Especially with the last year of a rather speedy shift to a great increase in the digital world, Big Data has grown exponentially.
The phrase is everywhere and tossed around like some big scary thing that only computer geniuses can understand. Mind you I love computer geniuses and all other kinds of geniuses. But let me demystify things a bit on Big Data and some of the terms associated with it.
Big Data – All the information available out there in the webiverse, whether it be free or paid access. Quite simply it is the pile of reports, analysis, observations, posts, images, news and anything else you can think of. Even the metadata (things like the keywords, tags, at text associated with these things).
Machine Learning – For the most part, critical with all of the Big Data out there. I plain terms, machine learning is where the computer takes all the “stuff” out there and tries to interpret patterns, relationships, causes and predictions. In theory it is bias free and can do millions of computations per second.
Internet of Things – This one sounds all fancy and esoteric. However, it is all the items out there that are not computers in the sense we know them, but they have internet access. Refrigerators that get recipes from the food inside, lighting and heating systems linked to your smartphone. The GPS on your pet’s collar for just a few.
What is Good
Mass processing and consumption of insane amounts of data.
In theory, an unbiased analysis by a machine.
Convenience and ease of access for consumers.
Freeing up the human mind to think about what to do with the results, instead of energy getting to the results.
More businesses can have access to data to build and grow.
What is not so Good
Filtering out the junk. The unfounded studies, the false reports, the “data” solely based on opinion. All can potentially clutter the results. Think of your social feed and how much of it is viable, useful information.
The relationship determination is only as good as the stats you tell the machine to use.
Invalid relationships based on a “visible” connection. My all time favorite is “Sales of ice cream increase in the summer, the murder rate increases in the summer. Therefore, the sale of ice cream causes murder.” The additional factors of heat and more people outside are ignored in that, but it is a possible conclusion.
Highly complex and insane amounts of data can be overwhelming.
Cost can get up there.
Overall, Big Data is a good thing if we are cautious in how we use and learn with it.
Need more explained? Reach out to The Information Tamer and learn more.
