1. 9/16/16, 1:11 PMBig data and the examined life
Page 1 of 5http://fedscoop.com/big-data-and-the-examined-life
September 16, 2016
​Big data and the examined life
Commentary: Our every keystroke adds another
byte to the data pool, revealing more about who we
are, and doubling the world's data every 18
months.
BIO
By JR Reagan
NOVEMBER 30, 2015 5:30 AM
(iStockphoto)
Although the human population increases about 1 percent each year,
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2. 9/16/16, 1:11 PMBig data and the examined life
Page 2 of 5http://fedscoop.com/big-data-and-the-examined-life
JR Reagan writes regularly for
FedScoop on technology, innovation
and cybersecurity issues.
the quantity of information we produce reportedly doubles every 18
months. In 2011, according to one report, humans had generated 1.8
trillion gigabytes — enough to fill so many 32 GB tablets that,
stacked, they would build a wall twice as tall as the Great Wall of
China. By 2020, the amount of data worldwide could exceed 40
trillion GB.
One reason for this exponential growth: mobile phones. More than
half the global population owns at least one cell phone, reports the
social media agency We Are Social. We don’t stop at just one: There
are more mobile-service accounts than people in the world.
Wearables including watches, bracelets and clothing add to the
information stream, as do devices including our cars and home
appliances, making us all destined, it seems, to become human data
factories.
Knowledge is power
What does all this data reveal about us? Nearly everything.
Online, our every keystroke adds another byte to the data pool,
revealing our desires and quandaries, our values and opinions, our
acquisitions and hobbies, our tastes in music, our favorite sports
teams, our viewing and reading habits.
Apps and other tools report how much
we sleep at night and how well, how
many steps we take in a day, what we
eat and drink — and how much, how
intelligent we are, how much we travel
and where we go, how much energy we
consume, how much CO2 our activities
generate, how much money we have
and how we use it, and much more.
Orwellian though it may sound, all this
information offers vast potential to
improve and even extend our lives.
Already we are reaping the benefits.
The “quantified self” movement, with its focus on individual
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3. 9/16/16, 1:11 PMBig data and the examined life
Page 3 of 5http://fedscoop.com/big-data-and-the-examined-life
monitoring and analysis, includes members whose data has helped
them to lose weight, drink less alcohol, drink more water, save
money, work more efficiently, manage their time better, become
more physically fit, read faster, improve their memories, meet
personal goals, manage chronic illnesses, improve their physical
environment — and the list goes on.
The more we know about ourselves, the more we want to know.
Innovations in “consciousness hacking,” including brain tracking and
augmentation — new frontiers in self-improvement — aim to
monitor and direct our moods as well as to improve cognition.
Nanoparticles ingested in pills may someday provide an in-depth look
at health, detecting very early such conditions as cancer, artery
blockages and nascent diabetes.
Increasingly popular DNA tests can delve even more deeply, showing
us our inherited tendencies and helping medical professionals to
tailor treatments to match our individual makeup.
Big data = big solutions
Data’s potential extends far beyond enriching and prolonging
individual lives, however. Shared freely — and, if desired,
anonymously — “open source” data can provide us with big-picture
scenarios that, properly analyzed, may benefit entire communities,
or even the world. Why is autism on the rise? How will changing
climates affecting food production? What innovations would best
benefit my city, state, region or nation?
“The unexamined life is not worth living,” Socrates said some 2,400
years ago. How, then, might the data we generate, and its subsequent
analysis, add value and meaning to our lives today and tomorrow?
With an unprecedented trove of knowledge at our behest, we become
as omniscient as the philosopher’s gods, able to foresee a future in
which anything is possible.
JR Reagan is the global chief information security officer of Deloitte. He
also serves as professional faculty at Johns Hopkins, Cornell and Columbia
universities. Follow him @IdeaXplorer. Read more from JR Reagan.
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4. 9/16/16, 1:11 PMBig data and the examined life
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