The Globe and Mail's Mike Hager notes how the lack of official statistics on foreign buyers of real estate in Toronto means, among other things, that less reliable data metrics like search engine hits need to be used. This just proves how modern societies need good data to address real problems.

‘Up! Up! Up ( Read more... )

• blogTO notes an Instagram user from Toronto, @brxson, who takes stunning photos of the city from on high.
• The Dragon's Gaze links to a paper examining the limits of exoplanet J1407b's massive ring system.
• The Dragon's Tales notes evidence that the primordial Martian atmosphere apparently did not have carbon dioxide.
• Imageo notes that the California ( Read more... )

At Demography Matters, I have a brief note noting the sad death earlier this week of Gapminder's Hans Rosling. 68 was too young for anyone, certainly too young for someone so dedicated to helping the world know itself through the truth. Scott Gilmore's article in MacLean's is one I recommend.

Click to view

What can I say but that I wish that his vision be

• The Broadside Blog's Caitlin Kelly describes a week in her life as a freelance writer.
• The Dragon's Tales notes how the Indus Valley Civilization did, and did not, adapt to climate change.
• Language Log reshares Benjamin Franklin's writings against German immigration.
• The NYRB Daily follows one family's quest for justice after the shooting by police of ( Read more... )

Part of me is surprised by the news, as reported by the Toronto Star's Kenyon Wallace and Mary Ormsby, that Toronto was not keeping systematic track of the many hundreds of homeless dead. More of me is unsurprised.

Toronto’s top public health official says the city’s new program to track all homeless deaths will provide invaluable data to better ( Read more... )

Over at Demograhy Matters, I talk about Hans Rosling, a Swedish statistician who has become something of a celebrity.

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In January 2011 and June 2013, I linked to two videos by Swedish statistician and popularizer Hans Rosling demonstrating different demographic trends. Today, via 3 Quarks Daily, I came across Amy Maxmen's excellent long-format ( Read more... )

At Demography Matters, I linked to Canadian newsmagazine MacLean's, which hosts Jordan Press' Canadian Press article "Census still vulnerable to political meddling, says former chief". Wayne Smith warns that the Canadian census is still vulnerable to political interference, even with new legislation.

The federal government’s bid to protect ( Read more... )

At Demography Matters, I link to Cade Metz's Wired article "Trump's Win Isn't the Death of Data--It Was Flawed All Along". It makes interesting observations about statistical data collection generally, not just political polling.

The lesson of Trump’s victory is not that data is dead. The lesson is that data is flawed. It has always been flawed- ( Read more... )

• blogTO recommends some Toronto-related Vine clips.
• Centauri Dreams notes a SETI study of Boyajian's Star.
• Crooked Timber criticizes one author's take in the politics of science fiction.
• The Dragon's Gaze links to a paper examining the auroras of hot Jupiters.
• The Dragon's Tales links to a paper finding that atmospheric methane did not warm the early ( Read more... )

• Beyond the Beyond quotes a Vladimir Putin statement on geopolitics.
• blogTO shares photos from Yorkdale's expansion.
• Centauri Dreams looks at more evidence for Planet Nine.
• Dead Things notes evidence that right-handedness has been predominant among hominins for some time.
• The Dragon's Gaze reports on the discovery of three hot Jupiters.