Tom Shanks
Data engineer and geographer. I build data systems that hold up, and use them to make sense of cities and the environment.
Most of my work is the load-bearing kind. I move high-stakes data between systems without losing it, check it against reality, and build the validation that lets people trust what comes out. I have done that across public-safety, healthcare, and geospatial systems, where being wrong is expensive.
On my own time I take the same instincts further, into remote sensing, machine learning, and real-time data, and build each project end to end. The work here runs from mapping a whole neighbourhood's tree canopy with satellite, LiDAR, and machine learning to turning a low-cost radio into a live aircraft-tracking feed. Throughout, I try to stay honest about what the data can and cannot tell you.