Digital Exclusion: Implications for Human Services Practitioners SUE WATLING ...Sue Watling
Digital Exclusion: Implications for Human Services Practitioners (2010) SUE WATLING and KARIN CRAWFORD Journal of Technology in Human Services, 28:205–216,
Social media: Councils, citizens and service transformationIngrid Koehler
A discussion paper presented to the Local Government Delivery Council on how social media is changing the relationship between citizens and local public services, making the link between performance, insight and service transformation to achieve efficiency
A Deferred Action For Childhood Arrivals (DACA) ReportJason Liu
As per my capstone class in my collegiate career, we were designated a client, where we had to surmise an integrated marketing communications campaign, utilizing elements of public relations, market research, advertising, copy-writing, and informational gathering. This report, in conjunction with my team, Sync Media, took a culmination of four semesters, where due dates and deadlines were met in order to provide this report.
This was the winning campaign that Memorial Sloan Kettering Center chose as their chosen campaign that closely matches with what they were satisfied with.
'
During the course of the semester, we became indebted to DACA and it's policies. I now have a greater appreciation for DACA as a result of this campaign.
Digital Exclusion: Implications for Human Services Practitioners SUE WATLING ...Sue Watling
Digital Exclusion: Implications for Human Services Practitioners (2010) SUE WATLING and KARIN CRAWFORD Journal of Technology in Human Services, 28:205–216,
Social media: Councils, citizens and service transformationIngrid Koehler
A discussion paper presented to the Local Government Delivery Council on how social media is changing the relationship between citizens and local public services, making the link between performance, insight and service transformation to achieve efficiency
A Deferred Action For Childhood Arrivals (DACA) ReportJason Liu
As per my capstone class in my collegiate career, we were designated a client, where we had to surmise an integrated marketing communications campaign, utilizing elements of public relations, market research, advertising, copy-writing, and informational gathering. This report, in conjunction with my team, Sync Media, took a culmination of four semesters, where due dates and deadlines were met in order to provide this report.
This was the winning campaign that Memorial Sloan Kettering Center chose as their chosen campaign that closely matches with what they were satisfied with.
'
During the course of the semester, we became indebted to DACA and it's policies. I now have a greater appreciation for DACA as a result of this campaign.
From Consumer to Citizen - Digital Media and Youth Civic Engagement- Mark - Fullbright
company names mentioned herein are for identification and educational purposes only and are the property of, and may be trademarks of, their respective owners.
CILIP Conference 2020: Information Redlining: The Urgency to Close the Socioe...CILIP
Tracie D Hall, Executive Director, American Library Association
Appointed to lead the world’s oldest and largest library association through a pandemic which arrived on U.S. shores one week after she became the American Library Association’s tenth executive director, Tracie D. Hall looks at how rapid and unpredictable socioeconomic shifts will require that libraries, as both a sector and a construct, become even more intentional about shifting their orientation from outputs to outcomes and about asserting their centrality in community recovery and resilience. In this frank reflection on the state of US libraries and the association that exists to support them, Hall seeks to forecast the major social shifts of the coming ten years, what they might mean for the LIS sector, and why quick and responsive decision-making is especially critical when control is not entirely in our hands.
#CILIPConf20
#CILIPConf20keynote
Presentation to the 2017 CILIP Public & Mobile Libraries Group and Community, Diversity and Equalities Group conference in Yarnfield Park, near Stafford
How will we power the UK in the future? bis_foresight
Sir Mark Walport gave a series of public talks on energy at Science and Discovery Centres across the UK between September 2015 and April 2016. In these talks he explored how we could power the UK in the future.
These slides come from the last talk given in Birmingham, but differ only slightly from the slides used in earlier talks.
See the accompanying animations at:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLb-lLN3v5qAxFKlzS-eaaGJUEhVbyES2f
Review looking at the future of financial technologies (FinTech) up to 2025.
