ASA DataFest Comes to DC

When we think of competitions, we often think of physical strength. The Olympics, the Tour de France, etc. These require years of practice to hone a specific skill (or we might call it talent, for some of the top performers). Intellectual challenges, of course, require the same discipline and practice. But can they be fun, especially for those still learning?

Enter ASA DataFest: a weekend-long exercise in innovation and analytical skill, encouraging teams of undergraduate students to "think outside the box" when applying the skills they're learning in the classroom. The participants are given a single (often huge) dataset from which to find new uses. In 2013, eHarmony provided the data, including user characteristics and matches. From there, the students were free to use this information in any way they wanted, including econometric modeling to examine which characteristics made men and women, whom eHarmony had already judged to be “compatible”, more likely to contact each other for a date.

This year is the first time DataFest will be held in the DC area, and we are excited to host it at our new offices! We've been working hard with the University of Maryland's Joint Program in Survey Methodology to coordinate the event so it lives up the other DataFests happening across the country. In addition to UMD, George Washington University and Georgetown will be represented in the competition.

Keep up with the conversation on Twitter and Facebook by using #DCDataFest.

So, do you think you're up for it? Check out the registration form and join us on April 10th!