Author Archives: Reid Wegley

The ability to cross reference tire sizes by auto accident frequency may have the ability to save you on your monthly premium. But what are the additional theoretical or even real costs associated with the increased use of big data?

As the big data industry continues to grow and our daily lives become more integrated into a multitude of datasets, some countries are looking at how to regulate the types of information, the way information is collected and the way information is used.

A global challenge

In Europe, there is a proposal for a regulation called the general data protection regulation(GDPR). This regulation would subject foreign companies that process the personal data of EU citizens such as names, email addresses, medical information or even social networking sites to increased scrutiny and stiff penalties for data misuse.

Here in the US, there are currently a number of laws that appear to be applicable to regulating how data is collected. But according to information from the General Accounting Office, those policies are outdated and not adequate. Regulations such as HIPAA (1996), Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (1998) or the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act (1986) are all tasked with regulating technologies that simply didn’t exist then.

But this is also a challenge of scale. Big data is big business. In fact, according to some estimates, in 2012 the data-driven marketing economy added $156 billion in revenue to the U.S. economy and fueled more than 675,000 jobs. That’s nearly half of total U.S. expenditures on marketing and advertising services, which is estimated at $292 billion annually. Because of this massive presence in our economy, even the FTC has vowed to find a way to regulate the collection of data. Integrating big data in your business

In the face of potential regulation, ensuring that your business is utilizing big data in a safe, secure and effective way is vital. Discovering repeatable business patterns is the most valuable benefit of big data and if those patterns and business practices are eventually subject to regulation, you want to ensure that your data is safe.

This is especially vital in big data for health care or even in the consumer space with organizations. Today, we’re able to mine a richer field of less structured, and potentially more valuable, data from weblogs, social media, email, sensors and photographs. Alacer offers your organization the ability to translate that data into actionable results while ensuring that you are staying compliant of any current or future regulations.

by Richard Paxton

We’ve talked a lot about how big data is bringing big changes to specific industries, such as healthcare, security and even aviation.  As we begin to wrap up 2013, we thought it might be interesting to discuss how big data will help shape global changes in the very near future.  So, as we look into the crystal ball, we see:

• Big changes in higher education.  In the U.S., we’re currently experiencing two problems: an education gap within a large population of the unemployed who don’t have the skills needed to re-enter the workforce, and the rising costs of higher education (in many ways, it’s escalating faster than healthcare!).  The ability to access education via the Internet is growing in popularity, and is being facilitated by big data platform technologies such as Hadoop.  Thanks to organizations such as Coursera and Big Data University, we see everyone having access to education, either for free or for a very low cost.
• Solving the area’s greatest mystery.  One of the more intriguing stories we’ve seen lately is how big data is being used to prove the existence of Bigfoot, that elusive legendary creature hiding in the dense forests of the Pacific Northwest.  A researcher at Penn State University is using analytics to examine 92 years of data to discover patterns that could eventually be used to track the beast once and for all.  Or not.
• Auto industry fights the war against climate change.  According to Jim Motavalli of the New York Times, Ford Motor Co. is using green analytics to drive new auto designs that dramatically lower CO² emissions.  Ford is also tackling the problem via its sales channels through a new app, the Fleet Purchase Planner, which leverages big data to clearly illustrates how procurement managers can determine their greenest options (i.e., electric, hybrid, etc.).
• Smarter romance.  According to the successful online dating site eHarmony, it’s users are generating terabytes of data.   Going forward, improved algorithms and deeper analytics will enable eHarmony to suggest better matches, helping the site create more successful pairings.  For example, perhaps a man thinks he’s attracted to redheads, but he clicks more frequently on the profiles of brunettes.  eHarmony know this, and will use the data to understand what the man is truly looking for, improving the accuracy of the dating platform’s selections and responses.

Big data = a Brave New World.

by Ed Sarausad

Big data means big things for healthcare and hospitals.  We’ve already written about how big data and simulation modeling can help identify and implement improvements in high traffic institutional areas.  But there are many other ways that healthcare is looking to big data to make huge improvements in facility overhead costs, patient care and satisfaction, research and more.  Here are just a few:

Smart device integration.  In a report issued by KLAS Enterprises and cited by U.S. News and World Report, more than half of the responding healthcare providers believe that integrating information directly from devices such as intravenous infusion pumps into electronic medical records is a key goal; 54 healthcare organizations are under contract to complete this project.  These efforts are progressing slowly, but the interoperability of medical devices with electronic records is inevitable and will create a new stream of available data.

Biomedical research.  One of the most exciting developments is how big data is being used to develop predictive models in biomedical research.  Big data enables research to take a macroscopic look at disease patterns and, consequently, to develop novel therapeutics.  According to the Sanford Burnham Medical Research Institute, each person has approximately six billon base pairs (DNA building blocks) in the genome, 20,300 protein-coding genes, thousands of RNA molecules and at least 2,900 metabolites.  Only a platform that can extrapolate big data can effectively examine how specific information can be used to develop personalized medicine.