This report sets out the findings of a review by the Government Chief Scientific Adviser on FinTech. It looks at:
* what government can do to help achieve the economic potential of FinTech
* how companies can work more closely with academia to ensure that the UK continues to be a world leader in this area
It recommends a number of actions for government to support the growth of the sector.
From Consumer to Citizen - Digital Media and Youth Civic Engagement- Mark - Fullbright
company names mentioned herein are for identification and educational purposes only and are the property of, and may be trademarks of, their respective owners.
CILIP Conference 2020: Information Redlining: The Urgency to Close the Socioe...CILIP
Tracie D Hall, Executive Director, American Library Association
Appointed to lead the world’s oldest and largest library association through a pandemic which arrived on U.S. shores one week after she became the American Library Association’s tenth executive director, Tracie D. Hall looks at how rapid and unpredictable socioeconomic shifts will require that libraries, as both a sector and a construct, become even more intentional about shifting their orientation from outputs to outcomes and about asserting their centrality in community recovery and resilience. In this frank reflection on the state of US libraries and the association that exists to support them, Hall seeks to forecast the major social shifts of the coming ten years, what they might mean for the LIS sector, and why quick and responsive decision-making is especially critical when control is not entirely in our hands.
#CILIPConf20
#CILIPConf20keynote
Presentation to the 2017 CILIP Public & Mobile Libraries Group and Community, Diversity and Equalities Group conference in Yarnfield Park, near Stafford
How will we power the UK in the future? bis_foresight
Sir Mark Walport gave a series of public talks on energy at Science and Discovery Centres across the UK between September 2015 and April 2016. In these talks he explored how we could power the UK in the future.
These slides come from the last talk given in Birmingham, but differ only slightly from the slides used in earlier talks.
See the accompanying animations at:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLb-lLN3v5qAxFKlzS-eaaGJUEhVbyES2f
Review looking at the future of financial technologies (FinTech) up to 2025.
This report sets out the findings of a review by the Government Chief Scientific Adviser on FinTech. It looks at:
* what government can do to help achieve the economic potential of FinTech
* how companies can work more closely with academia to ensure that the UK continues to be a world leader in this area
It recommends a number of actions for government to support the growth of the sector.
On 21 October 2015, the British Embassy in Paris hosted a day of discussions on French-British collaboration on resilience to extreme weather, with talks from UK Government Chief Scientific Adviser Sir Mark Walport, former vice-chair of IPCC WKI Dr. Jean Jouzel, as well as representatives from the Met Office and Meteo France, UK and French government departments, and the private sector.
Migration & Global Environmental Change: One Year Reviewbis_foresight
The Foresight Migration and Global Environmental Change (MGEC) Project (the Project) published its findings as the report Migration and Global Environmental Change: Future Challenges and Opportunities (the Report) in October 2011. This One-Year Review (the Review) sets out the Report’s impact in government and other and on the work of the research and academic communities.
The UK in 2030 - An expert informed view on some key trendsFuture Agenda
At a time when there is much speculation on what the next twelve months may bring, some are also looking ahead to prepare for the longer term. What will the UK be like in 2030 when the nation is post-Covid, post-Brexit and post-Johnson? Now that vaccines are being rolled out and the initial outline hard Brexit deal has been done, how will the UK fair over the decade – economically, socially and demographically? What changes are already locked-in and what is open to future variation? Based on numerous discussions with a wide range of experts across the UK in late 2020, this document explores some of the key potential trends for the next decade and highlights where the UK may be heading.
Having a well-defined future view is never easy – particularly in times of uncertainty. However, if we can differentiate between the certain, the probable and the possible we can build a clearer picture of the future which may help to challenge assumptions. Since 2010, Future Agenda has been using open foresight to explore decade-long trends with a high degree of accuracy. The World in 2020, written in 2010 for example, accurately anticipated a range of developments such as a global pandemic, the challenges around data privacy, the scaling up of electric and autonomous vehicles, the widespread use of drones and the building impact of solar energy. All of these were anticipated through extensive expert dialogue across multiple disciplines to curate an integrated, informed perspectives which can be accessed by everyone.
