Bright Lights Big Data

Mike and Tammy chat with State Director of AARP Iowa Brad Anderson about AARP's role in advocating for livable cities, fraud protection, and informed voting.

Get involved: www.aarp.org/volunteer

It's Bike Month! And we're celebrating by sharing stories: our own good and bad times on bicycles, and stories from our listeners, as well.

Thanks to twitter users @jscholbrock, @csaxon128, @Sean_McBeth, @frolferguy420, and @Nathan_haunts for sharing your stories!

Mentioned on the show:

Bike Month events in Des Moines: https://www.dsmstreetcollective.org/events

BFF Bikes - https://www.bffbikes.com

The Quick and the Rest - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/38122681-the-quick-and-the-rest

Mike and Tammy talk with Rachel Lunsford, vendor manager for the State of Iowa, about RFPs, negotiating contracts, and how governments interact with vendors to get things done.

Mike and Tammy talk with Ethan Standard, President of the Waveland Park Neighborhood Association, about the unique role of neighborhood associations in local government. Also, egg hunts and a bonus Harry Potter firm!

Mike and Tammy each build a consulting firm composed of four characters from the Harry Potter series. And have serious questions about magical labor laws.

Mike and Tammy talk about what it takes to make great analysts and urban planners.

This episode is about books, we swear. Mike and Tammy each share three book recommendations from or adjacent to planning and analytics.

Titles:
Competing on Analytics by Thomas H. Davenport and Jeanne G. Harris
The Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs
The Signal and the Noise by Nate Silver
Happy City by Charles Montgomery
Creative Confidence by Tom and David Kelley
The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson

Song credit:
300 MB by Neil Cicierega (from the album Mouth Moods)

We had a ton of fun recording this episode about our current least-favorite topic. Unfortunately, our sound equipment did not have a great time, and this episode is a little rough around the edges. We’ll do better next time!

In the meantime, please still enjoy this episode about some of the many planning implications of snow, and what we can learn about statistical uncertainty from weather forecasts!

Mike and Tammy each pick two terms from their respective industries' jargon and define them: big data, smart cities, machine learning, and equity.

Enjoy a recording of our first-ever live show on Friday January 25 at the Iowa Commission of Latino Affairs’ 2nd Annual Latino Day on the Hill.