Ben Proctor
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benproctor.co.uk
Ben Proctor
@benproctor.co.uk
Some time folk singer. Ex Data Orchard CIC. Now freelance data consultant.

LibDem Herefordshire and Hereford City Councillor for College Ward (promoted by Sam Potts on behalf of the Liberal Democrats all at 54 St Owen St Hereford HR12PU)
What autistic people – and those with ADHD and dyslexia – really think about the word ‘neurodiversity’
What autistic people – and those with ADHD and dyslexia – really think about the word ‘neurodiversity’
A new UK survey of more than 900 neurodivergent adults has revealed strong feelings about the language of neurodiversity.
theconversation.com
November 11, 2025 at 11:47 AM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
The BBC isn't perfect. But it remains an institution defending British values against a populist, Trump-style takeover.

Party leaders must unite to defend it.
November 10, 2025 at 6:45 PM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
A profound analysis of DNA co-discoverer Jim Watson. Best piece of science writing I've seen in a long time.

"To remain on the stage and keep receiving what he viewed as his due, he therefore needed a new act."

By the late Sharon Begley @statnews.com
www.statnews.com/2025/11/07/j...
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 10, 2025 at 1:01 PM
This week's Nonprofit data jobs is quite a bumper edition with something for everyone buttondown.com/likeaword/ar...
Nonprofit data jobs 2025-11-07
Featuring vacancies with Better Society Capital, Save the Children, Victim Support and many more
buttondown.com
November 9, 2025 at 11:09 AM
Home vs office working: why it doesn’t have to be a battle theconversation.com/home-vs-offi...
Home vs office working: why it doesn’t have to be a battle
But homeworking throws up tricky paradoxes that need to be understood.
theconversation.com
November 8, 2025 at 11:47 AM
Exploring Data Detective Practices as a Class Activity, Nightingale
Exploring Data Detective Practices as a Class Activity - Nightingale
We reflect on our experiences arising from a recent computer science graduate class about data feminism, during which we explored the idea of being data..
nightingaledvs.com
November 7, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
The advances we've made in statistics, experimental study design, and causal inference over the past century are remarkably useful for understanding our world. But there is never been a push to make people use them like we are seeing with generative AI. Perhaps take a moment to consider why.
November 7, 2025 at 9:07 AM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
Which one is more English?
November 6, 2025 at 11:58 AM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
Do you teach #rstats? Do your students complain about how lame and old-fashioned dplyr is? Don't worry: I have the solution for you: github.com/hadley/genzp....

genzplyr is dplyr, but bussin fr fr no cap.
GitHub - hadley/genzplyr: dplyr but make it bussin fr fr no cap
dplyr but make it bussin fr fr no cap. Contribute to hadley/genzplyr development by creating an account on GitHub.
github.com
November 6, 2025 at 11:25 PM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
10/10, no notes
vi-coding
It's the future
www.thegadhian.com
November 6, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
TWO WEEKS TODAY!

It's Data Bites #60 @publicdigital.bsky.social, with Welsh Govt, Office for Stats Regulation, ONS and the Greater London Authority - sign up now public.digital/events/data-...

And catch up on Data Bites #59, last month's AI special public.digital/pd-insights/...
November 4, 2025 at 1:29 PM
Nonprofit data jobs is out. Featuring nonprofit datajobs that caught my eye and a selection of other vacancies and links that might interest you. buttondown.com/likeaword/ar...
Nonprofit data jobs 2025-10-31
Featuring vacanices with The Lucy Faithfull Foundation, Help for Heroes, Smartphone Free Childhood and many others
buttondown.com
November 2, 2025 at 10:58 AM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
I'm beginning to think you can't trust random videos on the internet
November 2, 2025 at 9:16 AM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
consider that the psychotic loop of chatgpt mostly seems to be 'the chatbot repeating your own ideas back to you and telling you they're brilliant' and then consider billionaires and the people around them
October 27, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
Just over a week to go until the #30DayMapChallenge kicks off!

If you're thinking about using #RStats for some or all of the challenge, you might find the section on visualizing spatial data in "The Art of Visualization with #ggplot2" helpful! 📊

Link: nrennie.rbind.io/art-of-viz/s...

