Ken Pu
PhD

Background

The Internet is inundated by a constant stream of information from the government, business, industry, and largely, the media. Public perception is essentially based on the knowledge and views released via these channels. However, a vast quantity of data is readily available for public consumption, and datasets are easily accessible in their raw forms. Yet, in most cases, the schema of the data sets is either, missing, incomplete or inaccurate, leaving much of the world’s open data on the cutting room floor. Intrigued by society’s trust in the online platform, Ken Pu, PhD, Associate Professor of Computer Science, in the Faculty of Science, is investigating ways to sift through this vast information and develop technology to enable users to explore and better understand the open data world. Greater accessibility to open data would allow consumers to formulate their own expert opinions about news and events shaping the nations, without relying on a summary from news media and other outlets. Significant value as well as latent concerns about how the world operates is buried in anonymity. Dr. Pu’s latest research aims to map open data at the federal level in Canada, the U.S. and Great Britain to improve society's understanding of how all levels of government operate. The goal is to enable citizens to form their own opinion, to be more aware of and feel more comfortable with how the government is performing to ensure greater accountability. In the Software Quality Research Lab, Dr. Pu is looking at ways to humanize open data and give users more control over it. He aims to build an online roadmap for mobile users to be able to source open data in a very pervasive way using touch screen and voice recognition. He is also focused on expanding data processing on mobile devices, with the goal of enabling open data exploration without relying on the need for traditional computer hardware. Before joining Ontario Tech as an Assistant Professor in 2006, Dr. Pu worked in Silicon Valley for two years as a Software Engineer with IBM. In 2011, he was appointed Associate Professor, and in 2013 he took on a two-year term as Undergraduate Program Director in Computer Science. Dr. Pu completed his Bachelor of Applied Science in Engineering Science, his Master of Applied of Science in Electrical and Computer Engineering, and his Doctorate in Computer Science all at the University of Toronto.