PyData Exeter #12 - Open Source Community Talks
Details
Join us for another evening of free pizza, beer and great talks at PyData Exeter! We’re back from our winter break with fascinating sessions lined up.
AGENDA
- 18:45 - Doors open
- 19:15 - Talks start
- 20:30 - Talks finish. Stick around for a drink and networking at the CUCKOO taproom across the road.
SPONSORS
Talk #1
Tariq Rashid, Grammar of Graphics - Bringing Sanity to Data Visualisation
The predominant tools for data visualisation in the Python data science ecosystem is matplotlib. It is a very flexible tool, capable of a very wide range of charts. However, even experienced data scientists find it painful to use. This is primarily because the library enforces very little conceptual structure, allowing us to hack together code "until it works". In contrast, the Grammar of Graphics is a conceptual framework for data visualisation. It is implemented most successfully in R by ggplot, but python implementations are gaining interest. The key benefit of a firm conceptual framework is that code has a predictable structure, is easy to write and also easy to read. This beginner-friendly talk introduces the key concepts of the Grammar of Graphics, and illustrates them briefly with examples.
Talk #2
Stephen Stanley, In Praise of Documentation: Tools, Tips & Techniques for Literate Programming in the AI Age
This talk is in praise of documentation. I argue why and how you should document your code. While writing documentation is considered a "good thing", many software engineers in industry tend to either not document their work, or document their work poorly. I'll give some examples of the bad things that can happen when people don't write any documentation for production data systems. I will speculate on reasons for this neglect, before giving a brief history of "literate programming", especially in scientific computing and data science. I'll explain why writing documentation is a "good" edifying activity, helping you to be a better person, and make the world a better place. Then, I'll give a quick overview of types of open source documentation (in R, Python, Rust and Unix), documentation frameworks (Diátaxis), and Python tools (Sphinx, Jupyter, Marimo, Quarto). Documentation becomes even more important in the age of AI-assisted coding and agent workflows ("spec-driven development"). Meanwhile, paper-based "lab" notebooks might be making a comeback. Aptly for our dystopic times, I'll end with some old-fashioned advice on "good" writing, by George Orwell.
Talk #3
This could be you! Have an open source passion you’d like to share with the community? Please reach out via the talk submission form
SPEAKER DETAILS
- Tariq Rashid was originally trained as a physicist, and later gained a masters in machine learning and data mining. He’s worked in technology for 25 years, across sectors as varied as healthcare and government, fintech, energy and networks. Tariq is passionate about open source, developing communities, and inspiring the next generation of scientists and technologists. He led the London Python meetup, and until recently ran a children’s CoderDojo Cornwall and the Data Science Cornwall community, as well as the London based Algorithmic Art group. He also writes beginner-friendly books on machine learning and creative computing, one of which has been translated into 6 languages. He is currently developing Digital Dynamics, a new business helping organisations ensure their use of data and automation through machine learning is safe, fair and ethical.
- Stephen Stanley is a Lead Data Scientist at Shoutt International
CODE OF CONDUCT
The PyData Code of Conduct governs this meetup . To discuss any issues or concerns relating to the code of conduct or behaviour of anyone at the PyData meetup, please contact the PyData Exeter organisers, or you can submit a report of any potential Code of Conduct violation directly to NumFOCUS.