We used a similar approach to explore the pivotal shifts ahead for the UK. Following multiple expert discussions including academics, regional and central government, social and business leaders, as well as the military, this document summarises eight areas of alignment about UK 2030 but also highlights three fields where there is substantial difference of opinion.
Our conversations identified eight core areas where we can have confidence that changes will take place. These trends are:
1. A Changing Demographic Mix
2. Accelerating to Zero Carbon
3. Improved Digital Connectivity
4. Declining Economic Influence
5. More Devolved Power
6. Rising Inequality
7. Emphasis on the Local
8. UK Leadership
UCL Press Chapter Title Inequality Book Title.docxouldparis
UCL Press
Chapter Title: Inequality
Book Title: How the World Changed Social Media
Book Author(s): Daniel Miller, Elisabetta Costa, Nell Haynes, Tom McDonald, Razvan
Nicolescu, Jolynna Sinanan, Juliano Spyer, Shriram Venkatraman and Xinyuan Wang
Published by: UCL Press. (2016)
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt1g69z35.16
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128
9
Inequality
As one might expect, there is a considerable interest in the capacity of the
internet and social media to produce large- scale social change. Yet the
question as to whether internet access and social media have improved
the plight of the world’s most disadvantaged populations or have rather
exacerbated inequalities continues and is far from resolved. As previous
chapters have pointed out, social media has had an important impact
on education, work and gender relations, all of which are major com-
ponents of this wider question. Several of our field sites represent low
income and disadvantaged populations. Here we examine the ways in
which social media may impact on people who do not have easy access
to digital resources, and how their use may be a mode of change – or,
conversely, how it may sustain their current social positions.
The number of people using digital communication has increased
dramatically since the launch of commercial access to the internet in the
mid- 1990s. And it is not just the rich, cosmopolitan and educated; the
current combination of mobile technology and social media has created
a strong interest among various socially underprivileged populations,
including illiterate or semi- literate people, low- wage manual migrant
workers and migrants in places such as China, India and Brazil.1
As with all the chapters of this book the evidence will be presented
from our long- term ethnographic engagement with nine different popu-
lations. We see that in each place inequality exists and is expressed in
different ways, depending upon historical processes and current polit-
ical and social structures. Drawing comparisons, ther ...
Emerging topics discussed in the Aging track of the Future Agenda, exploring what the key topics in aging will be by 2025. This will be updated after the AARP workshop on 2 October.
Looking Forward, Looking Back - presentation on Older Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual ...Dr Justin Varney
A presentation in June 2018 at the Opening Doors Conference. The presentation covers some of the issues and challenges for older LGBT people and some of the opportunities looking to the future.
Crop Protection Association - Managing risk, not avoiding itbis_foresight
Presentation by Sir Mark Walport at the Crop Protection Association (CPA) conference on 14 May 2015.
Read an extract of the speech on the current science around neonicotinoid insecticides: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/crop-protection-managing-risk-not-avoiding-it
DevOps and Testing slides at DASA ConnectKari Kakkonen
My and Rik Marselis slides at 30.5.2024 DASA Connect conference. We discuss about what is testing, then what is agile testing and finally what is Testing in DevOps. Finally we had lovely workshop with the participants trying to find out different ways to think about quality and testing in different parts of the DevOps infinity loop.
Threats to mobile devices are more prevalent and increasing in scope and complexity. Users of mobile devices desire to take full advantage of the features
available on those devices, but many of the features provide convenience and capability but sacrifice security. This best practices guide outlines steps the users can take to better protect personal devices and information.
The Art of the Pitch: WordPress Relationships and SalesLaura Byrne
Clients don’t know what they don’t know. What web solutions are right for them? How does WordPress come into the picture? How do you make sure you understand scope and timeline? What do you do if sometime changes?
