LOGIN | REGISTER NOW | SUBSCRIBE
 

Future of data analysis lies in tools for humans, not automatic systems


By Alex Handy
Email    print   
February 18, 2010 —  (Page 1 of 2)
Developers working on data mining projects should build Iron Man, not R2D2. That's according to speakers at the second annual Predictive Analytics World Conference, which ended yesterday in San Francisco. The conference focused on building better tools for analysts rather than building autonomous robots that make decisions.

John F. Elder IV, founder and CEO of Elder Research, said the U.S. government has been an early adopter of text-mining technology. “It turns out that government agencies are taking the lead in text mining. Their data is huge, their need is great and they are willing to act on it," he said.

Text mining is the act of extracting information from streams of text.

"Text mining is a lot like the Wild West right now, like data mining was a few years ago,” Elder said, explaining that the market for text mining was still in a fledgling state. Elder Research has contracted with the U.S. government to implement data mining solutions.

Elder said one of the key problems with text mining is that many projects attempt to automate the entire process. He said this is the wrong way to deal with data mining.

“Anyone who works with computers and humans knows their strengths are complimentary; they are not alike,” he said. That means developers shouldn't build analytics robots, but rather exoskeletal systems, metaphorically similar to the superhero Iron Man, that can enhance the comprehension and usefulness of the statisticians who use those systems.

Using predictive analytics, Elder implemented a system for the Social Security Administration that sped up the process of approving disabled applicants for insurance. For 20% of those applying for disability insurance, the process is fairly straightforward, but due to the complications introduced by the other 80% of applicants, everyone had to wait.

Elder's system allowed the 20% to be instantly approved if their applications were similar to others that were worthy of the express lane. The system, he said, was 90% to 95% accurate in predicting which applications could be quickly approved, and that this was accomplished by analyzing the words used in the application.


Related Search Term(s): data mining

Pages 1 2 


Share this link: http://sdt.bz/34139
 
Most Read Latest News Blog Resources
Branching and merging: the heart of version control
Providers hold their own views of the landscape, but the Git SCM system is drawing looks from them all
Not so fast when it comes to testing in the cloud
Developers face outsourcing, virtual lab management and mobile devices as obstacles
Microsoft pivots toward business intelligence
The goal is to make business intelligence accessible "to the masses"
From the Editors: Node.js is unruly, but that’s where the fun is
The time to get involved with Node.js is now; Hadoop is about to break its own barriers
Digg!  Digg
Reddit  Reddit
Slashdot  Slashdot
Share on facebook  Facebook
Share on Twitter  Twitter


Add comment


Name*
Email*  
Country     


  • Comment
Loading




close
NEXT ARTICLE
Mobile developers must sidestep data limitations
Bandwidth constrictions from carriers and mobile devices require different measures to bypass Read More...
 
 
 
 
News on Monday
more>>
SharePoint Tech Report
more>>


   

 
 

Download Current Issue
FEBRUARY 2012 PDF ISSUE

Need Back Issues?
DOWNLOAD HERE

Want to subscribe?


 
blogs tab
GitHire: Use Headhunters to Find Your Perfect Programmer
Are you a hiring manager tired of scouring the job boards? Check out this new service that will find 5 people interested in your jobs.
02/03/2012 12:17 PM EST

Facebook claims hacker cred
Facebook's SEC S-1 filing form includes a short essay on the Hacker Way by Mark Zuckerberg himself.
02/02/2012 08:26 AM EST

Ryan Dahl steps down
Ryan Dahl, creator of Node.js, steps back from his position as gatekeeper for the project.
02/01/2012 04:58 PM EST

Bloomberg opens its API
Bloomberg's APIs could lead to a future standard for accessing market data.
02/01/2012 04:41 PM EST

The case for piracy
In the aftermath of SOPA and PIPA, some copyright holders have begun to embrace piracy as inevitable...and even beneficial.
01/30/2012 02:39 PM EST

Tablet sales boom, but applications lag
The installed base of tablet computers and e-book readers is growing rapidly, but no killer app has yet emerged -- hint, hint.
01/28/2012 05:48 PM EST

 
Events calendar tab
Cloud Connect
2/13/2012 to 2/16/2012
Santa Clara
TechWeb

SPTechCon: The SharePoint Technology Conf.
2/26/2012 to 2/29/2012
San Francisco
BZ Media

RSA Conf.
2/27/2012 to 3/2/2012
San Francisco
RSA

IBM Pulse Conf.
3/4/2012 to 3/7/2012
Las Vegas
IBM Tivoli

Game Developer Conf.
3/5/2012 to 3/9/2012
San Francisco
TechWeb