List of Tables and Figures xv
Preface xvii
Acknowledgments xxiii
Introduction This Ain't Your Father's Data 1
Better Car Insurance through Data 2
Potholes and General Road Hazards 5
Recruiting and Retention 8
How Big is Big? The Size of Big Data 10
Why Now? Explaining the Big Data Revolution 12
Central Thesis of Book 22
Plan of Attack 24
Who Should Read This Book? 25
Summary 25
Notes 26
Chapter 1 Data 101 and the Data Deluge 29
The Beginnings: Structured Data 30
Structure This! Web 2.0 and the Arrival of Big Data 33
The Composition of Data: Then and Now 39
The Current State of the Data Union 41
The Enterprise and the Brave New Big Data World 43
Summary 46
Notes 47
Chapter 2 Demystifying Big Data 49
Characteristics of Big Data 50
The Anti-Definition: What Big Data Is Not 71
Summary 72
Notes 72
Chapter 3 The Elements of Persuasion: Big Data Techniques 77
The Big Overview 79
Statistical Techniques and Methods 80
Data Visualization 84
Automation 88
Semantics 93
Big Data and the Gang of Four 98
Predictive Analytics 100
Limitations of Big Data 105
Summary 106
Notes 107
Chapter 4 Big Data Solutions 111
Projects, Applications, and Platforms 114
Other Data Storage Solutions 121
Websites, Start-ups, and Web Services 128
Hardware Considerations 133
The Art and Science of Predictive Analytics 136
Summary 137
Notes 137
Chapter 5 Case Studies: The Big Rewards of Big Data 141
Quantcast: A Small Big Data Company 141
Explorys: The Human Case for Big Data 147
NASA: How Contests, Gamification, and Open Innovation
Enable Big Data 152
Summary 158
Notes 158
Chapter 6 Taking the Big Plunge 161
Before Starting 161
Starting the Journey 165
Avoiding the Big Pitfalls 174
Summary 181
Notes 181
Chapter 7 Big Data: Big Issues and Big Problems 183
Privacy: Big Data = Big Brother? 184
Big Security Concerns 188
Big, Pragmatic Issues 189
Summary 195
Notes 196
Chapter 8 Looking Forward: The Future of Big Data 197
Predicting Pregnancy 198
Big Data Is Here to Stay 200
Big Data Will Evolve 201
Projects and Movements 203
Big Data Will Only Get Bigger...and Smarter 205
The Internet of Things: The Move from Active to Passive Data
Generation 206
Big Data: No Longer a Big Luxury 211
Stasis Is Not an Option 212
Summary 213
Notes 214
Final Thoughts 217
Spreading the Big Data Gospel 219
Notes 220
Selected Bibliography 221
About the Author 223
Index 225