All these questions and more will be explored as we talk about matching clients’ needs with what your agency offers without pulling teeth or pulling your hair out. Practical tips, and strategies for successful relationship building that leads to closing the deal.
GraphRAG is All You need? LLM & Knowledge GraphGuy Korland
Guy Korland, CEO and Co-founder of FalkorDB, will review two articles on the integration of language models with knowledge graphs.
1. Unifying Large Language Models and Knowledge Graphs: A Roadmap.
https://arxiv.org/abs/2306.08302
2. Microsoft Research's GraphRAG paper and a review paper on various uses of knowledge graphs:
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/blog/graphrag-unlocking-llm-discovery-on-narrative-private-data/
Encryption in Microsoft 365 - ExpertsLive Netherlands 2024Albert Hoitingh
In this session I delve into the encryption technology used in Microsoft 365 and Microsoft Purview. Including the concepts of Customer Key and Double Key Encryption.
Why You Should Replace Windows 11 with Nitrux Linux 3.5.0 for enhanced perfor...SOFTTECHHUB
The choice of an operating system plays a pivotal role in shaping our computing experience. For decades, Microsoft's Windows has dominated the market, offering a familiar and widely adopted platform for personal and professional use. However, as technological advancements continue to push the boundaries of innovation, alternative operating systems have emerged, challenging the status quo and offering users a fresh perspective on computing.
One such alternative that has garnered significant attention and acclaim is Nitrux Linux 3.5.0, a sleek, powerful, and user-friendly Linux distribution that promises to redefine the way we interact with our devices. With its focus on performance, security, and customization, Nitrux Linux presents a compelling case for those seeking to break free from the constraints of proprietary software and embrace the freedom and flexibility of open-source computing.
zkStudyClub - Reef: Fast Succinct Non-Interactive Zero-Knowledge Regex ProofsAlex Pruden
This paper presents Reef, a system for generating publicly verifiable succinct non-interactive zero-knowledge proofs that a committed document matches or does not match a regular expression. We describe applications such as proving the strength of passwords, the provenance of email despite redactions, the validity of oblivious DNS queries, and the existence of mutations in DNA. Reef supports the Perl Compatible Regular Expression syntax, including wildcards, alternation, ranges, capture groups, Kleene star, negations, and lookarounds. Reef introduces a new type of automata, Skipping Alternating Finite Automata (SAFA), that skips irrelevant parts of a document when producing proofs without undermining soundness, and instantiates SAFA with a lookup argument. Our experimental evaluation confirms that Reef can generate proofs for documents with 32M characters; the proofs are small and cheap to verify (under a second).
Paper: https://eprint.iacr.org/2023/1886
Enchancing adoption of Open Source Libraries. A case study on Albumentations.AIVladimir Iglovikov, Ph.D.
Presented by Vladimir Iglovikov:
- https://www.linkedin.com/in/iglovikov/
- https://x.com/viglovikov
- https://www.instagram.com/ternaus/
This presentation delves into the journey of Albumentations.ai, a highly successful open-source library for data augmentation.
Created out of a necessity for superior performance in Kaggle competitions, Albumentations has grown to become a widely used tool among data scientists and machine learning practitioners.
This case study covers various aspects, including:
People: The contributors and community that have supported Albumentations.
Metrics: The success indicators such as downloads, daily active users, GitHub stars, and financial contributions.
Challenges: The hurdles in monetizing open-source projects and measuring user engagement.
Development Practices: Best practices for creating, maintaining, and scaling open-source libraries, including code hygiene, CI/CD, and fast iteration.
Community Building: Strategies for making adoption easy, iterating quickly, and fostering a vibrant, engaged community.
Marketing: Both online and offline marketing tactics, focusing on real, impactful interactions and collaborations.
Mental Health: Maintaining balance and not feeling pressured by user demands.
