Welcome to my blog. I’m curious about the world, and am taking this journey one step at a time. Mathematics is something that I stumbled upon during university, and the more I learned, the more hooked I became.

It is said that mathematics is the language of the universe, and I see it everywhere: patterns, colour, diversity, relationships, intelligence. In some sense, the goal of mathematics is to develop this language of the universe and use it to understand the universe in its entirety. This has been done for the physical world since recorded history. Today, however we are faced with the emergence of an exciting new paradigm in mathematics - an unprecedented amount of statistical information. This ranges from social and economic phenomena generated by modern society to pioneering scientific endeavours exploring the human genome, the environment and the far reaches of outer space.

As we explore and try to interpret this information, we will encounter new insights into our social and physical worlds. There is no question that what we discover or unleash will be not always be good for us. However if we can collectively make the right choices, then the progress we are making now will impact humanity in a positive way. This to me is the most exciting journey to be on. I call it my True North, and it all started with the question: what do I believe in.

I’m currently a data scientist at Microsoft. Before that I was in Microsoft Research’s first AI Residency cohort in Cambridge, United Kingdom. Before that I was a machine learning intern at Cambridge Cancer Genomics. Just before that I did my masters in mathematics at the University of Cambridge. Even before that I worked as a data scientist at RMB Foundery in Johannesburg. But right in the beginning, my journey into applied mathematics started at the University of the Witwatersrand in Braamfontein, Johannesburg.

I completely advocate for the ethical and responsible use of statistical models that rely on data and model assumptions. This is an extremely important topic and only if we (globally) take part in this discussion, and acknowledge and act upon what it means, can we (everyone) ensure that the new age of data and machine learning empowers humanity.

As a starting point: https://datapractices.org/manifesto/