Data Analysis

commentary

TikTok Is a Threat to National Security, but Not for the Reason You Think
Most videos that Americans post on social media are harmless at face value, but the 34 million videos posted daily on TikTok become ideal training material for generative AI models. These models will be able to create astonishingly convincing deepfakes that could be used in influence operations.
Aug 14, 2024

commentary

Your Body, but Not Your Data
The public needs rigorous and thorough health research, but individual patients should have rights over their medical information. Today they have very little.
Mar 7, 2024
commentary

The Paradox of LGB+ Employment Status According to the UK Census
Data from the 2021 Census of England and Wales show that gay and lesbian adults are more likely to be employed than heterosexual adults—but also that they are more likely to be unemployed than heterosexual adults. What caused this paradox? And how can these statistics be better understood?
Feb 21, 2024
q&a

AI, ChatGPT, and Language as Technology: Q&A with William Marcellino
William Marcellino, a senior behavioral and social scientist at RAND and professor at the Pardee RAND Graduate School, discusses the rapidly expanding reach of artificial intelligence, the challenges it could pose for both society and policymakers, and how the research community is poised to help.
May 12, 2023
commentary

ChatGPT's Work Lacks Transparency and That Is a Problem
In a world with Large Language Models such as ChatGPT, there is a growing need for modernized data literacy. Developers need to be more transparent about their algorithms and data sources so that people can assess the inherent sources of bias or problems with the approach.
May 8, 2023
commentary

Addressing Gun Violence Requires Better Means of Measuring It
Proposals to reduce firearm violence in the United States are often controversial, sometimes because there are no data demonstrating their effectiveness. The federal government has many of the requisite tools in place to collect the data, and it does it well on a wide range of other problems. Shying away from measuring this problem may also make it more difficult to fix it.
Feb 13, 2023
essay

Hackathon Focuses on Making Policing More Equitable
Hackathons bring new ideas and perspectives to hard policy problems and introduce college students to the field of policy analysis. The latest hackathon, hosted by Pardee RAND and RAND NextGen, explored ways to make the criminal justice system more equitable and more effective.
Jan 9, 2023
commentary

Algorithms Teach Us Why Equity Is Hard
If all the shortcomings of humanity were stripped away, equity would still be an elusive goal for algorithms for reasons that have more to do with mathematical impossibilities than backward ideologies. But even if attaining equity is fundamentally difficult, seeking it is not futile.
Mar 28, 2022
commentary

Equitable Data Analysis: Lessons from a COVID-19 Research Collaborative
The health inequities exposed by COVID-19 underscored the importance of collecting race-stratified data to inform local policymakers. For the public health researchers trying to provide that, the pandemic also revealed some major pitfalls, especially about relying on open-source data.
Jul 27, 2021
commentary

Mobile Health Surveillance Is Here to Stay, So How Do We Protect Privacy?
Mobile phone surveillance can augment public health interventions to manage COVID-19 and might help countries prepare for the next outbreak. But these programs collect sensitive health and behavior data. That raises significant risks to personal privacy and civil liberties.
Aug 20, 2020
q&a

Modeling the Future of COVID-19: Q&A with RAND Experts
The phrase “flatten the curve” familiarized Americans with epidemiological models used to estimate virus transmission, cases, and potential deaths from COVID-19. But new models are needed as the country enters a different stage of the crisis.
May 26, 2020
commentary

Don't Make the Pandemic Worse with Poor Data Analysis
The need for immediate answers in the face of severe public health and economic distress may create a temptation to relax statistical standards. But urgency should not preclude expert analysis and honest assessments of uncertainty. Mistaken assumptions could lead to counterproductive actions.
May 6, 2020
q&a

Searching for Truth: Q&A with Jennifer Kavanagh
Senior political scientist Jennifer Kavanagh helps lead RAND's work on Truth Decay, the diminishing role of facts and analysis in American public life. In this interview, she discusses her latest research on how news presentation has changed over time and across platforms.
Jun 26, 2019
blog

RAND's Analysis of News in the Digital Age: Three Takeaways
How has the rise of digital technology shaped the way that news is presented? RAND researchers conducted an empirical study to find out. Here's what you need to know from their findings.
May 14, 2019
essay

Big Data, Big Questions
RAND-Lex is a computer program that can scan millions of lines of text and identify what people are talking about, how they fit into communities, and how they see the world. The program has shed light on how terrorists communicate, how the American public thinks about health, and more.
Oct 16, 2017
commentary

