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SUMMARY:About the meaningfulness of data ST-LE-2026-09
DTSTART:20260319T090000Z
DTEND:20260319T110000Z
DTSTAMP:20260513T090100Z
UID:indico-event-102@events.gfbio.org
CONTACT:data-train@vw.uni-bremen.de\;+49 (421) 218 60043
DESCRIPTION:Speakers: Hans-Christian Waldmann (Universität Bremen)\n\nMot
 ivationData are not\, as etymology suggests\, „the given“\, but they a
 re generated\, constructed\, or made (sometimes in the bad understanding o
 f the wording). Therefore\, we need to shed some light onto the hidden pre
 suppositions in our scientific agenda. For a start\, let’s assume that t
 here is no meaning in the data per se\, but that meaning happens to data\,
  it is attached to it. In fact\, YOU attach it\, and therefore you must as
 sume liability for establishing a referential link between the data themse
 lves and the phenomenon that your data are supposed to capture and whose e
 pistemological status (“I got it\, you see”) and ontological status (
 “It exists\, I mean\, like ‘really’ there”) might not be the same.
  You may find that technological sophistication and programming skills mig
 ht not be enough to this end. In order to identify how your scientific att
 itudes and your decision making as a researcher along the rocky road of em
 pirical research adds\, withdraws\, or alters the meaningfulness of data\,
  we will span a wide range from epistemological paradigms down to specific
  choices of statistical models in handling missing data\, bridged by measu
 rement theory and its map of pathways from the (in-)tangible world to numb
 ers. Welcome to the vast realm of philosophy of science.Learning contentsN
 otions of meaning\, data\, and informationEpistemology and ontology: how d
 ata refer to what is being measuredThe ideal research process: are data de
 cisive ? A menu of paradigmsData and theory. Realism – Anti-realism – 
 Pragmatism. Models. Truth.Introduction to measurement theory: do you abide
  by the rules?Fuzziness\, vagueness\, uncertainty\, incompleteness: “bad
 ” data?Missing data: how your philosophical stance indeed impacts study 
 resultsLearning outcomesSince\, as a psychologist and statistician\, I can
 not claim expertise in your respective field of work\, I will not\, and ca
 nnot\, tell you how to “do it right”. But the patterns behind „doing
  it wrong“ are quite universal: unawareness and intransparency. My aim i
 s to make some of the implicit explicit\, and foster a critical mindset wh
 en it comes to relating data to meaning in your specific discipline.Prior 
 knowledgeNone. Just be nosy and open-minded.Further reading---\n\nhttps://
 events.gfbio.org/event/102/
LOCATION:Zoom
URL:https://events.gfbio.org/event/102/
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