Talking to People Virtually About Notebooks

July 3, 2020July 4, 2020 ~ jeffsternberg ~ Leave a comment

Last week, I spoke at the first virtual NYC Data Council Meetup about my favorite topic, Beyond Spreadsheets. It was fun! https://www.meetup.com/DataCouncil-AI-NYC-Data-Engineering-Science/events/270962202/ I summarized the gist of my talking points in this thread: https://twitter.com/sternb0t/status/1276940768175886336 I co-presented with Tim Paine from J.P. Morgan. Tim and I met a few months ago and were slated to present … Continue reading Talking to People Virtually About Notebooks

I Love AppleScript

May 23, 2020July 22, 2020 ~ jeffsternberg ~ 1 Comment

Perhaps it's all nostalgia, but I really love AppleScript. What is AppleScript? Or should I say, what was AppleScript? A quick search finds multiple stories and threads and discussions about its demise. But it's still there, as of today, May 16, 2020, in macOS Catalina (10.15.4). The venerable Script Editor application is still right there … Continue reading I Love AppleScript

Beyond Spreadsheets

March 11, 2020 ~ jeffsternberg ~ 1 Comment

It’s common in tech spheres to separate coders from business people. Coders are the software developers who create solutions using computer programming code. Business people then use these solutions to create and operate business processes. But this distinction is blurrier than you might think—and only growing less clear as more jobs require data-driven decision-making. Millions … Continue reading Beyond Spreadsheets

Are Spreadsheets Code?

February 29, 2020July 30, 2020 ~ jeffsternberg ~ Leave a comment

Yes, spreadsheets are code. With me? No? Let me explain. First, let's talk about my definition of coding. I think coding is the act of writing logical instructions in plain text that can be interpreted by software to do something useful. I take a pretty wide view, admittedly. But I don't think I'm too far … Continue reading Are Spreadsheets Code?

Talking in Front of People About AI

November 18, 2019 ~ jeffsternberg ~ Leave a comment

I recently gave a talk, Harnessing the Power of AI, at the PwC Designed to Disrupt conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia. This was my first speaking event as a Googler, so that was both exciting and a bit nerve-wracking. I think I did well though! Some of the things I talked about: Quantum Supremacy Google … Continue reading Talking in Front of People About AI

One Month at Google: I Know Kung Fu

October 26, 2019 ~ jeffsternberg ~ 1 Comment

Well, it's been a little over a month since I joined Google. I feel like Keanu Reeves in the Matrix: I know kung fu. Not really, but I have learned a ton about Google. I took a Tech Immersion training class, I travelled to our gleaming Sunnyvale campus, I commuted on an infamous GBus (but in the wrong … Continue reading One Month at Google: I Know Kung Fu

Talking in Front of People About Data

May 26, 2018May 26, 2018 ~ jeffsternberg ~ Leave a comment

A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to speak on a panel at an event hosted by Bloomberg. It was fun! Here was the info about the event. Bloomberg Speaker Series: Artificial Intelligence in Finance Bloomberg invites you to join us for our 2nd Data Speaker Series Event. Our Speaker Series is a more … Continue reading Talking in Front of People About Data

So much depends

December 9, 2017 ~ jeffsternberg ~ Leave a comment

so much depends upon a big excel workbook saved with linked data beside the sad analysts. Thanks to Mr. Robot, finance pros, and Not So Standard Deviations.

Fighting the Proxy

October 22, 2017 ~ jeffsternberg ~ 2 Comments

Like many companies, mine uses an HTTP proxy to protect us from various security risks, such as malware, unintended data leaks, and the like. In general this is a great thing. I heard from one of our risk engineers that malware incidents went down substantially when they implemented this proxy. However, as a developer trying … Continue reading Fighting the Proxy

First Week

October 15, 2017October 15, 2017 ~ jeffsternberg ~ Leave a comment

I just started a new job, and finished my first week. I'm working with people I've worked with before. However it's been about 6 years since we worked together, so it's a interesting mix of familiar and new, both culturally and technically. Culturally, processes are very open and there are lots of discussions, both hallway … Continue reading First Week