Timandra Harkness

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Timandra Harkness
Speaking at QEDcon in 2016
NationalityBritish
Alma mater
  • Bulmershe College
  • Open University
Occupations
  • Writer
  • presenter
  • comedian
Years active2000–present
Notable work
  • Big Data: Does Size Matter
Websitetimandraharkness.com

Timandra Harkness is a British writer, presenter and comedian.[1]

She has contributed to several publications, including BBC Science Focus magazine and The Daily Telegraph, and authored the book Big Data: Does Size Matter?. Harkness has co-written and performed comedy shows related to science and mathematics, including collaborations with her mother Linda Cotterill and comedian Matt Parker. Since 2016, she has chaired the Data Debate series for the Alan Turing Institute and the British Library. She is a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society and a visiting fellow at the University of Winchester's Centre for Information Rights.

Education[edit]

Harkness has a BA in Film and Drama with Art from Bulmershe College[when?] and a BSc in Mathematics & Statistics from the Open University, awarded in 2017.[2] In 2021 she began postgraduate study in Philosophy at Birkbeck College, London, completing an MA in 2023.

Career[edit]

Writer[edit]

Harkness has written about technology for BBC Science Focus magazine,[3][4][5] about statistics for Significance (a popular science magazine published by the Royal Statistical Society),[6] and about motorcycles for The Daily Telegraph.[7]

Harkness is the author of the book Big Data: Does Size Matter?[8] Her second book Technology is not the problem is forthcoming in 2024.[9]

Broadcaster[edit]

Harkness' work for BBC Radio 4 includes an afternoon play,[10] documentaries,[11][12][13][14] being a roving reporter for The Human Zoo[15] and presenting FutureProofing,[16] a series about the future potential of science.

Performer[edit]

In 1999 Harkness co-wrote a comedy with her mother Linda Cotterill, called No Future in Eternity, about an astronomer who shares a flat with two angels.[17] They received a grant from the Astronomer Royal for Scotland, John Campbell Brown, to perform the show at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2000.[18] The show was subsequently broadcast as an afternoon play on BBC Radio 4.[10][19]

Since 2004 Harkness has collaborated with Dr Helen Pilcher, as a comedy duo named the Comedy Research Project, writing and performing stand-up shows about science.[20][21][22]

In 2012 Harkness and fellow comedian Matt Parker co-wrote a comedy show called Your Days are Numbered: The Maths of Death. They performed the show in Australia, at the Adelaide Fringe and Melbourne International Comedy Festival, on tour around England and in Scotland, at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.[23]

Harkness returned to the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2019 to perform a one-woman show, called Take a Risk.[24][25]

Data engagement[edit]

Since 2016, Harkness has chaired the Data Debate for the Alan Turing Institute and the British Library, a series of panel discussions about big data and its implications for society.[26] She has spoken at the Hay Festival,[27][28][29] the Battle of Ideas,[30][31][32][33][34][excessive citations] TEDx,[35] The Scotsman Data Conference[36] and the Cheltenham Science Festival.[37]

Harkness is a Fellow of the Royal Statistical Society (RSS), a founding member of their special interest group on Data Ethics.[38] She was elected to serve on the Council of the RSS from 2024,[39] and took over the chair of the editorial board of their magazine Significance at that time.[40] Harkness is also a visiting fellow at the University of Winchester's Centre for Information Rights.[41]

Awards[edit]

In 1997, Harkness won a column-writing competition, organised by The Independent newspaper.[citation needed]

Publications[edit]

  • Big Data: Does Size Matter (2016)[8]

Radio[edit]

  • No Future In Eternity (2001)[10]
  • Data, Data, Everywhere (2014)[11]
  • Personality Politics (2014)[12]
  • FutureProofing (2014–present)[42]
  • Hindsight Bias (2015)[43]
  • Perfect People (2015)[15]
  • Supersense Me (2017)[13]
  • The Why Factor: Are You A Numbers Person? (2017)[44]
  • How to Disagree: A Beginner's Guide to Having Better Arguments (2018)[45][46]
  • The Infinite Monkey Cage: Big Data (2018)[47]
  • Divided Nation (2019)[14]
  • What Has Sat-Nav Done to Our Brains? (2019)[48]
  • Five Knots (2020)[49]
  • Steelmanning (2021) [50]

Comedy[edit]

