From May 20-22 data scientists and students from all over the world flooded into the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center in Massachusetts to attend the Open Data Science Conference (ODSC) event. ODSC promoted the conference as an attempt “to help foster the exchange of innovative ideas and encourage the growth of open software.”
The 3-day event drew approximately 3,000 attendees and 100 speakers that participated in over 20 workshops, 10 training sessions, 7 conferences, 3 networking parties, and 2 career fairs. Tickets ran between $199 and $469.
Workshop and training sessions represented one of the biggest draws, but ticketholders were not allowed to pre-register for them. As a result, attendants were encouraged to show up early enough to secure themselves a spot.
Examples of workshop topics included:
- Intro to Text Mining in R
- Network Analysis Fundamentals
- Bayesian Statistics Made Simple
- Rule-Based Models for Regression and Classification
- Brief Primer on Data in Quantitative Finance
- De-siloing and Exploring Data with Apache Drill
- Predictive Analytics Blitz with RapidMiner
Training sessions covered subjects like:
- Intro to Python for Data Science
- Social Media Text and Predictive Analytics
- Intro to Scikit Learn for Machine Learning
- Adaptive Deep Learning for Vision and Language
- Intro to R for Data Science
- Hadoop Hands On
- Intro to Data Visualization
- Agile Analytics
The ODSC proved especially advantageous for data science students. Representatives from major companies using cutting-edge data science technologies – companies like DataRobot, Protenus, Facebook, Harvard University, and Zillow -were scouting for new talent at the career fair. Students were able to schmooze with industry leaders at networking events at District Hall, the Seaport Hotel, and the Convention Center.