Big Data: Emerging Narratives?

In a recent TEDx talk at Macquarie University in Australia, Jodie Sangster talks about big data. Mobile data and user generated data on social media are two important sources of big data. Sangster’s message here is simple – big data has a tremendous potential to benefit society. Sangster’s cites a project which investigates the use of social media data to look at outbreaks of Dengue fever.

Big data is not a phenomenon that is restricted to large commercial enterprises. Instead big data is a phenomenon that is transforming society. This transformation is impacting on all areas of life including healthcare. There are two challenges to understanding big data. The first is to recognise where and how this is happening (e.g social media and health related devices). The second challenge is to understand the breadth and depth of change that this will herald.

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