  • The Comedy Research Project (2004)[51]
  • Your Days Are Numbered - The Maths of Death (2012)[52]
  • Brainsex (2013)[53]
  • Take A Risk (2019)[54][24][25]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Santos, Patricia (2019). "Science, communication and women in networks" (PDF). Women in Science. No. 1. British Council. Retrieved 6 November 2020.
  2. ^ "Timandra Harkness". BIM Show Live. Space Group. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
  3. ^ Harkness, Timandra (8 April 2019). "Five key ideas you need to understand now if you want to be ready for the world of 2030". BBC Focus Magazine. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  4. ^ Harkness, Timandra (21 April 2020). "How will the NHS contact-tracing app work and how could it affect my privacy?". BBC Focus Magazine. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  5. ^ Harkness, Timandra (11 November 2020). "A level results: Why algorithms aren't making the grade". BBC Focus Magazine. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  6. ^ Harkness, Timandra (8 February 2012). "Seduced by stats?". Significance. 9 (1). Royal Statistical Society: 46–48. doi:10.1111/j.1740-9713.2012.00549.x.
  7. ^ Harkness, Timandra (4 September 2004). "Angels". The Telegraph. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  8. ^ a b Stoye, Emma (24 October 2014), "Big data: does size matter?", Chemistry World, Royal Society of Chemistry, retrieved 9 November 2020
  9. ^ "From culture wars to misinformation: Why social media is not the problem' with Timandra Harkness | Selwyn College".
  10. ^ a b c "No Future in Eternity". Afternoon Play. BBC. Radio 4.
  11. ^ a b Data, Data, Everywhere (Radio broadcast). BBC Radio 4. 2014.
  12. ^ a b Personality Politics (Radio broadcast). BBC Radio 4. 2014.
  13. ^ a b Supersense Me (Radio broadcast). BBC Radio 4. 2017.
  14. ^ a b "Divided Nation". Archive on 4. BBC. Radio 4.
  15. ^ a b "Perfect People". The Human Zoo. BBC. Radio 4.
  16. ^ Harkness, Timandra. "What is FutureProofing?". BBC Radio 4. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  17. ^ Pennicott, Kate (23 July 2001). "Astronomy meets angels in a divine comedy". Physics World. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  18. ^ Brown, John. "Outreach: Public Understanding of Science Work". Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  19. ^ "Afternoon Play: No Future in Eternity". BBC Genome. 24 July 2001. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  20. ^ "Five Top Things in Science - Ever (Comedy Research Project)". The Lecture List. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  21. ^ "The hidden comedy of science". BBC News. 8 June 2004. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  22. ^ "Helen Pilcher". LinedIn. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  23. ^ "Your Days are Numbered Tour Dates". Your Days Are Numbered. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  24. ^ a b Cornwell, Tim (19 August 2019). "Edinburgh Festival Fringe 2019 REVIEW Timandra Harkness: Take a Risk". The Edinburgh Reporter. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  25. ^ a b Heald, Steve (7 August 2019). "Timandra Harkness – Edinburgh Fringe Festival". The Plus Ones. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  26. ^ Wood, Beth. "New Data Debates series with the British Library: Smart cities and fake news". The Alan Turing Institute. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  27. ^ "Big Data". Hay Festival. 30 May 2017. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  28. ^ "Creators and Consumers: What's our role in responsibly designing the future?". Hay Festival. 27 May 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  29. ^ "Can Artificial Intelligence Be Ethical?". Hay Festival. 26 May 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  30. ^ "Was it Big Data wot won it? Political campaigning today". Battle of Ideas. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  31. ^ "From AI to Big Data: can technology save the NHS?". Battle of Ideas. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  32. ^ "Rage against the machines: is automation a threat to jobs?". Battle of Ideas. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  33. ^ "If data runs the world, who is in control?". Battle of Ideas. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  34. ^ "Automatic lovers: should we be worried about sex robots?". Battle of Ideas. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  35. ^ Timandra Harkness (23 June 2017). What is Knowledge in the Age of Big Data? (Presentation). London, England: TEDx Talks.
  36. ^ Lee, David (29 October 2020). "World-leading experts headline Scotsman data conference on combatting Covid-19". The Scotsman. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  37. ^ "Cheltenham Science Festival Programme Announced". Cheltenham Festivals. 18 April 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  38. ^ "Data Ethics". Royal Statistical Society. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  39. ^ "RSS announce new Council members".
  40. ^ "Significance announces new editorial board chair". 12 January 2024.
  41. ^ "Centre for Information Rights". University of Winchester. Retrieved 12 November 2020.
  42. ^ FutureProofing (Radio broadcast). BBC Radio 4. 2014.
  43. ^ "Hindsight Bias". The Human Zoo. BBC. Radio 4.
  44. ^ "Are You A Numbers Person?". The Why Factor. BBC. Radio 4.
  45. ^ How to Disagree: A Beginner's Guide to Having Better Arguments (Radio broadcast). BBC Radio 4. 2018.
  46. ^ How to Disagree: A Beginner's Guide to Having Better Arguments (Audio book). BBC Digital Audio. 2018.
  47. ^ "Big Data". The Infinite Monkey Cage. BBC. Radio 4.
  48. ^ "What Has Sat-Nav Done to Our Brains?". Seriously... BBC. Radio 4.
  49. ^ Five Knots (Radio broadcast). BBC Radio 4. 2020.
  50. ^ Steelmanning (Radio broadcast). BBC Radio 4. 2021.
  51. ^ Day, Elizabeth (13 June 2004). "Scientists are serious about having a laugh". Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  52. ^ Moorhead, Rosy (10 February 2012). "Timandra Harkness on her new comedy show Your Days are Numbered: The Maths of Death". Retrieved 9 November 2020.
  53. ^ Ranscombe, Peter (2013), "BrainSex" (PDF), The Lancet, vol. 12, no. Nov, p. 1047, doi:10.1016/S1474-4422(13)70219-9, S2CID 208785167, retrieved 9 November 2020
  54. ^ Timandra Harkness (2019). "Take A Risk" (Podcast).
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