Sometimes we can really predict the future. These days weather forecasters ingest massive amounts of data to come up with their forecasts. Admittedly, they are not always 100% accurate, but they are noticeably more accurate than they were say 20 years ago. In financial markets, the likelihood of being extremely accurate in predicting the…
Category: Data
Data, General
What is “good” for a model?
by Saeed Amen •
If we have no reference, we have no way to compare. If you’ve never had a burger before, there’s no point of reference for what a burger tastes like. Of course, there will be other points of reference, maybe a steak you’ve had before? Or if it’s a veggie burger, then perhaps tofu? It isn’t…
Data, General
Machine learning for data cleaning
by Saeed Amen •
Every data scientist wants to do the fun stuff, ie. building models! You might be forecasting a variable. Perhaps you are classifying a variable into a specific group. Machine learning is usually part of this, whether it’s a simpler linear model or something more complicated that can take into non-linear relationships, whether that is a…
Data, General
Machine learning in macro
by Saeed Amen •
There are buzzwords and there are buzzwords. The buzziest (if that indeed is a word) of buzzwords in technology is that of machine learning, whether it’s using machine learning to improve image recognition, natural language processing etc. Although, I’ve got to admit, there’s still a long way to go… I still repeatedly get advised to…
Data, General
Managing tickers for your data
by Saeed Amen •
We all want to do the cool stuff. We want to go on holiday, but maybe we’d like forget about the time it takes to get there. We want to go a nice popular restaurant, but maybe we’d like to forget about how the time it takes to queue we need to queue. We want…
Data, General
It’s all about the data
by Saeed Amen •
I used to be an avid Formula 1 fan. I do still watch occasionally, but admittedly not as much as usual. Ok, there’s only one driver in the car, so on a superficial level, it doesn’t appear to be a team sport. Each team has two drivers, and in many instances they will race each…
Data, General, Python
Tips and tricks to make Python quicker
by Saeed Amen •
Patience is a virtue. We’re all used to waiting in line, being patient for our turn to come. The alternative is a lot of squabbling about queue jumpers etc. and would likely result in everyone waiting even longer, whether it’s queuing for check in, waiting to be served in a restaurant or so on. Is…
Data, General
Alpha vs beta datasets
by Saeed Amen •
There are some ingredients that are pretty common. Just because they’re commonly used, does not make them unimportant. If anything, they are the most important when it comes to food. Without common ingredients like flour or oil, it’s going to be quite limiting. By the same token, very rare ingredients are not necessarily the most…
Data, Events, Foreign Exchange, General, Macro, Python
Extracting expectations for French election
by Saeed Amen •
We can’t know everything, even a fraction of everything. If we want to find something out, we need to do research. Typically, we’ll try to look at what else has been researched about a topic. If it’s a very niche topic, then it’s less likely we’ll find something relevant. However, if the topic is popular,…
Data, General, Macro
Breaking down quant questions
by Saeed Amen •
During the pandemic, a question of where to travel to, hasn’t been uppermost in most of our minds. After all, there’s little point in thinking of travelling when it’s been so difficult, and when our minds have been occupied elsewhere, particularly if you’ve been impacted most by the coronavirus, through illness or through work, such…