Press release: Does our affinity for data cause problems

17 February 2025

What gives? Does our affinity for data cause problems for the way we see the world?  

Gresham Professor of IT, Victoria Baines, to give talk on Tuesday, 25 February 2025, online and in central London 

Humans have always collected data, helping them to understand the world around them – but are we becoming not slaves to the machine, but a world ruled by algorithms?  

Data collection and analysis have been fundamental to human society for millennia, and a new lecture from London’s Gresham College will challenge common assumptions that data-driven decision making is a modern phenomenon: after all, the earliest confirmed systematic data collection dates back to around 2,000 BCE. It was in Ancient Mesopotamia, where detailed records tracked agricultural production and economic activities.   

Fast forward to the present day, and the Gresham Professor of IT, Victoria Baines, will explain more in the event, Data: A Love Story for the Ages.  

She will help audiences understand more about the complex relationship we have with data, how it is used and how developments have changed the world around us, not just over the past 50 years but over centuries.  

Professor Baines said: “We make sense of the world through the technology we use to process and visualise data. This lecture explores our enduring love for it. 

“For centuries, data has proved itself to be infinitely reusable, enabling the creation and reinforcement of collective memory. It has been documented in innumerable formats, from maps to databases, taxonomies and infographics. 

“It’s become a cliché to say data is the new oil. That isn’t the full story ... it’s much more interesting than that.” 

The word data is based on the Latin word ‘dare’, which means to give; meaning it is something freely shared rather than extracted, and this is explored in her lecture. 

Data has always been part of our lives. We are familiar with medieval maps like the Hereford Mappa Mundi and the Peutinger Table – which reveal how data visualisation has long been used to represent not just geography, but also political power, cultural beliefs, and social hierarchies.   

And one of the earliest known examples of data collection took place in 2 CE, when China conducted a census which counted nearly 60 million people. This was used for administrative purposes and demonstrating imperial power. 

Professor Baines’ research will challenge previous claims about the world's first census, revealing that commonly cited dates of 3,800 BCE for Babylon have been misattributed through repetition of an early 20th-century error. 

“This lecture will demonstrate that data has never been purely objective or neutral," says Professor Baines.   

“From ancient times to the present, the way we collect, interpret, and visualise data has always reflected and shaped our understanding of the world.” 

Professor Baines’ lecture will also highlight how historical data practices continue to influence modern challenges around data ownership, privacy, and representation. These findings have significant implications for how we approach contemporary issues in data science and digital governance. 

Gresham College is London’s oldest higher education institution. Founded in 1597 under the will of Sir Thomas Gresham, it has been delivering free public lectures for over 427 years from a lineage of leading professors and experts in their field who have included Christopher Wren, Robert Hooke, Iannis Xenakis and Sir Roger Penrose. 

Entry is free, and the lecture will be streamed live on YouTube. This is also free. 

In-person places can be booked online via Gresham College’s website: https://www.gresham.ac.uk/whats-on/data-love-story-ages 

ENDS 

Images available on request

For more information about this story or to arrange an interview with a Gresham Professor please contact: Phil Creighton press@gresham.ac.uk   

About the Pre-History of IT lecture series at Gresham College 
Computers have been around for a lot longer than we realise, but not always as electrically powered machines.  

In her series of lectures, Gresham Professor Victoria Baines will explore the machines you never knew existed, some spanning hundreds of years. Highlights will include a look at how we owe Wi-Fi and GPS to a Hollywood actress, the earliest robots, and how present-day data thieves are loved by some and vilified by others.   

About Gresham College  
Gresham College has been providing free, educational lectures - at the university level - since 1597 when Sir Thomas Gresham founded the college to bring Renaissance Learning to Londoners. Our history includes some of the luminaries of the scientific revolution including Robert Hooke and Sir Christopher Wren and connects us to the founding of the Royal Society.  

Today we carry on Sir Thomas's vision. The College aims to stimulate intellectual curiosity and to champion academic rigour, professional expertise and freedom of expression. www.gresham.ac.uk  

Gresham College is a registered charity number 1039962 and relies on donations to help us encourage people's love of learning for many years to come. For more details or to make a gift, visit our website.