#DataViz
October 22, 2025 at 5:57 PM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
I wrote for @theipaper.com about the Caerphilly by election and why Reform is no longer Starmer's only problem

inews.co.uk/opinion/refo...
October 24, 2025 at 11:17 AM
Reposted by Ben Proctor
Largest study of its kind shows AI assistants misrepresent news content 45% of the time – regardless of language or territory. www.bbc.co.uk/mediacentre/...
Largest study of its kind shows AI assistants misrepresent news content 45% of the time – regardless of language or territory
An intensive international study was coordinated by the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and led by the BBC
www.bbc.co.uk
October 23, 2025 at 5:17 PM
This article about Irish singing sessions expresses a lot about what I love about singarounds on this side of the Irish Sea on.ft.com/48D0Pcc <- First three clicks should get through the paywall
What I learnt from Irish folk singing sessions
Fame means nothing; sing for the room you’re in; slow down and listen. Patrick Freyne’s lyrical lessons for life
on.ft.com
October 20, 2025 at 5:32 PM
Inside the far-right social media ecosystem normalising extremist ideas in UK politics by Ed Harrison and Olivia Brown theconversation.com/inside-the-f...
Inside the far-right social media ecosystem normalising extremist ideas in UK politics
A process of normalisation has led Reform to propose mass deportations where once it believed such a policy would never be politically viable.
theconversation.com
October 20, 2025 at 10:47 AM
Four-year-olds don’t need to sit still to be ‘school ready’ write Louise Whitfield and Lucy Sors in The Conversation theconversation.com/four-year-ol...
Four-year-olds don’t need to sit still to be ‘school ready’
Children need physical play to develop their strength, coordination, and motor skills.
theconversation.com
October 19, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Great project. Lovely that this article acknowledges the work in this space already done by @mapio.cymru and others
People submit Welsh placenames to project to protect linguistic heritage
People submit Welsh placenames to project to protect linguistic heritage
Entries include Welsh language names for fields and hills in move to ensure preservation of stories and legends Dozens of placenames in Welsh, some hinting at ancient legends, others telling rich stories of how people used to live, have been submitted to a project designed to make sure they are preserved. The Welsh government appealed for people to add historical names that may be missing from online maps so they could be saved for future generations. Within two weeks, about 200 submissions were received, including local Welsh language names for fields, hills and areas. Dôl y Tylwyth Teg (Fairy Folk Meadow/Fairies’ Meadow) in Aberfan, south Wales. The person who sent the suggestion said the field was known by the Welsh name by people who spoke Cymraeg, the Welsh language. A nearby school that teaches through Welsh refers to the field by this name and uses it for events. Caeau Maelorddin (Fields of Maelor City) near Aberystwyth, west Wales, are a collection of fields near Tanybwlch beach. The contributor said his late grandfather recalled many people referring to a group of now individually named fields as Caeau Maelorddin. They were close to Pen Dinas, the hill where the giant Maelor Gawr was said to live. Ffynnon Glog (Rock Well) near Rhyd, in Gwynedd, north Wales, is a hidden well in a roadside bank, according to the contributor. The water in the well was once used as a remedy for ailments and takes its name from Y Glog, a prominent rocky outcrop nearby. Continue reading...
www.theguardian.com
October 19, 2025 at 1:29 PM
How generative AI could change how we think and speak by Antonio Cerella in The Conversation theconversation.com/how-generati...
How generative AI could change how we think and speak
Over-reliance on chatbots could be eroding our language and critical thinking skills.
theconversation.com
October 19, 2025 at 10:47 AM
Could further education colleges get involved with university mergers? It might help meet Keir Starmer’s education goals Vicky Brotherton writes in The Conversation theconversation.com/could-furthe...
Could further education colleges get involved with university mergers? It might help meet Keir Starmer’s education goals
Colleges and universities share similar financial challenges.
theconversation.com
October 18, 2025 at 5:04 PM
My Friday newsletter is out, unexpectedly, on a Friday. Find your next nonprofit data job or keep an eye on the market buttondown.com/likeaword/ar...
Nonprofit data jobs 2025-10-17
Featuring vacancies with British Red Cross, British Heart Foundation, The Sutton Trust and many others
buttondown.com
October 18, 2025 at 10:47 AM
Just stumbled on this via the latest atricle in Nightingale. It's a collection of Data Comics datacomics.github.io
Data Comics
Data comics are a way of effectively communicating with data through data visualizations. They are inspired by the visual language of comics. This page lists examples we found online and those…
datacomics.github.io
October 17, 2025 at 5:06 PM