Key insights include the importance of automation, making the adoption process seamless, and leveraging offline interactions for marketing. The presentation also emphasizes the need for continuous small improvements and building a friendly, inclusive community that contributes to the project's growth.
Vladimir Iglovikov brings his extensive experience as a Kaggle Grandmaster, ex-Staff ML Engineer at Lyft, sharing valuable lessons and practical advice for anyone looking to enhance the adoption of their open-source projects.
Explore more about Albumentations and join the community at:
GitHub: https://github.com/albumentations-team/albumentations
Website: https://albumentations.ai/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/100504475
Twitter: https://x.com/albumentations
UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series, part 5DianaGray10
Welcome to UiPath Test Automation using UiPath Test Suite series part 5. In this session, we will cover CI/CD with devops.
Topics covered:
CI/CD with in UiPath
End-to-end overview of CI/CD pipeline with Azure devops
Speaker:
Lyndsey Byblow, Test Suite Sales Engineer @ UiPath, Inc.
Essentials of Automations: The Art of Triggers and Actions in FMESafe Software
In this second installment of our Essentials of Automations webinar series, we’ll explore the landscape of triggers and actions, guiding you through the nuances of authoring and adapting workspaces for seamless automations. Gain an understanding of the full spectrum of triggers and actions available in FME, empowering you to enhance your workspaces for efficient automation.
We’ll kick things off by showcasing the most commonly used event-based triggers, introducing you to various automation workflows like manual triggers, schedules, directory watchers, and more. Plus, see how these elements play out in real scenarios.
Whether you’re tweaking your current setup or building from the ground up, this session will arm you with the tools and insights needed to transform your FME usage into a powerhouse of productivity. Join us to discover effective strategies that simplify complex processes, enhancing your productivity and transforming your data management practices with FME. Let’s turn complexity into clarity and make your workspaces work wonders!
Pushing the limits of ePRTC: 100ns holdover for 100 daysAdtran
At WSTS 2024, Alon Stern explored the topic of parametric holdover and explained how recent research findings can be implemented in real-world PNT networks to achieve 100 nanoseconds of accuracy for up to 100 days.
Maruthi Prithivirajan, Head of ASEAN & IN Solution Architecture, Neo4j
Get an inside look at the latest Neo4j innovations that enable relationship-driven intelligence at scale. Learn more about the newest cloud integrations and product enhancements that make Neo4j an essential choice for developers building apps with interconnected data and generative AI.
3. This Report should be cited as:
Foresight Future Identities (2013)
Executive Summary.
The Government Office for Science, London.
4. Foreword
This Report provides an important opportunity for the Government to consider
how identities in the UK are changing and the possible implications for policy
making over the next 10 years. For the first time, it brings together many areas
of research into a single coherent narrative to analyse how drivers of change may
affect identities in the UK in the future.
The findings are based on the most recent evidence from a wide range of
authoritative sources. Over 100 academics and stakeholders have contributed
to the development of this Report and the analysis is supported by 20 published
evidence papers. I am particularly grateful to the lead expert group, chaired by
Professor Chris Hankin, which has overseen the work.
Foresight has undertaken this research in response to growing evidence that the
UK has undergone significant changes which affect how people see themselves and others. The economic
downturn, the effects of globalisation, and increasing international migration have all been influential, while the
impact of social media and modern communications technology have created a new ‘digital’ UK. In particular,
the Report discusses an emerging trend towards ‘hyper-connectivity’, where mobile technology and the ubiquity
of the internet enable people to be constantly connected across many different platforms. Hyper-connectivity
is already removing any meaningful distinction between online and offline identities, while also blurring ‘public’
and ‘private’ identities. The trend could also act to increase the pace of change, leading to more dynamic and
changeable identities and behaviours.
This Report shows that ‘identity’ is not a simple notion. People can have many different overlapping identities
which are fundamental to their individuality. Identities can exercise a powerful influence on the health and
wellbeing of communities, and the degree to which they can build up social capital. There are important
implications for a range of policy issues, such as the collection and use of data by government and the private
sector, how individual rights and liberties can be balanced against privacy and security, and how inclusive
identities can best be promoted.
