Testing "Veil of Darkness" hypotheses with LA open data

In the past, we had quite a few presentations about using open data to generate quick analytical insights. For this Jan 25 meetup, we will gather together to hear some more specialized and well planned open data research, which is about using 2015 LA open data to test some "Veil of Darkness" hypotheses.

On the other hand, this Jan 25 meetup is also a follow up of our Sep 28, 2016 meetup, as both discuss about crime analytics.

This project is a part of the NewMet Data Bootcamp effort and will be published in the WeQuantLA website before our event. To our Jan 25 meetup, the NewMet team will outline their research plans, discuss the open data sets used, and will then present some interesting results.

Our main speaker will be Mr. Brian Becker, who currently works as a data analyst in a software startup. Brian holds a Master’s degree in Computational and Applied Math. He enjoys the challenges of leveraging technology and statistics to create real business impacts.

Brian's presentation will be assisted by Dr. Weixiang Chen, who holds a PhD in Neuroscience from UCLA and is now serving as the founder and CEO of NewMet Data, as well as by Annie Flippo who has 25+ years experience in the fields of database development and data mining. She is now working as a Senior Data Scientist in Awesomeness TV (DreamWorks Animation SKG). Annie is also the founder of WeQuantLA, an open community dedicated in finding insights using open government data sets for Los Angeles city and county.

For people who want to learn more about the research and data, the below material and links are for your use.

The original RAND research paper, proposing the "Veil of Darkness" hypothesis: http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/reprints/2007/RAND_RP1253.pdf

Two more reports testing this hypothesis based on data from other areas of the country: http://trafficstops.trendct.org/story/how-veil-of-darkness-sheds-light-on-racial-profiling/
http://www.ccsu.edu/imrp/Publicatons/Files/May%202016%20Connecticut%20Racial%20Profiling%20Report.pdf

Data source (2016 LAPD Stop Open Data): (previously openly available, now need password to access) https://data.lacity.org/A-Safe-City/Stop-Data-Open-Data-2015/53pv-w96e

As before, Starbucks coffee and cookies will be provided.

The meeting will start at 7pm sharp, with presentation scheduled for about one hour, and a one hour Q&As expected to follow, plus networking after Q&A as always.

Parking along the Brand Blvd costs about $1.50 per hour, and you may find free parking in nearby small streets.