isn’t about bringing things together and getting some of that cross-fertilization?" Patrick Vallance And that's what we do... www.ukri.org/news/first-p... All credit to @kirstygrainger.bsky.social and Alison Park...

ukri.org

First projects from UKRI’s new interdisciplinary scheme announced

Thirty-six projects will share £32.4m from the first round of UKRI’s new cross research council responsive mode pilot scheme.

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