Patient care.  According to Michael Blaszyk, CFO of Dignity Health, hospitals will continue to develop new ways to use data mining and analytics to guide patient care.  As a result, clinical information systems will need to evolve to accommodate real time data collection and usage.

Smart beds.  Imagine if healthcare providers could access a continuous stream of vital statistics on their patients via smartphones or mobile devices: blood pressure readings, temperature and more.  That’s the concept behind a number of “smart beds” entering the marketplace – Decatur, Alabama – based Decatur Morgan Hospital just installed five of them in its newborn intensive care unit.  Not only do the beds give caregivers an accurate picture of patient health 24×7, but eventually, enough data will be collected over time to be able to analyze NICU trends, its environment and the impact on patients, etc.  Smart beds could also provide valuable data in the study of sleep apnea.

by Richard Paxton

Get ready for The Internet of Things.  It’s a groundbreaking shift in our Internet ecosystem as we move beyond computing devices to a network of everyday tools ranging from home gym equipment to insurance-issued automotive monitoring systems.  Known as the IoT, it is mirroring the explosive growth of mobile devices, which BI Intelligence estimates will grow from 1.9 billion connections today to 9 million by 2018.

As society transitions from a series of formerly inert objects to networked intelligent devices, the IoT represents a potentially huge and lucrative market for many industries.  How we utilize the data generated by the IoT will play a key role in maximizing these profits.  For example, smart homes aren’t anything new; we’ve already written about how the utilities market will use big data to make the smart grid smarter, based in part by information collected through new home thermostats.   But the number of other areas where IoT data will be used is mind boggling.

Think about a few of these concepts:

• What if billboards moved beyond paste-and-paper to digital?  Motorola is just one company that has developed a purpose-built network to digitize billboards.  And consultants at McKinsey report that Japan is already analyzing the shopping habits of people passing by billboards and changing the messages to best suit their needs.
• Angel is the first open sensor for health and fitness.  Through a wristband, it monitors vital signs and, if potentially dangerous health conditions are detected, it notifies you AND your physician.  Presumably, insurers will also be able to access this data.
• Your home might already be automated, but how about your pet’s feeding schedule?  That’s the purpose of Pintofeed, which works through your smartphone to let you deliver meals on time – even if you’re not in residence.

In fact, the possibilities are endless…and that’s why we’re creating the Alacer Center for Advanced Computing (ACAC).  Led by consultant Aaron Hoffer, ACAC is tasked with delivering game-changing solutions that impact how our daily lives intersect with social engagement and electronics.

We’re not quite ready to take the wraps off our project yet – but we’re moving forward quickly.

by Ed Sarausad

Ever thought about how big data could improve airports?

Most people are aware of the fact that large, international airports generate millions of dollars in revenue for their respective regions. But the fact is, even smaller airports play a huge role in the economics of their hometowns. For example, in 2010, the State of Washington calculated that a single-runway airport in the small town of Moses Lake had an overall financial impact on the region of $770,000. Imagine how the growth of that income might produce more jobs and even better economics – and big data can play a key role in making that dream a reality.

The aviation industry as a whole is undergoing massive changes. Today, airlines need to work with airports and airport managers to understand passenger flow, reduce costs and enhance revenues. It’s an industry ripe for data-driven marketing, particularly if an IT solution can provide insights from both structured and unstructured data in real time so that there is a cohesive understanding of passengers and their behaviors.

For this reason, the aviation industry, and in particular, aviation facilities, represents a new and exciting area of big data business consulting for Alacer.

The data generated within this environment is so complex that it is often difficult to slice and dice using traditional tools. Usually, the structured data is managed through customized databases, but unstructured data is held in separate, functionally specific warehouses or embedded within software.

We recently had the opportunity to address this problem as we worked with an aviation management company to help it better examine its vast amounts of available data. Specifically, we needed to find a way to determine whether or not the management company’s Passenger Facility Charge rebate was achieving its goal of boosting revenue/traffic on selected routes.

An aviation facility’s ecosystem stretches from its ground handlers and supply chain to retailers, security and air traffic control. Technology is the sole enabler that can help this diverse set of customer touch points work together to maximize per-passenger revenues.

For this particular client, we designed algorithms and data analytics tools that would allow airport managers to track each passenger on incentivized routes, award a rebate as appropriate and have immediately updated access to information on the cost and success of the program. They could also calculate the amount of revenue the rebated passengers generated in the airport’s retail outlets, such as its Duty Free store. As a result, the managers could holistically see whether or not substantial rebates were of value to the airport authority and on which specific routes and periods they assisted in market growth.

As a side note, the airport authority chose to share its big data insights with the airport’s partner airlines and retailers, creating deeper relationships.

by Ed Sarausad