Susannah Fox

I help people navigate health and technology.

trends & principles

Health Datapalooza turns 5 (going on 15)

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In my opening remarks for Health Datapalooza‘s final day, I tried to strike notes of “welcome!” and “let’s get real.” The adolescent meme got picked up, but without much context, so I thought I’d share what I said: The Datapalooza is five years old, but we are way past the kindergarten stage, when people outside the movement […]

Recognizing the value of data

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In 1999, when I was the editor of USNews.com, the dot-com boom was in full swing. Money seemed to be gushing out of the Bay Area and some sharpies at USNews saw an opportunity to cash in. They proposed slicing out the most marketable piece of the website — the education franchise — and selling […]

Persistence vs. flow

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The Pew Research Center has released its latest report celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Web. This one looks forward to 2025, with experts’ predictions. Here’s my favorite quote so far, from the “Pithy Additions” section: Jerry Michalski, founder of REX, the Relationship Economy eXpedition, observed, “The Internet gives us Persistence — the ability to leave things for […]

3 big trends: networks, unbundling, smartphones

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Fred Wilson, a venture capitalist, gave a talk at Le Web that touches on health, but even better, provides a framework for thinking about how technology is transforming the world in general: Pew Research has data to back up each of his points on mobile, video, dating, social networking, news gathering, education, our networked lives in general, […]

How would you like your data today?

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After a very full year of writing reports, giving speeches, and number-checking infographics, I’m left wondering: What’s the most effective way to deliver insights? How can I better serve you? To paraphrase Dr. Seuss: Do you like the data in a table? In a tweet? In a speech? Do you like the numbers in a […]

A field guide to The Diagnosis Difference

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The Pew Research Center released a report today on people living with chronic conditions: The Diagnosis Difference. Policy makers, patient advocates, entrepreneurs, investors, clinicians — all health care stakeholders — can use the data to map the current landscape. There are still barren patches, where people remain offline and cut off from the resources and […]