Sensors are everywhere, and are playing an increasingly important role in our health, our environments, and our interactions with the world. We're moving from a world in which the problem is collecting enough data to a world where we need better tools to understand the data pouring in through the floodgates. How can we make this data actionable?

1. Health Sensors & Big Data
Ignite SF
December 4, 2012
Rachel Kalmar
rachel@diysensors.com
@grapealope
This talk was presented at Ignite SF, on December 4, 2012.
These slides are a condensed version of a Skillshare Workshop I gave as part of the School of Rock Health, on August 1,
2012.

2. Ever wake up on the wrong side of the
bed?
Who here has woken up on the wrong side of the bed? You know the feeling all too well -- your alarm goes off, you wonder
what that awful noise is, and suddenly, you’re awake.
Image credit: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

3. There’s an app for that.
Examples: Sleep as Android, Sleep Cycle, Zeo
Well...unsurprisingly, there’s an app for that. Using the accelerometer from your phone the app can determine what stage of
sleep you’re in, and based on this, the best time to wake you up. This is one of an increasing number of examples of how
sensors can improve our everyday lives.
Image credit: Sleep as Android, Sleep Cycle

4. Source: Cisco
In 2008, the number of things connected to the Internet exceeded the number of people on earth. These things are not just
smartphones and tablets. Increasingly, the objects in our lives can now talk to us.
Image credit: Cisco

5. And this isn’t just about health, it's also about manufacturing, the auto industry, business, government, science and everyday
life. In the not too distant future, everybody, every thing, and every object will become a communication platform.
Image credit: Yuri Van Geest

6. Tracking our lives
These things are tracking our lives, giving us data about things we’ve never measured before. In 2014, there will be 400
million of these devices, with a $4 billion market.
Images (clockwise from top): Withings blood pressure tracker, Basis watch, Google Glass, Fitbit, Nike Fuelband

7. So. Much. Data.
Image modified from The Economist, “The Data Deluge.” Feb 15, 2010
But what do we do with it? We’re creating EXABYTES of data every day. Even storing this much data is difficult, let alone
making sense of it.
Image credit: The Economist, “The Data Deluge.” Feb 15, 2010

8. Today
For geeks
Quantitative storytelling
Today, this allows us to do a kind of quantitative storytelling, where we look at the output of our devices as charts and
numbers. If you’re a geek, like me, this is pretty cool. But most people aren’t, and just want the take-home message. The big
question is how do you make this data actionable?
Image credit: Technology Review, June 21, 2011

9. How can we make data actionable?
vi or
ha
be
data
Source: The Missing Piece Meets the Big O, Shel Silverstein
This depends. What questions are you trying to answer? What problem are you trying to solve? We don't want data, we want
concrete actionable suggestions. To do this, it’s useful to take a look at the data ecosystem.
Image credit: The Missing Piece Meets the Big O, Shel Silverstein

10. user
sensors
actions
data
ecosystem
connect
tools
storage
The data ecosystem includes everything from the user to the data sources, to the connectivity protocol, to how the data is
stored, analyzed, and given back to the user in an actionable way. The starting point is always the user. Why is the user
interested in your device?
Image credit for stick figure: xkcd

11. Why collect health data?
user
Disease management
There are a number of reasons people want to track their health. For my dad, he uses a blood glucose monitor for disease
management. Other reasons you might track your health might be for remote monitoring, or self-improvement like weight loss,
athletics, sleep.
Image credit: Rock Report: Sensors, Agamatrix

12. 450+ tracking
devices and apps
If you go to the QS website, you’ll find a collection of > 450 devices and apps for self-tracking.
This is tracking on a very personal level, but we can do tracking on a global level as well.
Image credit: Quantified Self website

13. Prediction of
global trends
Using search queries about flu symptoms, Google is able to localize and predict flu outbreaks faster than the CDC.
Connecting geo-located sensors, companies like Asthmopolis take this even a step further, tracking where and when you use
your asthma inhaler.
Image credit: Google

14. Exponential growth
Source: Intel
There’s an exponential explosion of the number of devices giving us data, from the personal level to the global level.
The limiting factor here are tools for making this data useful.
Image credit: Intel

15. Accessing, aggregating, processing the
tools
data
Of course, you can make your own tools to access, aggregate, and process data coming in from different sources.
Websites like Cosm make this easier, allowing you to connect the output of sensors via their website to control objects in the
physical world.
Image credit: Cosm

16. How do you make data actionable?
actions
Have you ever noticed that your mood is affected by the weather? Wouldn't it be great if the lighting in your house could make
sure that you get enough light exposure to ward off the winter blues? This is something we can do now, and new sensors are
opening even more doors.

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The next wave of sensors...
The next wave of sensors are becoming increasingly wearable, both aesthetically and practically, passively collecting and
analyzing new kinds of data, and disruptive as things like lab-on-a-chip allow healthcare to move to your phone.
Images (clockwise from top): Misfit Wearables’ Shine, Sano Intelligence, Lab on a Chip, mc10

18. QualcommTricorderXprize.com
These technologies are moving things like the Star Trek medical tricorder from science fiction to science. Companies like
Scanadu and Cellscope have versions of these hand-held triage devices, leveraging your smartphone.
Image credit: Daniel Kraft

19. DIY sensors
And with the rise of the Maker movement and the hardware revolution, it’s getting easier and easier to make your own sensor
devices. And once you’ve made your own device, crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo are making it much
more possible to turn DIY projects into businesses.
Image credit: Make, January 2012

20. meetup.com/Sensored
bit.ly/sensorites
Not only are there more physical tools, but there are a number of virtual and real-world communities, like the Sensored and
Hardware Startup Meetups, where people get together to learn and collaborate.

21. The future...
What will you build?
I’d like to leave you with a challenge, to think about what problems in your life you might be able to solve with access to the
right data. Maybe it’s waking up on the right side of the bed, or maybe it’s something entirely new.
The future will be sensored. The question is: what will you build?

22. Health Sensors & Big Data
Ignite SF
December 4, 2012
Rachel Kalmar
rachel@diysensors.com
@grapealope
Want to learn more? Check out:
• Rock Health
• Singularity University / FutureMed
• Quantified Self
• Hardware Startup Meetup
• Sensored Meetup / Discussion group