I am pleased to publish this Report, which I hope will contribute to the debate surrounding the complex field of
identity, as well as providing practical advice to inform decision making in government.
Professor Sir John Beddington CMG, FRS
Chief Scientific Adviser to HM Government and
Head of the Government Office for Science
Executive Summary 3
5. Executive Summary
Identity in the UK is changing. Over the next 10 years, people’s identities are likely to be
significantly affected by several important drivers of change, in particular the rapid pace
of developments in technology. The emergence of hyper-connectivity (where people can
now be constantly connected online), the spread of social media, and the increase in online
personal information, are key factors which will interact to influence identities. These
developments need to be set within a wider context of demographic change: the shift of the
large post-war generation into retirement, and the coming into adulthood of young people
who have been immersed since birth in a digital environment. The increasing diversity of
the UK’s population means that dual ethnic and national identities will continue to become
more common, while the gradual trend towards a more secular society appears likely to
continue over the next decade. A key message for policy makers is that identities can be a
positive resource for social change, building social capital, and promoting wellbeing, but
they can also have a role in social unrest and antisocial behaviour.
This Report was commissioned to provide policy makers with a better understanding of identities in the
UK. It considers the most recent evidence on how identities in the UK might change over the next 10 years.
It identifies key challenges for effective policy making and implementation in a rapidly changing, globalised,
technology-rich, and densely networked UK. Specifically, the Report focuses on implications for: crime
prevention and criminal justice; health, the environment and wellbeing; skills, employment and education;
preventing radicalisation and extremism; social mobility; and social integration. The findings link into the
Government’s wider interests in openness and transparency in policy making.
Key findings
Rather than having a single identity, people have several overlapping identities, which
shift in emphasis in different life stages and environments. These are changing in three
important ways:
• Hyper-connectivity:
Hyper-connectivity is driving social change and expectations, while bringing people together in new ways. By
2011 there were more than seven billion devices connected to the internet, and numbers are predicted to
reach 15 billion by 2015. Sixty per cent of internet users in the UK are now members of a social network
site, increasing from only 17% in 2007. By offering virtually unlimited storage capacity, the internet allows
people to document any aspect of their lives, creating a wealth of personal data which can be ‘mined’
for insights, by private sector companies and potentially by government. This means that people’s online
identities have value in a way that is new.
The UK is now a virtual environment as well as a real place, and increasingly UK citizens are globally
networked individuals. Events which occur elsewhere in the world can have a real and immediate impact in
the UK. For example, hyper-connectivity can have a positive impact on migrant communities in maintaining
social connections with family and friends. People have become accustomed to switching seamlessly
between the internet and the physical world, and use social media to conduct their lives in a way which
dissolves the divide between online and offline identities. The internet enables people to connect with
others like themselves and discuss ideas as well as promulgate misinformation, which can quickly become
widely disseminated. Hyper-connectivity not only has the potential to increase the pace of social change, but
may also make it more volatile. As such, the internet has not produced a new kind of identity. Rather, it has
been instrumental in raising awareness that identities are more multiple, culturally contingent and contextual
than had previously been understood.
4
6. • Increasing social plurality:
Society may become more pluralised, and less integrated, as people’s identities are influenced by the ageing
population, greater diversity and changing patterns of immigration, and the emergence of online ‘virtual’
communities.
Demographic change in the UK is leading to shifting intergenerational dynamics. As the large post-war
cohort reach old-age, the number of over-75 year olds will increase by over a million, from 5.1 million in
2012 to 6.6 million in 2022, a rise of more than 20%. The Report identifies a shift in attitudes, with the
emergence of new transitional life stages being defined by attitudes and roles, rather than age. Traditional
life stages, for example between adolescence and adulthood, or middle-age and old-age, are being delayed
or blurred together. Shifting intergenerational dynamics will also see a relatively smaller working population.
