Bill Franks - 97 Things About Ethics Everyone in Data Science Should Know

by Bill Franks

Copyright 2020 OReilly Media, Inc. All rights reserved.

Printed in the United States of America.

Published by OReilly Media, Inc. , 1005 Gravenstein Highway North, Sebastopol, CA 95472.

OReilly books may be purchased for educational, business, or sales promotional use. Online editions are also available for most titles (http://oreilly.com). For more information, contact our corporate/institutional sales department: 800-998-9938 or corporate@oreilly.com .

• Acquisitions Editors: Jonathan Hassell,
  Andy Kwan
• Development Editor: Nicole Tach
• Production Editor: Christopher Faucher
• Copyeditor: Arthur Johnson
• Proofreader: Penelope Perkins
• Indexer: WordCo Indexing Services, Inc.
• Interior Designer: David Futato
• Cover Designer: Karen Montgomery
• Illustrator: OReilly Media, Inc.

• August 2020: First Edition

See http://oreilly.com/catalog/errata.csp?isbn=9781492072669 for release details.

The OReilly logo is a registered trademark of OReilly Media, Inc. 97 Things About Ethics Everyone in Data Science Should Know, the cover image, and related trade dress are trademarks of OReilly Media, Inc.

The views expressed in this work are those of the author, and do not represent the publishers views. While the publisher and the author have used good faith efforts to ensure that the information and instructions contained in this work are accurate, the publisher and the author disclaim all responsibility for errors or omissions, including without limitation responsibility for damages resulting from the use of or reliance on this work. Use of the information and instructions contained in this work is at your own risk. If any code samples or other technology this work contains or describes is subject to open source licenses or the intellectual property rights of others, it is your responsibility to ensure that your use thereof complies with such licenses and/or rights.

978-1-492-07266-9

[LSI]

The intersection of ethics with the world of analytics and data science is a topic that I have become passionate about in recent years. Ive written a variety of blogs and papers on the topic. Ive also spoken about the need for attention to ethics at numerous public conferences and at many private meetings with corporate clients. What I discuss is based upon my concerted and ongoing effort to learn what others are thinking and saying about the ethics of analytics. I also receive feedback during these interactions that enables me to continue to evolve my own viewpoints as I recognize gaps in my thinking.

What I have consistently found in my interactions is that people are very receptive to giving ethics more attention once their eyes have been opened to the fact that the need for ethical consideration is much broader and more important than they realized. The vast majority of the examples Ive seen where something unethical occurred with analytics and data science were not driven by anyone operating with bad intent. Rather, it is usually the case that the ethics of the situation simply werent thought through well enough, if at all.

When OReilly approached me about partnering on this project, I knew it was something I had to do. I was excited about the opportunity to see what hundreds of other people had to say about ethics. I firmly believe that as more of these types of conversations about ethics occur among members of the analytics and data science community, we can continue to make progress toward ensuring that analytics and data science are done in as ethical a manner as possible. The key is to get peoples attention so that they are awakened to the need to give proper focus to ethical considerations. The goal of this book is to be a catalyst for this awakeningto help readers fully understand the importance of applying proper ethics to analytics and data science initiatives . Curating the final submissions that made it into the book was a tremendous learning experience for me, and I hope that readers will find the final outcome to be of value as well.

As you read the book, you will find a wide range of opinions and writing styles. That was intentional. To the extent that two entries have conflicting views, it provides an opportunity for you to ponder which view you find more compelling and why. My colleagues and I did not write this book to tell you precisely what is and isnt ethical. Rather, the book provides perspectives from others in the community so that you can continue to refine your own ethical guidelines.

The books title is 97 Things About Ethics Everyone in Data Science Should Know. Who, exactly, is everyone in data science? That description should be interpreted broadly. Certainly, anyone involved in the definition, creation, or usage of analytics and data science processes will benefit from the book. This includes people in both technical and business-facing roles. Students or people considering a career change into the field will also benefit. However, the content is not deeply technical or hard to understand. As a result, people who simply have an interest in understanding how ethics intersects with data science will find this book of value as well, regardless of their job role or educational background.