My name is John Taylor. I am a data scientist and fraud researcher, a prolific dabbler, and a family man. I live in lovely, weird Portland, Oregon.
Work
Currently, I am a Director of Research for pipl.com working on protecting people from identity theft and other online fraud while allowing businesses to establish trust and safety.
Previously, I was a Manager of Digital Data Science at iovation (and TransUnion post-buyout). On one hand, I worked on organizational and product problems, on the other I directed data science research.
While working as an individual contributor at iovation designed and prototyped two new products– the first, a predictive scoring service; the second, a device-based recognition method resulting in a new authentication service. Prior to this, I was an analyst in a variety of forms (Data, Performance Management, and Systems).
I went to graduate school for Logic and Computation where I specialized in philosophy of science and formal epistemology. My undergraduate degrees are in philosophy and psychology, with a minor in computer information systems.
For more professional information, see my profile on LinkedIn.
What is this Site For?
This is largely a relic site for some past posts and to maintain an individual public presence. The world has largely moved on from blogs and personal sites to consolidated social media spaces.
Trivia
- I grew up in the small foothill town of Columbia, CA.
- In my childhood, my family kept or rehabilitated a menagerie of animals which at various times included cats, dogs, rats, guinea pigs, hamsters, a potbellied pig, rabbits, chickens, goats, Large White pigs, horses, a donkey, two squirrels, a raccoon, various fish, a desert tortoise, iguanas, rattlesnakes, kingsnakes, African scorpions, and a tarantula.
- During middle and high school, I won two art contests and one creative writing contest, garnering a bit of money and a poster signed by Micheal J. Fox.
- I have worked as a woodcutter, landscaper, fast-food worker, logic grader (this is where the site name comes from), tutor, website designer, computer lab manager, GIS surveyor, and information technician.
- I have native ancestry (specifically, Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa) which I never know about until the Bureau of Indian Affairs contacted me in my mid-thirties.
- I have competed twice in Brazilian jiu-jitsu though I am something of a dilettante. I didn’t place the first time and got silver the second. I am currently a purple belt.