Younger people are likely to find achieving the experiences of adulthood more challenging than previous
generations. In 2011, nearly three million adults aged between 20 and 34 were still living in their parents’
home, an increase of almost 20% since 1997. People’s identities are likely to be under greater pressure
in their family and caring roles, as the number of people providing care to older parents is projected to
increase from nearly 400,000 in 2005 to about 500,000 in 2041, with most of this increase occurring by
2022. However, these social changes could also encourage the growth of virtual support networks and
communities.
The 2011 Census for England and Wales showed that in 2011, 13% of people resident in England and
Wales were born outside the UK. The share of the population from minority ethnic groups is projected
to continue to rise over the next decade, and to become more geographically dispersed. This could have
implications for ethnic and national identities, as there is evidence from surveys that younger people in
particular have a more tolerant attitude towards immigrants.
Other identities, such as religious identity, seem unlikely to change significantly over the next 10 years. The
gradual long-term trend towards secularisation is set to continue. The 2011 Census shows that the number
of people identifying themselves as having ‘no religion’ rose from 15% of the population in 2001 to 25% in
2011, while the number of people identifying themselves as Christian dropped from 72% in 2001 to 59% in
2011. However, this trend is less pronounced in Northern Ireland, and among the Muslim and the Roman
Catholic populations in the rest of the UK. For national identities, growing numbers of people now think of
themselves as Scottish, Welsh, or English, rather than British.
• Blurring of public and private identities:
People are now more willing to place personal information into public domains, such as on the internet,
and attitudes towards privacy are changing, especially among younger people. These changes are blurring
the boundaries between social and work identities. The advent of widespread mobile technology and email
enables more people to remain connected to their work out of hours. At the same time, posting mobile
phone photographs and videos online has led to a cultural shift where many people broadcast their daily
lives and experiences, ceding control over some aspects of identity to others with potentially serious
consequences for later life. For example, a potential employer might find information online which could
make a potential candidate unsuitable. This breakdown in the barrier between public and private identities
could be an important and transformative consequence of social and technological change. The widespread
use of mobile technology could, in time, allow social media to be linked with spatial tracking and even facial
recognition technologies. This would allow people to draw on personal information about a stranger in a
public place, changing the nature of what it means to be anonymous in public spaces.
Executive Summary 5
7. What does identity mean today?
• Identities are controlled both by individuals and by others:
An individual’s ‘identity’ is the sum of those characteristics which determine who a person is. This includes
a person’s perception of themselves as similar to, or different from, other people. People can choose to
present certain aspects of their identities, or to disclose particular personal information. Identities can also
be imposed by others. As many people now have some online presence, their ‘virtual biographies’ can
be modified or even created by other people and, for example, by companies. Even if a person does not
create their own online accounts, their families and friends may discuss them or post photographs online.
• People have many overlapping identities:
This Report considers several aspects of identities including ethnic, religious, national, age, family, financial,
and online identities. A person can have all these identities simultaneously, although one identity might be
more important under particular circumstances. At home a person may find their identity as a parent most
important, while at work they might identify as a company employee. Online, they may pursue a hobby as
part of an interest group. Understanding which of a person’s identities are most relevant in a given situation
depends on the context. Identities are, therefore, culturally contingent and highly contextual, but can also be
strongly linked to behaviours, both positive (for example volunteering in a community) and negative (such
as antisocial behaviour).
• People express their identities in different ways:
Whether a person is included or excluded from a group is important in forming their identity. People’s
identities are partly created by group membership, but also they may choose to adopt an identity which
is different from the way in which others stereotype them. A person’s identity is central to their values
and fundamentally affects health and wellbeing, so freedom of self-expression is important. One of the
most significant observations of the impact of online identities is the way that some people can feel that
they have achieved their ‘true’ identity for first time online. For example, some people may socialise more
successfully and express themselves more freely online. This is one of the ways in which online identities can
transform offline identities.
