Following the horrible incidents I was wondering if we can build a model with gun purchase data and some other data sources like social, etc ?
Ask HN: Is gun purchase data available?
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Re: Ask HN: Is gun purchase data available?
#2to add, there is also training data available in form of people who have committed shootings or have any crime record.
its then just about feature selection that could prove some causation or correlation
Re: Ask HN: Is gun purchase data available?
#3Not publicly, so far as I know.
Any time someone purchases a gun from a store, or from most dealers at gun-shows, a background check gets run. This, + paperwork and records residing with individual sellers are your only real sources of data, neither of which are public.
The concept of a national gun registry has been debated hotly for quite a while, but that would definitely not be public if it existed.
Re: Ask HN: Is gun purchase data available?
#4to add, there is also training data available in form of people who have committed shootings or have any crime record. its then just about feature selection that could prove some causation or correlation
what do you mean by "training data"?
Re: Ask HN: Is gun purchase data available?
#5I heard on NPR that the National Institute of Justice, which is an arm of the Justice Department, has funded some studies. Might want to try there.
Re: Ask HN: Is gun purchase data available?
#6Following the [X] I was wondering if we can build a model [Y] and some other data sources like [Z], etc ?
(X = Reichstag Fire, Y = of potential communists, Z = communist party affiliation) (X = 9/11 Attacks, Y = of terrorists, Z = mosque attendance)
I guess you could, but has history taught us nothing? If I am a communist, am I a threat to you? If I am a muslim, am I a threat to you? If I have a gun, am I a threat to you?
I don't own a gun or have a gun license, nor do I want to be the victim of gun violence (or violence of any kind, having experienced it), but I don't know what you would gain from this information if you are looking to profile a potential disaster.
Re: Ask HN: Is gun purchase data available?
#7Following the [X] I was wondering if we can build a model [Y] and some other data sources like [Z], etc ? (X = Reichstag Fire, Y = of potential communists, Z = communist party affiliation) (X = 9/11 Attacks, Y = of terrorists, Z = mosque attendance) I guess you could, but has history taught us nothing? If I am a communist, am I a threat to you? If I am a muslim, am I a threat to you? If I have a gun, am I a threat to…
thats why i used both causation and correlation. Correlation probably doesnt help here but until the model is built you can't really tell right?
Re: Ask HN: Is gun purchase data available?
#8to add, there is also training data available in form of people who have committed shootings or have any crime record. its then just about feature selection that could prove some causation or correlation
what do you mean by "training data"?
in machine learning we could use some supervised technique if we have training data instead of unsupervised. sorry for not being clear
Re: Ask HN: Is gun purchase data available?
#9Not publicly, so far as I know. Any time someone purchases a gun from a store, or from most dealers at gun-shows, a background check gets run. This, + paperwork and records residing with individual sellers are your only real sources of data, neither of which are public. The concept of a national gun registry has been debated hotly for quite a while, but that would definitely not be public if it existed.
oh ok.. then maybe credit card transactions if they dont buy it with cash instead
Re: Ask HN: Is gun purchase data available?
#10I'm not sure about gun purchase data, but the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has some interesting information on their website (https://www.atf.gov/resource-center/data-statistics). I'm not sure if this is useful for you, but I hope this helps you out.