Next week I’ll be giving a talk on Public Data Cultures at Humboldt University, Berlin hosted by Shintaro Miyazaki.

I’ve long appreciated Shintaro’s work. This includes his work on COUNTER-N with Özgün Eylül İşcen, which I mention in the book in relation to its focus on not only taking apart technological systems but also for “reconstructing”, “reimagining”, “reformulating” and putting back together differently.

Details about the talk can be found here and an excerpt is copied below.

Prof. Dr. Shintaro Miyazaki invites you to join for a conversation, discussion and get-together with author of Public Data Cultures Jonathan W. Y. Gray on 02.02.2026. The author will present and talk about his work from 14:00 to 16:00 at the Medientheater, Georgenstr. 47.

Public Data Cultures discusses critical and creative engagements with public data as cultural material, medium of participation and as site of transnational politics. It explores how activists, journalists, artists and others work with public data as well as looking at how critical perspectives can make a difference in practice. […]

Jonathan W. Y. Gray (@jwyg) explores the roles digital data, methods and infrastructures in shaping how we know and live together. At King’s College London, he is a Reader in Critical Infrastructure Studies at the Department of Digital Humanities and co-director of the Centre for Digital Culture. He is also co-founder of the Public Data Lab; research associate at the Digital Methods Initiative (University of Amsterdam) and the médialab (Sciences Po, Paris); and has taught with the School for Poetic Computation in NYC. More about his work can be found at jonathangray.org.

​After a short talk, there will be opportunities for collective discussion and time to catch up with others with overlapping curiosities. Coffee and snacks will be provided.

The event will be held in English. Every person who is interested is welcome to join. Facilities are wheelchair-accessible.