What is Big Data?
The term “Big Data” first emerged in the 1960s, especially in the fields of astronomy and genetics. Today, it is commonly understood as the ‘massive data pile’ created by the interaction of individuals with social media accounts, photo archives, search engines, internet browsing, and, additionally, machine and smart device interactions via the internet, driven by advancing internet and mobile technologies.
With technological advancements, millions of pieces of information have appeared on the internet. At present (2019), in just one minute on the internet, the following activities occur:
- Facebook: 973,000 logins
- Google: 3.7 million searches
- Twitter: 481,000 tweets
- WhatsApp: 38 million messages sent
- Instagram: 174,000 scrolls
- YouTube: 4.3 million videos viewed
- Netflix: 266,000 hours of video watched
- Tinder: 1.1 million swipes
- Messenger: 25,000 GIFs sent
- Emails: 187 million emails sent
- Spending: $862,000 spent
Until recently, most of this data was considered junk. However, as e-commerce grew, social platforms developed, and data became increasingly digital, it transformed from a heap of useless information into a tool that offers various benefits to humanity. Companies, led by Google, began analyzing this vast pool of data called Big Data to extract useful insights, thus introducing a new technology.
We define Big Data as a general concept that describes the massive data generated as a result of developments in information technology, which grows exponentially and possesses specific characteristics. It involves analyzing and interpreting this data to generate useful outcomes.
Is Every Type of Data Considered Big Data? What Defines Big Data?
Big Data is characterized by five key features or components, often referred to as the “5 Vs”:
- Variety: Refers to data collected from various sources, whether structured (organized and classified) or unstructured (unclassified). The type and diversity of data are key criteria.
- Velocity: The speed at which Big Data is generated continues to increase, requiring rapid processing. Analyzing large volumes of data quickly, much faster than traditional analysis methods, is essential.
- Volume: The sheer size of rapidly growing data has reached enormous scales worldwide. For instance, more than 400 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute. In 2016, global mobile traffic reached a monthly 6.2 billion gigabytes.
- Verification: Analyzing unnecessary or corrupted data can lead to wasted time and inaccurate results. Companies and data analysts spend 70-80% of their time cleaning and validating data. Therefore, data accuracy (Verification) is one of the most critical components.
- Value: The most important characteristic is the ability to extract “value” from data. Without generating value, other characteristics of Big Data are meaningless.
How Can We Derive Meaningful Insights from the Massive Data Online to Benefit Humanity?
How Can We Shape Our Future Using This Data? Companies are certainly asking, “How can we make more money?”
Big Data offers numerous benefits, such as:
- Time savings
- Cost advantages
- Supporting decision-making processes in businesses by converting large volumes of data into usable formats and leveraging statistical data analysis tools.
- Shedding light on sociological and societal events.
- Comparing many related data points rapidly.
- Providing benefits in virtually any area you can imagine.
The European Commission, as part of its digital agenda, highlights that Big Data could be especially beneficial in sectors like Health, Transportation, Environment, Agriculture, and Manufacturing/Retail. For example, it can lead to faster diagnoses and cost savings in healthcare, safer and more efficient transportation, more productive agricultural practices, and timely, appropriate product delivery to consumers in retail, all of which help companies gain cost advantages.
Another significant area is Education. In recent years, Big Data has been used to improve educational quality, provide personalized learning for students, and enhance and monitor educational performance.
In short, Big Data is rapidly changing the world.
By 2020, it was estimated that each person on Earth would generate an average of 1.7 megabytes of data per second. Companies providing internet-related services are developing new algorithms and software to process this data. Companies that can effectively interpret Big Data, which reveals consumer tendencies, can adjust their strategies accordingly to make risk-free investments. Big Data appears to continue growing and astonishing the human mind each day.
In Conclusion:
In the age of information we live in, the most important power and capital is information, and the foundation of information is data. Data, on its own, holds no meaning; however, when interpreted, it transforms into information, creating added value. Big Data, which involves analyzing this data to generate benefits for society, stands as an inevitable phenomenon. It serves as a valuable technology for shaping future strategies for both countries and companies.