What Data Is the Government Keeping About You?
Governments are amassing a wealth of data on citizens, a trend that will continue as technology advances. But with no reliable way to ensure that the data is accurate, risks abound. In the criminal justice system, for example, poor quality data could affect individual freedoms and employability.
Mar 1, 2017
commentary

No Company Should Be Able to Keep You from Checking Your Government's Math
Data and computer models are becoming more and more important for making policy decisions on everything from prison sentences to tax bills. But citizens should be able to “check the math” on decisions that affect them.
Jan 18, 2017
blog

The Art of Data in Baseball
The traditional baseball scout's keen eye is no longer deemed sufficient to rate talent, said Jeff Luhnow, general manager of the Houston Astros, at RAND's Politics Aside event. Analysts check curveball spin rates, computer-modeled swing mechanics, and even sleep habits.
Nov 15, 2016
commentary

Following Online Footprints to Catch Terrorists
Millions of people leave behind online footprints each day, giving law enforcement and intelligence experts the chance to construct a profile of who is more likely to commit violence in the name of a murderous ideology.
Dec 28, 2015
commentary

How Do We Deal with a Flood of Data?
Despite the value of intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) systems, the amount of data they generate has become overwhelming. If the Navy does not change the way it processes information, it will reach an ISR “tipping point”—as soon as 2016.
Jun 23, 2014
commentary

Why 'Big Data' Can't Find the Missing Malaysian Plane
The failure to find the missing aircraft demonstrates anew the serious gaps in data coordination and challenges public assumptions about the thoroughness and simplicity of searching the world’s data for answers.
May 1, 2014
commentary

Predictive Policing: An Effective Tool, but Not a Crystal Ball
Predictive policing is not an end-all solution, but rather a tool that must be used in concert with other policing resources as part of a broader anti-crime effort. Used properly, predictive policing can predict the risk of future events, but not the events themselves.
Nov 15, 2013

Quoted

The [Israel-Hamas] war has exacerbated a divide in American politics. Historically, Israel enjoyed wide bipartisan support. That's no longer the case with more progressives and younger voters questioning this core tenet of U.S. foreign policy. The Gaza war has certainly exacerbated this shift and it's going to continue to influence the politics of American support for years to come

Raphael S. Cohen

Director, Strategy and Doctrine Program, RAND Project AIR FORCE, and Director of the Pardee RAND Graduate School National Security Program

Source: rand.org

While there have sometimes been intense policy debates, American support for Israel was historically bipartisan. Judging by the reaction to the Gaza war at many of the leading college campuses—the crucible of future leaders—Western attitudes will only further harden against Israel. Israel has an American problem that it will struggle to effectively address.

Brian Michael Jenkins

Senior Adviser to the RAND President

Source: rand.org

Preparing the Workforce for AI: Insights for Civilian and Military Leaders

China's Use of Generative AI and Social Bots

A Year After the October 7 Start of the Israel-Hamas Conflict: Q&A with RAND Experts

October 7th and the Limits of Diplomacy

The Math Equity Equation

The Policy Currents Podcast

Getting to Know Military Caregivers and Their Needs

Managing Escalation in Crisis and War

Assessing and Articulating the Wider Benefits of Research

Improving Access to Early Childhood Education

Data Analysis

TikTok Is a Threat to National Security, but Not for the Reason You Think

Your Body, but Not Your Data

The Paradox of LGB+ Employment Status According to the UK Census

AI, ChatGPT, and Language as Technology: Q&A with William Marcellino

ChatGPT's Work Lacks Transparency and That Is a Problem

Addressing Gun Violence Requires Better Means of Measuring It

Hackathon Focuses on Making Policing More Equitable

Algorithms Teach Us Why Equity Is Hard

Equitable Data Analysis: Lessons from a COVID-19 Research Collaborative

Mobile Health Surveillance Is Here to Stay, So How Do We Protect Privacy?

Modeling the Future of COVID-19: Q&A with RAND Experts

Don't Make the Pandemic Worse with Poor Data Analysis

Searching for Truth: Q&A with Jennifer Kavanagh

RAND's Analysis of News in the Digital Age: Three Takeaways

Big Data, Big Questions

What Data Is the Government Keeping About You?

No Company Should Be Able to Keep You from Checking Your Government's Math

The Art of Data in Baseball

Following Online Footprints to Catch Terrorists

How Do We Deal with a Flood of Data?

Why 'Big Data' Can't Find the Missing Malaysian Plane

Predictive Policing: An Effective Tool, but Not a Crystal Ball

Connect

I am interested in

Follow

Stay Informed

Resources

Site Information