If you look at any reputable technology website today, you will find that a lot of these websites will be writing about something called Big Data.
Most of these articles which you will read will make use of the term and then tell you how wonderful this “new” technology is and how it can make you a rather large amount of money on the internet or give you an advantage on the local and international stock markets.
When speaking or rather writing about this thing called “Big Data”, we cannot deny that having the ability to process large amounts of data and then really a detailed but yet understandable report where within those results you will be able to gain a new understanding of what you were trying to achieve.
I know right, it sounds extremely vague and like there is no real purpose to why any form of Big Data algorithms was used to find an answer.
This is the exact point of why so many people and companies chose to make use of Big Data algorithms, to find a pattern from a large, seemingly useless collection of data.
So where is Big Data originally from?
C 18000 BCE
The first discovery of intelligent use of data was during the time period of 18000 BCE, when the tribespeople of Uganda used the Ishango bone to record notches to help them develop a system which would enable them to compare their bones and make use of a rudimentary mathematics system which would allow them to make predictions to how long their food would last or how far a certain distance was from a hunting location or a waterhole.
These bones were found by archeologists in the 1600’s and because they are made from organic materials the bones were carbon dated through the use of modern day technology which allows scientists to accurately predict how old the bones are.
C 2400 BCE
Fast forward a couple of thousand years and the next big advancement in the “Big Data” world is taking place in the city of Babylon where the abacus is beginning used an on a daily bases to help run the country and the first libraries began to form, which is a big step in the localized collection of data and information is a centralized location.
300 BC – 48 AD
During this period of time,people would have been able to visit the libraries of Alexandra the Great, which is thought to be the largest collection of information in the ancient world. The library contained over half a million scrolls of knowledge and nearly everything which was known in the ancient world was recorded in Alexandra’s library.
Unfortunately, most of this library was destroyed by an invading Roman army, the remains of this vast data storage house have been sent to locations all over the world and some pieces of information have even ended up showing up on the black market.
C 100 – 200 AD
In this period of time the Greeks did something that would and did shape the future of the technological world and set a standard for data collection which is still used in the world today, the only difference is that today our technology is all digital and the processors which we now make use of having advanced from the original bronze gears which the Geeks used when they created what is thought to be the earliest computer.
This computer is known as the Antikythera Mechanism.
The Antikythera Mechanism was used by the Greeks to keep track of the Olympic Games and to keep track of astrological developments.
Final thoughts
Big data has always been used throughout history and when looking back through the ages at how we as a human race managed to create new ways to store and collect information, it is no surprise to see that big data will and always be a part of our lives and it will always play a massive role in how we advance and how we develop new technology to ensure that we can always live better lives.
It is also important to remember that the original purpose of Big Data collection is to create a structured and systematic storage of information and data.