• Identities have value:
People’s identities have personal, psychological, social, and commercial value. The growth in the collection
and use of personal data can have benefits for individuals, organisations and government, by offering greater
insights through data analysis, and the development of more targeted and more effective services. Identities
can unify people and can be regarded as a valuable resource for promoting positive social interaction.
However, this growth in the amount of available data also has the potential for criminal exploitation
or misuse. Trust is fundamental to achieving positive relationships between people and commercial
organisations, and between citizens and the state, but surveys show that people are less willing to trust in
authority than in the past. The British Social Attitudes Survey asked people ‘How much do you trust British
governments of any party to place the needs of the nation above the interests of their own political party?’. The
results showed that the percentage of people who responded ‘Almost never’ increased from 11.8% in 1986
to 33.5% in 2011. Maintaining a balance between privacy, freedom and protection, and regaining trust will
remain a key challenge for government in making best use of ‘big data’.
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8. About the Report
This Report is the result of a one-year ‘Policy Futures’ project undertaken by Foresight, in the Government
Office for Science. The aim of the Project was to come to a broad and independent scientific view of
changing identities in the UK through a synthesis of existing evidence from a range of academic disciplines,
including computer science, criminology, the social sciences and the humanities. The Report is based on 20
evidence reviews, commissioned from leading UK and international experts, which explore key aspects of
how identities in the UK are currently understood, and how they might change over the next 10 years. These
are published alongside this Report. As identity is such a wide-ranging subject, the Report focuses on those
trends and issues affecting identities that are of most interest to UK policy makers.
Implications for policy makers in six key areas:
• Crime prevention and criminal justice:
There is a distinction to be made between a traditional type of crime which is now committed using a
computer, and a crime wholly enabled by the internet. The growing quantity of personal and financial data
online, as facial recognition technology, ‘big data’ and social media together begin to connect information
about individuals, means that there will be more opportunities for criminal exploitation and cybercrime.
Creating a false identity or stealing another person’s identity is often achieved through obtaining key
personal information, so the distinction between a person’s ‘identity’ (in terms of their overall sense of self)
and the identification used to distinguish between people online is being increasingly blurred in practice.
Ultimately, stealing sufficient information could enable a criminal to effectively take over victims’ online
identities. However, there are also opportunities for enhanced crime prevention, intelligence gathering, and
crime detection. ‘Open source’ intelligence will become more important for detecting patterns of criminal
behaviour, but the quantity of data available will make locating and analysing relevant data more problematic,
and will require the right skills and resources. The foundation of English law is a liberal society where social
identity is, as far as possible, a personally defined and freely chosen individual possession, and so the legal
system will need to continue to ensure that people’s online and offline identities are protected.
• Health, environment and wellbeing:
The environment is very important in forming and understanding identities. For example, many places can
be restorative, and so policies which promote green spaces and protect the countryside can be important
for health and wellbeing. The implications of changing identities for the built environment, transport,
infrastructure, and mitigating the effects of climate change will need to be considered by policy makers. The
development and application of biomedical technologies, such as drugs to improve memory and cognition,
and developments in reproductive technologies, could have the potential to transform the way that people
relate to themselves, each other, and their environment. However, there are complex ethical and practical
implications for government in regulating and responding to these technologies.
• Skills, employment and education:
Digital literacy is essential in enabling people to make full use of computer technology and the internet to
express their identities, and to connect with social media, services, and information. A critical issue for the
future will be to ensure that individuals have the knowledge, understanding, and technological literacy to
enable them to take control of their own online identities, and to be aware of their online presence and
how it could be used by others.
• Radicalisation and extremism:
The trends towards greater social plurality, declining trust in authority, and increasing take-up of new
technologies may all pose challenges for policy makers seeking to manage radicalisation and extremism.
Trends in changing identities in the UK over the next 10 years will be crucial to understanding these issues.
Executive Summary 7