In the current political climate you don’t have to travel far to find an expert opinion on the rehabilitation of offenders. But rather than ask the nearest taxi driver, the Ministry of Justice has turned to computer science to work out when we should throw away the key. According to a press release from computer giant IBM, ‘predictive analytics technology’ is helping the ministry assess the likelihood of prisoners reoffending on their release. The Oasys system processes data on individual offenders’ circumstances such as ‘emotional well-being, behaviour and attitudes’, to spot hidden trends. The resulting intelligence forms the basis for ‘improved measurements of offender risk and need’. Apparently it’s helped improve the accuracy of predictions about re-offending: from 68% to 74% in the case of violent offenders. Obiter thoroughly approves of the use of scientific analysis rather than tabloid headlines to inform decisions about the rehabilitation of offenders. So long as it’s clear who’s in charge. Sci-fi fans will recall that the rogue supercomputer in 2001: A Space Odyssey was called HAL – by coincidence the three letters preceding I, B and M in the alphabet.