Infernal Ramblings
Search
Login
Sign Up
Infernal Ramblings
Search
Login
Sign Up
A photo of me, John Lee

A newsletter wrestling with the non-technical side of data science

Hi, I’m John. I’m a professional data scientist who’s spent most of my career at startups in San Francisco. This is a space for my reflections on working in data and in technology businesses.

Most professional writing for analysts focuses on the technical aspects of the job. I think there’s a lot more to the job than that, so most of my posts cover the softer, less quantitative parts of what we do in data.

I post once to twice a month, so to ensure you don’t miss my next update, make sure you subscribe below👇

Analysts are More than Objective Measurement-Takers

Or, how I learned to stop worrying about my opinions; even as empirical fact-finders, analysts need a surprising amount of subjective judgment to do our job

John Lee
John Lee
Aug 4, 2025
Analysts are More than Objective Measurement-Takers

Why It's Hard to Decide Which Executive Should Lead a Startup's Data Team

Pondering why, despite staying in analytics my whole career, I've worked for what feels like every major executive at a tech company, ranging from Chief Product Officer to CTO to CFO

John Lee
John Lee
Jun 9, 2025
Why It's Hard to Decide Which Executive Should Lead a Startup's Data Team

We are Paid to Create Clarity; or, Why No Good Analyst is an Island

Modern technology companies hire data teams not to produce analysis for its own sake, but to use data to create clarity for the business

John Lee
John Lee
Apr 14, 2025
We are Paid to Create Clarity; or, Why No Good Analyst is an Island

Links, Walled Gardens, and the Death of the World Wide Web

How this Millennial has seen the internet evolve in his lifetime from surfing webpages to doomscrolling feeds, and his hopes and fears for what comes next

John Lee
John Lee
Mar 24, 2025
Links, Walled Gardens, and the Death of the World Wide Web

A Data Scientist's Guide to Finding Good Restaurants

How to avoid being overwhelmed by the "big data" of thousands of restaurant reviews, and better your chances of stumbling on a restaurant you'll love

John Lee
John Lee
Mar 11, 2025
A Data Scientist's Guide to Finding Good Restaurants

Finding the Right Level of Precision for Practical Analysts

All models are wrong, but some are useful; or, why "just get me this number" is so often such a painful and difficult question for analysts to answer

John Lee
John Lee
Feb 24, 2025
Finding the Right Level of Precision for Practical Analysts

Subscribe
I post once to twice a month, so subscribe to ensure you don’t miss my next post.

© 2025 Infernal Ramblings.

Privacy policy

Terms of use

Powered by beehiiv