What is Data Science?

While most of us believe Data Science is handling large volumes of data effectively and efficiently, Data Science is not restricted to this. Merely using data isn’t really what is meant by “data science.” A data application acquires its value from the data itself, and creates more data as a result. It’s not just an application with data; it’s a data product. Data science enables the creation of data products.

Several organizations have used this well and have given the industry several products that help handle Data Science. Key examples are from Google itself who realized the importance of a search engine and further made it more effective using tracking links. Spell checks with suggestions and speech recognition are other examples of Google’s way of creating products out of data. Facebook and Linkedin have used patterns of friendship relationships to suggest other people you may know or should know, sometimes with great accuracy.

The thread that ties most of these applications together is that data collected from users provides added value. Whether that data is search terms, voice samples, or product reviews, the users are in a feedback loop in which they contribute to the products they use. That’s the beginning of data science.